CONSPIRACY THEORY (1997)

MORGAN'S RATING

You don't have to ask him. New York cab driver and conspiracy buff Jerry Fletcher tells anyone in earshot about the secret movers, shakers and assassins who really control things. When he tries to put Justice Department attorney Alice Sutton in the know, he's run out of her office. Soon both will be running for their lives. A crackpot theory in the newsletter Jerry publishes may be dangerously true. But which one? Whatever it is, enigmatic Dr. Jonas and his associates aim to kill it-- and maybe Jerry and Alice too.

Mel Gibson (Jerry Fletcher), Julia Roberts (Alice Sutton), Patrick Stewart (Dr. Jonas), Cylk Cozart (Agent Lowry), Steve Kahan (Mr. Wilson), Terry Alexander (Flip), Alex McArthur (Cunic), Brian J. Williams (Clarke), George Aguilar (Piper), Cece Neber Labao (Finch's Secretary), Saxon Trainor (Alice's Secretary), Leonard Jackson (Old Man, Bookstore), Jim Van Wyck (Spotter).

WHAT IF YOUR MOST PARANOID NIGHTMARES HAD JUST COME TRUE? WHAT YOU KNOW COULD KILL YOU.

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

DIRECTOR: Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon).

WRITER: Brian Helgeland.

PRODUCERS: Richard Donner and Joel Silver.

ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS: Julie Durk and Ilyse A. Reutlinger.

CO-PRODUCERS: J. Mills Goodloe and Dan Cracchiolo.

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Jim Van Wyck.

ORIGINAL MUSIC: Carter Burwell.

DISTRIBUTOR: Warner Bros.

QUOTES

Alice: He said a dog bit his nose. Jerry: Arf.

Jerry: I resolve to call her up a thousand times a day, and ask her if she'll marry me in some old fashioned way. Every little thing she does is magic. Alice: Jerry, those are song lyrics!

Jerry: A good conspiracy is unporvable. I mean, if you can prove it, it means they screwed up somewhere along the line.

Dr. Jonas: In one hour, I want to know where she eats, where she sleeps, the name of her kindergarten teacher, everything.

FACTS

RELEASE DATE: August 8th, 1997 (USA) BOX OFFICE OPENING: $19.3 million (USA) BOX OFFICE RESULT: $76.0 million (USA) WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE: $133.0 million BUDGET: $75 million (USA) - Jerry's cab licence can be seen briefly in one scene, and is issued in the name of "Raffi Paloulian", a script clerence researcher on the film and friend of screenwriter Brian Helgeland. Paloulian also appears as an extra. - Jerry runs into a theatre showing Ladyhawke, also directed by Richard Donner. - Director Donner is an animal-rights and pro-choice activist. The newsstand where Jerry picks up his newspapers has an anti-fur slogan on it. - Director Cameo: Richard Donner as one of Jerry's cab passengers in the opening credits.

Jerry: You can't hurt me any more. Dr. Jonas: I'll be the judge of that.

Jerry: To be normal, to drink Coca-Cola and eat Kentucky Fried Chicken is to be in a conspiracy against yourself.

Alice: This guy's a restraining order waiting to happen.

Jerry: By nature I'm not a violent man, but if you hurt Alice, I'll kill you.

CRITICAL COMMENTS

"One of the smartest, scariest and funniest thrillers in years." -- Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Lumpy but entertaining...the script isn't airtight, but it's enjoyable, with Gibson's edgy performance right on target." -- Leonard Maltin

"The parts of the movie that are truly good are buried beneath the deadening layers of thriller cliches and an unconvincing love story." -- Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times

"Richard Donner is slick and shallow, but somewhat off his game here." -- Stephen Hunter, Washington Post

"Conspiracy Theory is confused and disjointed, and the resolution of the story is more than a little anticlimatic."- James Berardinelli

"All too glib political thriller." -- Rita Kempley, Washington Post