He Went That Way

Last updated

He Went That Way
He Went That Way (film poster).jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJeffrey Darling
Screenplay byEvan M. Wiener
Based onLuke Karamazov
by Conrad Hilberry
Produced by
Starring
CinematographySean Bagley
Edited byAdam Wills
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed by Vertical Entertainment
Release dates
  • June 9, 2023 (2023-June-09)(Tribeca)
  • January 5, 2024 (2024-01-05)
Running time
96 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$4,339 [2]

He Went That Way is a 2023 American crime drama film directed by Jeffrey Darling in his directorial debut. It is based on an account where the serial killer Larry Ranes encountered animal trainer Dave Pitts. [3] It stars Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto.

Contents

It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival on June 9, 2023. It was released by Vertical Entertainment in the United States on January 5, 2024.

Premise

The film follows Jim Goodwin, an animal trainer accompanied by his pet chimpanzee, who picks up a hitchhiker later revealed to be a serial killer. It is inspired by real life events involving serial killer Larry Lee Ranes.

Cast

Production

He Went That Way was announced on June 2, 2021, at the virtual Marché du Film, when it was reported that Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto would star in the thriller based on Conrad Hilberry's non-fiction book Luke Karamazov. The film was produced by Head Gear Films, Teashop Productions, and Mister Smith Entertainment. It was the directorial debut of Jeffrey Darling, who died in a surfing accident in North Palm Beach in Sydney, Australia on March 27, 2022. [4] [5] [6] It is based on a screenplay by Evan M. Wiener. [7] According to executive producer Phil Hunt, the production was able to cast Quinto by going through a friend of the actor instead of his agent. [8] Filming took place on location in Los Angeles, California. [9]

Release

The film premiered at the Tribeca Festival on June 9, 2023. [10] In October 2023, Vertical Entertainment acquired distribution rights to the film. [11] It was released in a limited release on January 5, 2024, prior to video on demand on January 12, 2024. [12]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 26% of 31 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.5/10. [13]

David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that "it plays like a tonally uncertain blend of desert neo-noir, prickly buddy movie, misfit character study and crime thriller, with zero psychological grounding and even less suspense". [14] Christian Zilko of IndieWire called the film "a competent but emotionally thin story", and gave it a grade of B−. [15]

Patrice Witherspoon of Screen Rant described the film as "a dumpster fire from start to finish", criticizing the plot, tonal shifts, and performances, except for Quinto's performance, which she praised as the film's highlights. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Famke Janssen</span> Dutch actress and model

Famke Beumer Janssen is a Dutch actress. She played Xenia Onatopp in GoldenEye (1995), Jean Grey / Phoenix in the X-Men film series (2000–2014), and Lenore Mills in the Taken film trilogy (2008–2014). In 2008, she was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for Integrity by the United Nations. She made her directorial debut with Bringing Up Bobby in 2011. She is also known for her roles in the Netflix original series Hemlock Grove (2013–2015), FX's Nip/Tuck (2003–2010), and ABC's How to Get Away with Murder (2014–2020). Janssen starred in the 2017 NBC crime thriller The Blacklist: Redemption.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zachary Quinto</span> American actor and film producer

Zachary John Quinto is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his roles as Sylar, the primary antagonist from the science fiction drama series Heroes (2006–2010); Spock in the film Star Trek (2009) and its sequels Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) and Star Trek Beyond (2016); Charlie Manx in the AMC series NOS4A2, and Dr. Oliver Thredson in American Horror Story: Asylum, for which he received a nomination for an Emmy award. His other starring film roles include Margin Call (2011), Hitman: Agent 47 (2015), Snowden (2016), and Hotel Artemis (2018). He also appeared in smaller roles on television series, such as So Notorious, The Slap, and 24, and on stage in Angels in America, The Glass Menagerie, and Smokefall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roadside Attractions</span> Film production company

Roadside Attractions, LLC is an American production company and film distributor based in Los Angeles, California, founded on July 27, 2000, by Howard Cohen and Eric d'Arbeloff, specializing largely in independent films. Lionsgate bought a portion of Roadside in 2007.

Worldview Entertainment was an American motion picture finance and production company focused on theatrical-quality feature films for worldwide distribution. The company produced 23 films, including Fox Searchlight's critically acclaimed hit Birdman, which was nominated for nine Academy Awards, won four Oscars, including Best Picture, and grossed more than $103 million in global box office revenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jade Pettyjohn</span> American actress (born 2000)

Jade Pettyjohn is an American actress. She is known for her roles as McKenna Brooks in An American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars, as Summer on the Nickelodeon television series School of Rock, as Lexie Richardson on the Hulu drama television miniseries Little Fires Everywhere, and as Grace Sullivan on the ABC series Big Sky.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justin Kelly (director)</span> American film director, screenwriter and editor

Justin Kelly is an American film director, screenwriter and film editor. He came to prominence as director and writer of Sundance Film Festival 2015 select I Am Michael, starring James Franco and Zachary Quinto. He then wrote and directed King Cobra, which premiered at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival starring Christian Slater and James Franco, followed by Sony Pictures 2018 release Welcome the Stranger starring Riley Keough and Caleb Landry Jones, and most recently JT LeRoy (2018) starring Kristen Stewart and Laura Dern.

