While She Was Out

Last updated
While She Was Out
Shewasoutposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Susan Montford
Written bySusan Montford (screenplay)
Edward Bryant (short story)
Produced by Mary Aloe
Don Murphy
Kirk Shaw
Starring Kim Basinger
Lukas Haas
CinematographySteve Gainer
Edited by William M. Anderson
Music by Paul Haslinger
Distributed by Anchor Bay Entertainment
Release dates
  • September 18, 2008 (2008-09-18)(Greece)
  • December 12, 2008 (2008-12-12)(United States)
Running time
88 minutes
CountriesUnited States
Germany
Canada
LanguageEnglish

While She Was Out is a 2008 American thriller film starring Kim Basinger and Lukas Haas. Basinger plays a suburban housewife who is forced to fend for herself when she becomes stranded in a desolate forest with four murderous thugs. It was written and directed by film producer Susan Montford based on a short story by Edward Bryant which was originally an episode of the TV series The Hidden Room in 1993. The film was produced by Mary Aloe and Don Murphy. Its executive producers included Guillermo del Toro and Basinger. The film was shot in 2006 and had a very limited release in 5 theaters in Texas during 2008.

Contents

Plot

On Christmas Eve, suburban housewife Della Myers gets into an argument with her abusive husband Kenneth. After putting her two children to bed, she drives to the mall to buy some wrapping paper and cards. At the mall, she can't find a parking space for a while and angrily leaves a note on the windshield of a car that is parked using up two parking spaces. She leaves the store as the mall is closing, and the parking lot is nearly deserted. She notices the note is gone from the 'offending' car. As she enters her own car, the car on which she had left the note pulls up behind her.

She confronts the car, and four young men emerge—Huey, Vingh, and Tomás—led by Chuckie. They threaten to rape her. Della insults Chuckie, and a security guard intervenes, but he is shot dead by Chuckie. As the gang realizes that they have committed a murder, Della manages to start her car and drive away. They follow her, intending to kill her, as she is the only witness. As they pursue her some distance, she eventually crashes her car in a deserted area where homes are under construction. She takes a road flare and a toolbox out of her car, and hides behind a backhoe.

Della runs through the buildings under construction to hide, as they search for her. After some time, the thugs corner and threaten her by name, as they had found her drivers license in her purse in her car. As they have her open the toolbox, she hits Chuckie with a crescent wrench, and escapes again into some nearby woods. In the process of chasing her, Tomás accidentally steps on Huey, who falls through a construction site and dies from a broken neck.

After some hide and seek in the woods, Della beats and finally kills Tomás with a lug wrench. She flees through a creek, pursued by Chuckie and Vingh. Della sneaks up on Vingh, kills him with a screwdriver, and hides behind a fallen tree. Chuckie tries to persuade Della to give up; he talks about her kids, saying that he is going to pay them a visit. He tells her what he thinks of her, that she lives a boring life she doesn't want, mistreated by her husband. He finds her, touches her, and teases her face. She holds his hand, pulls him down toward her, and kisses him. He draws his weapon as they engage in foreplay. She tells him to stick his boner insider of her, which distracts him. She ignites the road flare and blinds him, takes his weapon, and kills him.

Della returns home. Her husband Kenneth complains that she was out late and is tracking mud throughout the house, but Della ignores him. She goes upstairs to check on her children, whom are both sleeping. The drunk Kenneth asks what she brought him from the mall, and she replies, "Nothing", and points the gun at him.

Cast

Release

Theatrical

The film received a limited U.S. theatrical release via Anchor Bay.

Home media

It was released directly to video in the United Kingdom.

