Urge (film)

Last updated
Urge
UrgeFirstPoster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Aaron Kaufman
Screenplay by Jerry Stahl
Story by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyLyle Vincent
Edited byJeffrey Wolf
Music by The Newton Brothers
Production
companies
Distributed by Lionsgate Premiere
Release date
  • June 3, 2016 (2016-06-03)
Running time
90 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Urge is a 2016 American thriller film directed by Aaron Kaufman, written by Jerry Stahl, and starring Justin Chatwin, Ashley Greene, Alexis Knapp, Bar Paly, Chris Geere, Nick Thune, Kea Ho, Danny Masterson, and Pierce Brosnan. The film was released on June 3, 2016, in a limited release and through video on demand by Lionsgate Premiere.

Contents

Plot

A group of friends enter the Man's nightclub, Volcano, where one of them, Jason, is approached by one of the entertainers called the "Red Bastard". Jason follows the Red Bastard with the intention to buy party drugs from him or his employer. Jason is led to a back room of the club where the Man is entertaining some guests. Upon Jason's arrival, the Man cryptically announces that they have been expecting Jason, only to burst out into laughter immediately afterward.

After the others have left, the Man introduces Jason to his drug, a new creation called Urge. The Man explains that Urge is something different from normal party drugs – claiming that it is like a key to unlock what is hidden, it basically tones down a person's sense of morality and strips them of their inhibitions. As the Man continues to speak, Jason cuts him short, explaining his distaste for people who are talking too much. The Man then reveals that he knows private information of Jason's life. The Man then takes his leave, telling Jason that the Red Bastard will lead him out and will be the one to sell him the Urge. The Red Bastard provides Jason with the drug and also warns him that every person may only take the drug once in their lifetime. Jason seems unaffected by Urge, much to the surprise of the Red Bastard. Jason provides Urge to his friends who, after taking it, enjoy a wild evening of partying at the nightclub.

The next day, Jason and his friends meet up to discuss their plans for the day. Jason's wealthy friend, Neal, tells them that he has planned an elaborate day of activities for the day. But the friends, having developed a liking for Urge, respond that they'd rather just go back to the nightclub and do Urge again. Neal relents and throws an Urge-fueled party at his home, also inviting people from the nightclub to join. But this time, inhibitions are not only numbed but completely deactivated. This leads to the night taking a dark turn, leading to various severe injuries and even multiple deaths. Furthermore, it is revealed that not only are Jason and his friends taking Urge, but the Man has provided the entire island with the drug.

Jason later heads to a diner as he cannot be affected by Urge. While he sits down in a booth, the Man joins him. Jason claims that the Man is responsible for the chaos on the island caused by Urge, but the Man replies that he cannot be held accountable for other people taking drugs. He also reminds Jason that he tells every person who takes the drug that they are only allowed to use the drug once in their life. At that moment, Jason is distracted by a girl at the counter and when he looks back into his booth, the Man has vanished without a trace. Upon leaving the diner, Jason witnesses a man deliberately jumping in front of a truck in an apparent suicide attempt. Jason rushes him to a hospital where he realizes the true extent of the drug, dozens of people are brought in because of wounds caused under Urge influence. One man shoots a police officer at the hospital for no apparent reason in front of Jason, who flees the hospital. Urge eventually results in the entire island running amok while each person fulfils their deepest desires.

Eventually, Jason and his last living friend, Joey, escape the island via boat. Exhausted, both fall asleep immediately after boarding the ship. When Jason wakes up again, he finds the ship taken over by the Man and his cronies, including the Red Bastard. Jason disarms one of the men and heads upstairs where he confronts the Man at gunpoint. Jason demands to know why the Man plans to kill every person on the island, only for the Man to reply that he did not even lift a finger. Outraged, Jason demands to know whether the Man intends to play God and to smite the weak, only for the man to reveal that he is God and that Jason will be the one to do the smiting. He claims that Jason will bring Urge to the mainland to eradicate humanity, a flawed creation, for good but Jason refuses. Furious, the Man shows Jason an apocalyptic vision of the future. Once Jason snaps out of the vision, the Man has once again disappeared without a trace. Jason returns downstairs and sits next to Joey, with the Man's cronies having vanished. The film ends with the boat headed towards the mainland. The back of the boat can be seen with two covered shipping containers that are pulsating and glowing with the same purple color as vials of the Urge drug, suggesting that significant quantities of the drug are being transported to the mainland.

Although it is not shown what happens to Jason after the Man's disappearance, a post-credits scene shows an unidentified woman and her young son shopping in a seemingly abandoned supermarket. The son wanders away from his mother to uncover a darkened aisle of the supermarket filled with people mindlessly slaughtering and hurting each other, implying that the Man's plan was successful and that Urge has made its way beyond the island.