<i>My Friend Dahmer</i> (film) 2017 film

My Friend Dahmer is a 2017 American biographical psychological drama film written and directed by Marc Meyers about American serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. The film is based on the 2012 graphic novel of the same name by cartoonist John "Derf" Backderf, who had been friends with Dahmer in high school in the 1970s, until the time Dahmer began his killing spree in 1978. The film stars Ross Lynch as Dahmer, Alex Wolff as Derf, Dallas Roberts as Jeffrey's father, and Anne Heche as Jeffrey's mother.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Keoghan</span> Irish actor (born 1992)

Barry Keoghan is an Irish actor. He has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, and has been nominated for an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards. In 2020, he was listed at number 27 on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors.

Aaron Saidman is an American creator-developer, documentary filmmaker and television producer known for creating or serving as an executive producer on a number of non-fiction television series and documentary feature films, including Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, Curse of Von Dutch,Mind Field,Declassified: Untold Stories of American Spies, The Pitch,The Seven Five,Free Meek and Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer. Saidman is the President and co-founder of The Intellectual Property Corporation, which he created in 2016 with longtime producing partner Eli Holzman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacob Elordi</span> Australian actor (born 1997)

Jacob Elordi is an Australian actor. After moving to Los Angeles in 2017 to pursue an acting career, he gained prominence with his role as Noah Flynn, the bad boy love interest, in Netflix's The Kissing Booth film series (2018–2021). He also became known for his role as troubled high school football player Nate Jacobs in HBO's teen drama series Euphoria (2019–present). In 2023, he starred as Elvis Presley in the biographical film Priscilla and as a wealthy university student in Saltburn, which earned him a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gravitas Ventures</span> Film distribution company

Gravitas Ventures is a film distribution company owned by Anthem Sports & Entertainment. The company was founded by Nolan Gallagher in Los Angeles, California in 2006 and moved its headquarters to Cleveland, Ohio in 2019. It focuses on the distribution of Independent feature films and documentaries.

<i>Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story</i> 2022 American television series

Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is the first season of the American biographical true crime television anthology series, Monster, created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan for Netflix, which was released on September 21, 2022. Murphy also serves as showrunner and is an executive producer along with Brennan. Dahmer is about the life of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Other main characters include Dahmer's father Lionel, his stepmother Shari, suspicious neighbor Glenda, and grandmother Catherine.

<i>Priscilla</i> (film) 2023 film by Sofia Coppola

Priscilla is a 2023 American biographical drama film written, directed, and produced by Sofia Coppola, based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me by Priscilla Presley and Sandra Harmon. It follows the life of Priscilla and her complicated romantic relationship with Elvis Presley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry and Danny Ranes</span> American serial killers

Larry Lee Ranes and Danny Arthur Ranes were American serial killer brothers who committed their crime sprees predominantly in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Larry, a suspect in the murders of five people in the 1960s, was sentenced to life imprisonment for one murder in 1964; Danny was convicted of four sexually-motivated murders between March and August 1972 with accomplice Brent Eugene Koster, for which both were sentenced to life imprisonment. Their case is notable for the fact that, unlike other siblings who engage in crime, Larry and Danny operated completely independently of one another.

<i>Cold Copy</i> 2023 film by Roxine Helberg

Cold Copy is a 2023 American thriller film written and directed by Roxine Helberg and starring Bel Powley, Tracee Ellis Ross, James Tupper, Ekaterina Baker, Nesta Cooper, and Jacob Tremblay. It is Helberg's feature directorial debut.

References

  1. "He Went That Way (15)". BBFC . October 30, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  2. "He Went That Way".
  3. "Ice-skating animal trainer's harrowing ride across America with a serial killer — and a chimp — is now a movie". Chicago Sun Times . January 6, 2024.
  4. "Believe Media remembers Jeffrey Darling". Reel 360 News. April 2, 2022.
  5. Barnes, Mike (March 29, 2022). "Jeff Darling, Australian Cinematographer and Director, Dies at 60". The Hollywood Reporter .
  6. "Filmmaker Jeff Darling passes away while surfing". NepalNews. March 29, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  7. Wiseman, Andreas (June 2, 2021). "Jacob Elordi & Zachary Quinto To Star In True Crime Thriller He Went That Way – Cannes Virtual Market". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  8. Roxborough, Scott; Ritman, Alex (November 2, 2021). "AFM: Indies Battle for Talent as Studios and Streamers Lock Up A-Listers". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  9. Robb, David (January 19, 2022). "Los Angeles On-Location Filming Sets Quarterly Record, Doubling Since 2020, FilmLA Says". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  10. "He Went That Way | 2023 Tribeca Festival".
  11. Grobar, Matt (October 17, 2023). "True-Life Serial Killer Thriller 'He Went That Way' Starring Jacob Elordi, Zachary Quinto & Patrick J. Adams Acquired By Vertical". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  12. McArdle, Tommy (December 14, 2023). "Jacob Elordi Plays a Killer Hitchhiker Picked Up by Zachary Quinto in He Went That Way Trailer (Exclusive)". People . Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  13. "He Went That Way". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved February 2, 2024. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  14. Rooney, David (June 9, 2023). "'He Went That Way' Review: Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto in True Crime Misfire Awkwardly Stuck Between Genre Cracks". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  15. Zilko, Christian (June 9, 2023). "He Went That Way Review: A Serial Killer, A Drifter, and His Monkey Get Into a Car…". IndieWire . Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  16. Witherspoon, Patrice (June 14, 2023). "He Went That Way Review: Quinto Outshines His Captor In Disastrous Crime Thriller". Screen Rant . Retrieved November 4, 2023.