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The Gift |
Lakeshore Entertainment
and Paramount Classics present a Lakeshore Entertainment/ Alphaville production
Prod: James Jacks, Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi; Exec prod: Sean Daniel, Ted Tannebaum, Gregory Goodman, Rob Tapert; Co-prod: Richard Wright; Dir: Sam Raimi; Scr: Billy Bob Thornton, Tom Epperson; Ph: Jamie Anderson; Prod des: Neil Spisak; Cost des: Julie Weiss; Ed: Bob Murawski, Arthur Coburn; Mus: Christopher Young.
With Cate Blanchett (Annie Wilson), Giovanni Ribisi (Buddy Cole), Keanu Reeves (Donnie Barksdale), Greg Kinnear (Wayne Collins), Hilary Swank (Valerie Barksdale), Katie Holmes (Jessica King), Michael Jeter (Gerald Weems), Kim Dickens (Linda), Gary Cole (David Duncan), JK Simmons (Sheriff Johnson), Chelcie Ross (Kenneth King), Lynnsee Provence (Mike Wilson), Hunter McGilvray (Miller Wilson), David Brannen (Ben Wilson).
International
distribution:
Lake Shore International.
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Giovanni Ribisi as Buddy, the disturbed young mechanic whom Annie tries to help
Thus began the process of assembling one of the most Oscar-heavy casts in recent memory. In addition to Blanchett and Thornton, there is Kinnear, who received an Oscar nomination for his role in As Good As It Gets; and Hilary Swank, who plays Donnie Barksdale’s abused wife, Valerie (whom Annie befriends, bringing more trouble on herself), and who won an Oscar last year for Boys Don’t Cry.
The Gift was filmed in and around Savannah, Georgia, in the early spring of 2000, and the ‘spiritual’ feel of the surrounding countryside - so crucial to Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, the bestselling novel that really put Savannah on the map - became central to the film.
“In one scene,” says cinematographer Jamie Anderson, “Annie walks into the backyard where a huge tree is growing, and has a vision associated with that tree. What became immediately apparent in Savannah was the number of incredibly beautiful trees there were, from huge live oaks dripping with Spanish moss to spooky cypress trees along the rivers.
director Sam Raimi on location in Savannah.
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“The trees became a thread throughout the film, linking scenes together and serving as a presence throughout,” he continues. “They proved to be a perfect symbol of the acceptance of death and the reaffirmation of life - a theme Sam saw running through this story.”
Adds Raimi: “Annie is able to see the world of the spirits, where she partially lives; whereas we can only see this tactile world that we decide to see. It’s actually something that frightens some characters and alienates them from Annie. This ability, however, allows her to perceive love on more levels than we are able to, and that’s the lesson she learns. She uses her gift for healing and the betterment of her own family. This gift allows Annie to deal with her own loss.”
“It’s Annie’s journey through the film to accept the fact that she has a family, she has a life, and she has the right to be happy,” concludes Blanchett. “Annie is misunderstood by many of the people around her, but she ultimately proves to be their salvation. She is a cross between a social worker and a psychic because, in some ways, she’s not living her own life: she’s opened herself up to bear everyone else’s problems.”
And that, of course, is every bit as much a burden as it is a gift.
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