Cast

Production

On September 29, 2014, Pierce Brosnan joined the cast. [2] On October 2, 2014, Ashley Greene joined the cast. [3] On October 7, 2014, Danny Masterson joined the cast. [4] On October 14, 2014, Alexis Knapp, Bar Paly, Chris Geere and Nick Thune joined the cast. [5] On October 24, 2014, Justin Chatwin joined the cast. [6]

Filming

Principal photography began on October 6, 2014, and ended on November 14, 2014. [7] [8]

Release

The film was released on June 3, 2016, in a limited release and through video on demand by Lionsgate Premiere. [9] The film was released on Blu-ray and DVD on September 6, 2016. [10]

Reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 0%, based on 5 reviews, with an average rating of 1.5/10. [11] Christy Lemire of RogerEbert.com called the film "a movie that’s as empty and unlikable as the characters themselves" in her 1-star review [12] Frank Scheck, writing for The Hollywood Reporter , while enjoying "a dapper Pierce Brosnan gleefully hamming it up as a devil-like figure" otherwise panned the film, saying "Audiences tempted to catch Urge in its limited theatrical release or on VOD would be well-advised to remember Nancy Reagan's famous advice: Just say no." [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierce Brosnan</span> Irish actor (born 1953)

Pierce Brendan Brosnan is an Irish actor and film producer. He is best known as the fifth actor to play secret agent James Bond in the Bond film series, starring in four films from 1995 to 2002 and in multiple video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Masterson</span> American actor (born 1976)

Daniel Peter Masterson is an American former actor. He played Steven Hyde in That '70s Show (1998–2006), Milo Foster in Men at Work (2012–2014) and Jameson "Rooster" Bennett in The Ranch (2016–2018). In May 2023, Masterson was convicted of forcible rape of two women, both fellow members of the Church of Scientology; a third charge was declared deadlocked due to a hung jury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justin Chatwin</span> Canadian actor

Justin Chatwin is a Canadian actor. He began his career in 2001 with a brief appearance in the musical comedy Josie and the Pussycats. Following his breakthrough role as Robbie Ferrier in the blockbuster War of the Worlds (2005), Chatwin headlined studio films such as The Invisible (2007) and Dragonball Evolution (2009), an action-adventure feature based on the manga series Dragon Ball. In the 2010s, Chatwin acted in small independent films. He starred as rock star idol Bobby Shore in the sci-fi musical Bang Bang Baby (2014), which earned him a Canadian Screen Awards nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and appeared in the romantic comedy Unleashed (2016), and drama Summer Night (2019).

<i>The Matador</i> 2005 American film

The Matador is a 2005 black comedy crime film written and directed by Richard Shepard and starring Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear.

<i>Puff, Puff, Pass</i> 2006 American film

Puff, Puff, Pass is a 2006 comedy crime film, also known as Living High, directed by Mekhi Phifer.

<i>The November Man</i> 2014 spy thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson

The November Man is a 2014 spy action thriller film based on the novel There Are No Spies by Bill Granger, which is the seventh installment in The November Man novel series, published in 1987. A British-American production, it stars Pierce Brosnan, Luke Bracey and Olga Kurylenko, with Bill Smitrovich and Will Patton also appearing, with the screenplay written by Michael Finch and Karl Gajdusek. The film is directed by Roger Donaldson, who previously worked with Brosnan on Dante's Peak. The film was released on August 27, 2014 in the United States.

<i>No Escape</i> (2015 film) 2015 film

No Escape is a 2015 American action thriller film directed by John Erick Dowdle, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother, Drew Dowdle. The film stars Owen Wilson, Lake Bell, and Pierce Brosnan, and tells the story of an expat engineer trapped with his family in an unidentified country in Southeast Asia during a violent uprising.

<i>Some Kind of Beautiful</i> 2015 film by Tom Vaughan

Some Kind of Beautiful is a 2014 American romantic comedy film written by Matthew Newman, directed by Tom Vaughan, and starring Pierce Brosnan, Jessica Alba and Salma Hayek. It was produced by Kevin Frakes and Richard Lewis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival</span> Film festival in California

The Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival is a film festival with a focus on independent films held annually at L.A. Live / Staples Center and additional cinemas across Hollywood, California. HRIFF guests have included Pierce Brosnan, Hilary Duff, Harry Dean Stanton, Martin Landau, Joe Mantegna, Josh Brener, Frances Fisher and Uwe Boll and many other Hollywood film celebrities.

