Connery in the halls of Castle Duart on the
Isle of Mull - one of the many dramatic locations on which
Entrapment was shot. |
Among the many striking settings in Entrapment, the most
dramatic is the one chosen for the film's climax: the Twin Towers
in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. Currently the highest
building in the world, Twin Towers dominates the KL skyline: it
stands 84 storeys high and was built at the astonishing rate of
one floor every four days. Made of stainless steel clad in glass,
the two gigantic towers are linked at the 41st floor by a skybridge.
And it was this that served as the location for the sophisticated
Millennium Eve party which Mac and Gin attend, leaving early to
ascend to the top of the Towers to carry out the ultimate bank robbery.
Things do not work out as planned, however, and, pursued by armed
security forces, the pair attempt to escape by swinging across the
skybridge, suspended beneath the walkway on wires with the lights
of the city far below.
"Below the surface
is that unchallenged attraction which,
coupled with a wonderful commitment
to greed on both their parts, makes for an intriguing
alliance."
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The film's final, action-packed sequence is set on the cusp of
the 20th and 21st centuries. "Hollywood screenwriters search for
moments when you are standing on the bridge, looking forward and
back, assessing yourself and the world," says screenwriter Ron Bass.
"The millennium is a made-to-order Hollywood moment: it's an artificially
invented but universally accepted benchmark."
"I do think that the whole idea of the millennium bug will prove
to be a paper tiger," admits Amiel, "but we decided that the ultimate
heist should take place at a moment of transition and confusion,
which mirrors the transition and confusion of the two main characters.
While the world is distracted by a giant firework, the thieves strike."
"Films have been made in Malaysia before," concludes Amiel, "but
I suspect we are the first production to use the country for its
modern aspects. When the audience watches Mac and Gin clinging onto
the wire, 750 feet above the city of Kuala Lumpur, I hope Entrapment
does for the Towers what King Kong did for the Empire State
Building."
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Twentieth Century Fox and Regency Enterprises
present a Fountainbridge Films and a Michael Hertzberg production.
Exec prod: Iain Smith, Ron Bass, Arnon
Milchan; Prod: Sean Connery, Michael Hertzberg, Rhonda
Tollefson; Dir: Jon Amiel; Scr: Ron Bass, William
Broyles Jr, from a story by Ron Bass and Michael Hertzberg;
Ph: Phil Meheux; Prod des: Norman Garwood; Cost
des: Penny Rose; Ed: Terry Rawlings; Mus:
Christopher Young.
With Sean Connery (Robert 'Mac' MacDougal),
Catherine Zeta-Jones (Virginia 'Gin' Baker), Ving Rhames (Thibadeaux),
Will Patton (Hector Cruz), Maury Chaykin (Conrad Greene).
International distribution: Twentieth
Century Fox
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PHOTOS: David Appleby
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