Reception

Critical response

While She Was Out only received a 31% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 16 reviews. [1] According to the L.A. Weekly , it is a "surprisingly enjoyable female revenge tale", describing Basinger's performance as "first-rate" despite "a laughably check-listed, multi-culti band of thugs". [2] The New York Observer called it "ultra-feminist fun" with a "spectacular" ending. [3] Ain't It Cool News called Basinger's performance "her best in years". [4] Bitch magazine dismissed much about the film, saying it "has an ample amount of cheezy genre conventions, problems with pacing, a gaggle of silly villains, huge plot holes and bad production values" but added that it is "really rather fascinating – and notable – as a horror/thriller that actually gives a damn about the female character it puts in harm's way." [5] The L.A. Times said it "eschews all plot and character development for the hackneyed action scenes and grade-Z dialogue", [6] and Filmcritic.com's review said that its "dialogue is somewhere between kindergarten and film school." [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Basinger</span> American actress (born 1953)

Kimila Ann Basinger is an American actress. She has garnered acclaim for her work in film, for which she has received various accolades including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Initially a TV starlet, she shot to fame as a Bond girl in 1983 and enjoyed a long heyday over the next two decades. In 2011 Los Angeles Times Magazine ranked her third on the "50 Most Beautiful Women In Film".

<i>Fresh</i> (1994 film) 1994 American crime film directed by Boaz Yakin

Fresh is a 1994 French/American independent crime drama film written and directed by Boaz Yakin in his directorial debut, and produced by Randy Ostrow and Lawrence Bender. It was scored by Stewart Copeland, a member of the Police. The story revolves around a preteen boy named Michael, nicknamed Fresh, who runs drugs for gangsters. Inspired by the chess lessons of his father, an alcoholic speed-chess master, Fresh devises and executes a brilliant plan to extricate himself and his drug-addicted sister from their hopeless lives.

<i>Bio Zombie</i> 1998 Hong Kong comedy film

Bio Zombie is a 1998 Hong Kong zombie comedy film, starring Jordan Chan. It spoofs George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead and shows many similarities to Peter Jackson's Braindead.

<i>Nick of Time</i> (film) 1995 film by John Badham

Nick of Time is a 1995 American political action thriller film produced and directed by John Badham and written by Patrick Sheane Duncan. It stars Johnny Depp, Christopher Walken, Charles S. Dutton, and Courtney Chase. Taking place in real time, the film follows a public accountant who must assassinate a politician in exchange for his kidnapped daughter's freedom. It was released theatrically in the United States by Paramount Pictures on November 22, 1995.

<i>Nightmares</i> (1983 film) 1983 film directed by Joseph Sargent

Nightmares is a 1983 American horror anthology film directed by Joseph Sargent and starring Emilio Estevez, Lance Henriksen, Cristina Raines, Veronica Cartwright, and Richard Masur. The film is made up of four short films based on urban legends; the first concerns a woman who encounters a killer in the backseat of her car; the second concerns a video game-addicted teenager who is consumed by his game; the third focuses on a fallen priest who is stalked by a pickup truck from hell; and the last follows a suburban family battling a giant rat in their home.

<i>The Getaway</i> (1994 film) American action thriller

The Getaway is a 1994 American action thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson. The screenplay was written by Walter Hill and Amy Holden Jones, based on Jim Thompson's 1958 novel of the same name. The film stars Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, Michael Madsen, James Woods and Jennifer Tilly. The film flopped at box office, but it enjoyed lucrative success in the home video market.

<i>Tsotsi</i> 2005 film directed by Gavin Hood

Tsotsi is a 2005 crime drama film written and directed by Gavin Hood and produced by Peter Fudakowski. It is an adaptation of the novel Tsotsi by Athol Fugard, and is a South African/UK co-production. Set in the Alexandra slum in Johannesburg, South Africa, it stars Presley Chweneyagae as David/Tsotsi, a young street thug who steals a car only to discover a baby in the back seat. It also features Kenneth Nkosi, Jerry Mofokeng, and Rapulana Seiphemo in supporting roles.

<i>The Gingerbread Man</i> (film) 1998 American film

The Gingerbread Man is a 1998 American legal thriller film directed by Robert Altman and based on a discarded John Grisham manuscript. The film stars Kenneth Branagh, Embeth Davidtz, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Berenger, Daryl Hannah, Famke Janssen, and Robert Duvall.

<i>The Boys Next Door</i> (1985 film) 1985 American film directed by Penelope Spheeris

The Boys Next Door is a 1985 American adventure-crime drama film about two teenage boys who leave their small town home on the day of their high school graduation and embark on a crime and murder spree.

<i>Even Money</i> (film) 2006 American film

Even Money is a 2006 American crime film.

