The Walker (2007)

Director:

Paul Schrader

Writer (WGA):

Paul Schrader (written by)

Release Date:

10 August 2007 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery

Tagline:

Everyone loves a good scandal

Plot:

An escort who caters to Washington D.C.'s society ladies becomes involved in a murder case.

Plot Keywords:

Marital Trouble | Bar | U.S. Senate | Secret | Senate Hearing

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Woody Harrelson	...	Carter Page III
Kristin Scott Thomas	...	Lynn Lockner
Lauren Bacall	...	Natalie Van Miter
Ned Beatty	...	Jack Delorean
Moritz Bleibtreu	...	Emek Yoglu
Mary Beth Hurt	...	Chrissie Morgan
Lily Tomlin	...	Abigail Delorean
Willem Dafoe	...	Larry Lockner
William Hope	...	Mungo Tenant
Geff Francis	...	Detective Dixon
Steven Hartley	...	Robbie Kononsberg
Garrick Hagon	...	John Krebs
Michael J. Reynolds	...	Ethan Withal
Allen Lidkey	...	Andrew Salesperson
Stewart Alexander	...	Edgar

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some violent material and nude images.

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Certification:

USA:R | Finland:K-13 | Canada:14A | Singapore:M18 | Ireland:15A | Sweden:11

Filming Locations:

Isle of Man

Company:

Kintop Pictures

Goofs:

Continuity: When Carter pulls up to Robbie's townhouse to drop off Lynn, he parallel parks in front of a dark colored car. That car is missing when he pulls away to take Lynn home.

Quotes:

Carter Page III: It'll all work out.
Ethan Withal: Don't be naïve.
Carter Page III: I'm not naïve... I'm superficial.

Movie Connections:

References J. Edgar Hoover (1987) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Girl of My Best Friend

Strong story, excellent performances

Harrelson is Carter Page III. Unfortunate son of a great man, fortunate son of a dynasty of plantation owners; what does he do? He spends a day a week as a real estate agent and fails to chase up a gallery opening for his lover's photography. What he really does is move with grace through the social circles of the Washington wives. All is well, passing off lines of Tennessee Williams and playing canasta, until by chance he is dragged into a murder investigation. Forced, in his own words, into a choice between "being disloyal and being dishonest" the film follows Carter's progress as events take him into murkier waters where it is no longer enough just to smile at the chaos and hope that it will pass.

In Schrader's script the dialogue crackles, for the most part, and the narrative is traced out with skill. The film does not aspire to the pace of a thriller but achieves a constant tension. Harrelson's performance is magnificent and he is ably supported by Bacall, Scott-Thomas and a sphinx like Geff Francis as the detective on the case.

'The Walker' is not a genre film and may disappoint those looking for a ripping yarn about a murder, but judged on its own terms it is a success. There are off notes; moments of dialogue strike as contrived and some imagery is unsubtle, but all said it is engrossing and like all really good cinema there can be no doubt that it is about something important.