 Within the brilliant mind of primatologist Ethan Powell (Anthony Hopkins) lies an ominous secret - a deep-seated mystery unsolved by his estranged family and the law enforcement officials who have tracked him down and jailed him for murders that occurred in the jungles of Rwanda. Highly educated and sophisticated, Powell's truth was derived from years of studying mountain gorillas - to the point where he was living among them in the wild and accepted as one of their own. Now, held captive in a brutal prison for the criminally insane, Powell, who has not spoken in years, is remanded to psychiatrist Theo Caulder (Cuba Gooding Jr.), who must try to unlock the dark mystery from the mind of what appears to be a madman. What he encounters is a series of perplexing mysteries, questions with chilling answers and shocking psychological truths. Eventually, both men are led on an extraordinary journey of self-discovery. Storyline: Nearly two years after having gone amiss in Africa, renowned anthropologist Dr. Ethan Powell is caught committing a crime and subsequently imprisoned in a Florida mental institution, where aspiring psychiatrist Dr. Theo Calder takes over his important case. Dr. Powell, who has been with a group of gorillas during all that time, is not talking at all and seems to be living in a dreamworld. Very slowly, Dr. Calder manages to reach Ethan Powell and starts finding out why Ethan killed two of the poachers. Yet Theo's case is not just about why the murders have happened, but also about how Dr. Powell became the being he is in the first place. With Ethan's silence broken, Theo is introduced into a world beyond common human comprehension: The true nature of being. He learns that mankind's control of everything is a mere illusion and that the true values of existence can't be found so easily. Ethan changes Theo's view of things forever. Written by Julian Reischl Cast Notes: Anthony Hopkins (Ethan Powell), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Theo Calder), Donald Sutherland (Ben Hillard), Maura Tierney (Lynn Powell), George Dzundza (Dr. John Murray), John Ashton [I] (Guard Decks), John Aylward (Warden Keefer), Thomas Q. Morris (Pete), Doug Spinuzza (Nicko), Paul Bates (Bluto), Rex Linn (Guard Alan), Rod McLachlan (Guard Anderson), Kurt Smildsin (Guard #1), Jim R. Coleman (Guard #2), Tracey Ellis (Annie). User Comment: Dan Grant (dan.grant@bell.ca) from Toronto, Ontario, 17 June 1999 • Every once in a while a movie comes out that has something to say. It has something to offer that is more than just Hollywood. It believes in something. In recent years movies like Dances With Wolves, JFK, Falling Down, Malcolm X, Boyz and The Hood and Saving Private Ryan are recent ones that come to mind. They make us examine who we are and what we are doing here and why we do the things that we do. They make us question our actions and they show us that we are perhaps not as great as we thought we were. Movies like this don't come around too often and that's because they have things to say that not only people don't like to hear, but because they don't want to know. Dances With Wolves made me feel guilty to be a white man, Instinct made me ashamed to be a human being. There is a line in one of Pearl Jams songs that says " I don't question our existence, I just question our modern needs. " You will not find more profound lyrics than those ones and this movie takes that same idea and explores it deeper. It shows us the greedy nature of man and how destructive we all are. But it also shows us how beautiful it all once was, and how it all changed. This movie has been so unfairly critisized by everyone from the media to even other people in this very forum that don't seem to understand what it is all about. By now we all know the story of how Anthony Hopkins goes to the jungle and lives among the gorillas and then ends up murdering people. But what we don't know is why he does it. How he gets to that fateful moment and what it is that makes him, a peaceful man, want to kill another human being. The strengths in this movie are numerous but it starts with the performances. Hopkins is quietly brilliant as the emotionally traumatized and scarred former anthropologist. You can feel his pain even before he tells what it is that is eating away inside of him. Cuba Gooding is great as the doctor that goes on a journey with Ethan Powell. At first his interest in Powell is simply one of selfishness. But as he learns more about this complex man, the more he understands and empathizes with him. Also good in his role as the brutal prison guard is John Ashton ( remember him from Beverly Hills Cop? ). His character is very reminiscent of Clancy Brown's in Shawshank Redemption but he is very good here. But the real strength of the film is in the story and the screenplay. The two writers for the film care about what it is that they have to say and they believe in it. You can feel what it is that they are trying to convey. And that is simply: why must we as human beings be so destructive? Why must we be so hateful and greedy and why do have to ruin everything that was once pure and serene? The scenes in this film that are meant to ask for your sympathy are not just gratuitous violence to sell tickets, they are there because things like this happen in real life and we never do anything to stop it. And that is a shame. Denzel Washington's character in " The Siege " said, " You don't let any murderer go free. ANY MURDERER!!! " Well Hopkin's character was punished for his crime but what about the men that murdered those that weren't human? What crime have they committed? And what punishment do they receive for the act of murder against something that isn't human? There is no punishment. And that is what makes us sad individuals and that is what this movie is trying to tell us. Give this movie a chance. It really is a gem and hopefully it will open just one person's eyes and ask them to change. If it can do that, then it has done it's job. I applaud everyone associated with this movie. I just wish more studios and directors and actors would have the guts to do this. I just hope some people can see this movie for what it is and not for what we critisize it for trying to be. And as melo-dramatic as this review may sound to some people and as melo-dramatic as this is also going to sound, it has to be said. Thank you John Turtletaub for making this movie. You moved me and made me think about a great many things. I hope I'm not alone. Summary: one of the most important movies ever made. IMDb Rating (03/14/15): 6.5/10 from 25,101 users IMDb Rating (01/15/10): 6.2/10 from 14,455 users IMDb Rating (06/01/01): 6.1/10 from 2,414 users
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