<i>The Burglar</i> (1957 film) 1957 film by Paul Wendkos

The Burglar is a 1957 American crime thriller film noir released by Columbia Pictures, based on the 1953 novel of the same name by David Goodis. The picture stars Dan Duryea in the title role and Jayne Mansfield. The movie was the first feature film directed by Paul Wendkos. John Facenda, a well-known Philadelphia sportscaster, is featured as a news anchor in one scene. Much of the film was shot on location in Philadelphia and Atlantic City.

<i>Bitch Slap</i> 2009 action and exploitation film directed by Rick Jacobson

Bitch Slap is a 2009 American action film directed by Rick Jacobson and starring Julia Voth, Erin Cummings, America Olivo and Michael Hurst, with cameos by Lucy Lawless, Kevin Sorbo, and Renee O'Connor.

<i>The Marrying Man</i> 1991 film by Jerry Rees

The Marrying Man is a 1991 American romantic comedy film, directed by Jerry Rees, written by Neil Simon, and starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger.

<i>Merantau</i> 2009 Indonesian film directed by Gareth Evans

Merantau, released in some countries as Merantau Warrior, is a 2009 Indonesian martial arts action film written, directed and edited by Gareth Huw Evans, and starring Iko Uwais. The film marked Uwais' debut as an actor and was the first collaboration between director Evans and star Uwais. It also marks the acting debut of Yayan Ruhian, who, along with Uwais, Evans met while shooting for a documentary in Indonesia. It was this documentary which introduced Evans to the martial art of Pencak Silat.

<i>Hit Man</i> (1972 film) 1972 film by George Armitage

Hit Man is a 1972 American crime film directed by George Armitage and starring Bernie Casey, Pam Grier and Lisa Moore. It is a blaxploitation-themed adaptation of Ted Lewis' 1970 novel Jack's Return Home, more famously adapted as Get Carter (1971), with the action relocated from England to the United States.

<i>Naan Sigappu Manithan</i> (2014 film) 2014 Indian Tamil-language action film

Naan Sigappu Manithan is a 2014 Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Thiru and produced by UTV Motion Pictures. Co-produced by Vishal, the film stars himself in the leading role with Lakshmi Menon and Ineya in supporting roles, while G. V. Prakash Kumar composed the film's music. The film deals with narcolepsy. It was released on 11 April 2014, and was declared a commercial success. The film opened to positive reviews from critics, many praising Vishal's performances, screenplay, fast-paced narration, while some criticized its second half, which was apparently vulgar to them.

<i>Mall</i> (film) 2014 American film by Joseph Hahn

Mall is a 2014 American thriller based on a novel of the same name written by Eric Bogosian. It was released on June 18, 2014, in France, on July 16 in Sweden, and on October 17 in North America. The film is directed by Linkin Park turntablist Joe Hahn, with Vincent D'Onofrio serving as executive producer. D'Onofrio has also worked as an actor in the film as Danny. Peter Stormare, Gina Gershon, Mimi Rogers, Brian Rodriguez and Cameron Monaghan also star in the film. The film was produced by Hahn, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Sam Maydew. The film is Hahn's full-length directorial debut and his second directed film after The Seed, which was a 10-minute short. The story for the film features the lives of five disaffected suburbanites as they come together at a shopping mall.

Archangel is a television adaptation of the 1998 novel of the same name by Robert Harris. Made by the BBC in 2005, it was filmed in the city of Riga.

<i>Red Dot</i> (film) 2021 drama film

Red Dot is a 2021 Swedish drama thriller film written by Alain Darborg with Per Dickson and directed by Alain Darborg. The film stars Nanna Blondell, Anastasios Soulis, Thomas Hanzon, Johannes Bah Kuhnke, Kalled Mustonen and Tomas Bergström. It premiered on Netflix on February 11, 2021.

References

  1. ↑ "Rotten Tomatoes" . Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  2. ↑ L.A. Weekly review
  3. ↑ New York Observer review
  4. ↑ AICN review
  5. ↑ Bitch Magazine review
  6. ↑ L.A. Times review
  7. ↑ FilmCritic.com review
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.