Panic Room (2002)
David Fincher: Rules of the Game, Part 6
“I wish I could put my kid in a place like this. Not that I didn't try. Just sometimes things they don't work out the way you want them to. Wasn't supposed to be like this. You weren't supposed to be here.”
FIGHT CLUB had been a grueling shoot for David Fincher and, at least upon first release, had alienated both audiences and critics alike.
So when it was time for Fincher to move on to his next film, he sought out something a little simpler, something that wouldn't involve the hundreds of locations that he'd dealt with on FIGHT CLUB and one that was designed as pure entertainment. A "popcorn movie."
It should have been simple. Unfortunately, the reality of shooting his next film was anything but easy. It ended up being a difficult shoot for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was Fincher's own inability to be flexible, a hard-earned lesson that he took with him to future projects.
In this, the penultimate episode of our David Fincher series, we trace the full production history of PANIC ROOM, from script to screen and beyond.
SYNOPSIS:
Trapped in their New York brownstone's panic room, a hidden chamber built as a sanctuary in the event of break-ins, newly divorced Meg Altman and her young daughter Sarah play a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with three intruders - Burnham, Raoul and Junior - during a brutal home invasion. But the room itself is the focal point because what the intruders really want is inside it.
Up Next: David Fincher — Rules of the Game, Part 7: ZODIAC.
CAST & CREW
Directed by: David Fincher
Screenplay by: David Koepp
Produced by: Gavin Polone | Judy Hofflund | David Koepp | Ceán Chaffin
Cast: Jodie Foster | Forest Whitaker | Dwight Yoakam | Jared Leto | Kristen Stewart | Patrick Bauchau
Cinematography: Conrad W. Hall | Darius Khondji
Edited by: James Haygood | Angus Wall
Music by: Howard Shore
Release Date: March 29, 2002
Theme Song: "There's Still a Little Bit of Time, If We Hurry and I Mean Hurry" by Slasher Film Festival Strategy.
This episode was written, produced and edited by Gary Horne, Justin Bishop & Todd A. Davis.
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