<i>In Dubious Battle</i> (film) 2016 film by James Franco

In Dubious Battle is a 2016 drama film directed and produced by James Franco, loosely based on John Steinbeck's 1936 novel of the same name, with a screenplay by Matt Rager. The film features an ensemble cast, consisting of Franco, Nat Wolff, Josh Hutcherson, Vincent D'Onofrio, Robert Duvall, Selena Gomez, Keegan Allen and Ed Harris. The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 3, 2016.

<i>The Shameless</i> 2015 South Korean film

The Shameless is a 2015 South Korean film starring Jeon Do-yeon and Kim Nam-gil. It is written and directed by Oh Seung-uk, who described it as a "hardboiled romantic noir thriller.

<i>I.T.</i> (film) 2016 film

I.T. is a 2016 thriller film directed by John Moore and written by Dan Kay and William Wisher. It stars Pierce Brosnan, James Frecheville, Anna Friel, Stefanie Scott, and Michael Nyqvist and was produced by David T. Friendly and Beau St. Clair, who was Brosnan's producing partner at the production company Irish DreamTime before her death. The film was released in theaters and via video on demand in the United States on September 23, 2016, by RLJ Entertainment.

<i>Spinning Man</i> 2018 American film

Spinning Man is a 2018 thriller film directed by Simon Kaijser based on a novel by George Harrar and adapted to screenplay by Matthew Aldrich. It stars Guy Pearce, Pierce Brosnan, Minnie Driver, Alexandra Shipp, Clark Gregg and Odeya Rush. The film was released on video on demand as well as experiencing limited release by Lionsgate Premiere on April 6, 2018.

<i>False Positive</i> (film) 2021 film

False Positive is a 2021 American horror film, directed by John Lee, from a screenplay by Lee and Ilana Glazer. It stars Glazer, Justin Theroux, and Pierce Brosnan.

<i>Riverdance: The Animated Adventure</i> 2021 animated adventure film directed by Dave Rosenbaum & Eamonn Butler

Riverdance: The Animated Adventure is a 2021 computer-animated adventure film inspired by the dance show Riverdance. The film was made by Cinesite for River Productions and Aniventure.

<i>Across the River and into the Trees</i> (film) Film

Across the River and into the Trees is a film written by Peter Flannery and directed by Paula Ortiz, based on the 1950 novel of the same name by Ernest Hemingway. It stars Liev Schreiber, Matilda De Angelis, Danny Huston, Josh Hutcherson, and Laura Morante.

Fast Charlie is an upcoming American action thriller film directed by Phillip Noyce and written by Richard Wenk, based on the 2001 novel Gun Monkeys by Victor Gischler. It stars Pierce Brosnan, James Caan, and Morena Baccarin.

Aaron Kaufman is an American film producer and director. He is the former producing partner of Robert Rodriguez, having worked with him at the Troublemaker Studios. Kaufman produced films that Rodriguez also directed including Machete (2010) and Machete Kills (2013), as well Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014), the sequel to 2005 film Sin City. Kaufman served as executive producer for the dramas The Greatest and Powder Blue, as well the romantic comedy Spread, the crime thriller 13 (2010), and the comedies Chef (2014) and Flock of Dudes (2016).

References

  1. "'Urge': Film Review". Hollywood Reporter. 2016-06-06. Retrieved 2016-06-10.
  2. Anthony D'Alessandro (2014-09-29). "Pierce Brosnan To Star In 'Urge' As Trippy Drug Designer". Deadline. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  3. Tatiana Siegel (2014-10-02). "'Twilight' Actress Ashley Greene to Star Opposite Pierce Brosnan in Thriller 'Urge' (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  4. Yamato, Jen (2014-10-07). "Danny Masterson Joins Pierce Brosnan In Designer Drug Thriller 'Urge'". Deadline. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  5. Rebecca Ford (2014-10-14). "Pierce Brosnan Thriller 'Urge' Rounds Out Cast (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  6. "'Shameless' Actor Justin Chatwin Joins 'Urge' (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. 2014-10-24. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  7. "On The Set For 10/06/14: Liam Neeson Starts A Monster Calls, Alexander Skarsgard Wraps Tarzan". SSN Insider. 2014-10-06. Archived from the original on 2014-10-08. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  8. "On the Set for 11/17/14: Will Ferrell & Mark Wahlberg Start Shooting Daddy's Home, Ted 2 & Zeroville Wrap". SSN Insider. 2014-11-17. Archived from the original on 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  9. Kickham, Dylan (2016-05-05). "Urge trailer: Pierce Brosnan deals party drugs". EW.com. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
  10. "URGE Starring Pierce Brosnan Arrives On Blu-ray and DVD September 6th". We Are Movie Geeks.com. 2016-08-16. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  11. "Urge (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes.
  12. "Urge Movie Review & Film Summary".
  13. "'Urge': Film Review".