Hayden Christensen, Lena Olin, Jessica Alba

"Awake," a psychological thriller that tells the story of a man (Christensen) undergoing heart surgery while experiencing a phenomenon called "anesthetic awareness," which leaves him awake but paralyz...( read more  read more... )ed throughout the operation. As various obstacles present themselves, his wife (Alba) must make life-altering decisions while wrestling with her own personal drama.

Flixster Users

59% liked it

220,411 ratings

Critics

24% liked it

54 critics

R, 1 hr. 18 min.

Directed by: Joby Harold

Release Date: November 30, 2007

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DVD Release Date: February 13, 2008

Stats: 12,764 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (12,764)


  • October 7, 2009
    ''Am I supposed to still hear you?''

    The story focuses on a man who suffers "anesthetic awareness" and finds himself awake and aware, but paralyzed, during heart surgery. His mother must wrestle with her own demons as a drama unfolds around them, while trying to unfold th...( read more)e story hidden behind her son's young wife.

    Hayden Christensen: Clay Beresford

    Awake, the thriller by first-time director Joby Harold, takes off from a grisly real-life phenomenon called anesthetic awareness. This is when patients are unaccountably left fully conscious â?? and physically paralyzed â?? during the process of surgery, thus Harold, whom also wrote the script, has spun a preposterously entertaining web from this grisly germ of an idea, and manages to hold us in a vice-like grip for pretty much the entire length of the ordeal. How often can you say of a Hollywood thriller that you don't have a clue what's going to happen next? Awake is brazenly indifferent to plausibility, but you can't help but admire the film's audacity. Along with unique plot twists, Harold throws Hitchcock-esque flourishes and elements of Greek tragedy into the mix like a crazed chef adding ingredients to a new dish. .

    Harold brings energy and focus to the scenes that he transcends the subject matter and gives it an almost surreal intensity, and the performances are strong enough to keep the film's evolution from capsizing it. Jessica Alba is suitably luscious and beguiling (her role gives new meaning to the term heartbreaker), and Lena Olin and Terence Howard are both in fine form. As the unfortunate victim of anesthetic awareness, Hayden Christensen comes into his own as a performer (having mercifully managed to escape the Mark Hamil curse: that of being horribly miscast by George Lucas). Christensen has an unusually expressive face (the camera takes to him), and he can convey emotion without ever appearing to do muchâ??fortunately, because the film hinges around his internal struggle, and on our feelings of empathy for him.

    Awake is a white-knuckle movie experience if ever there was one (it even carries a viewer warning), with some of the most sheerly visceral scenes of horror ever committed to celluloid. Watching someone undergoing open-heart surgery while fully conscious (and able to feel the incision) is enough to frazzle the nerves of the most hardened horror veterans, and this film is certainly not for the squeamish. Too bad the loopy plot (and the melodramatic character revelations, which are really just tired genre conventions) finally stretches our credibility to breaking point. As a result, Awake lacks a strong climax, and as a roller-coaster ride it doesn't have enough emotional depth to be fully engaging. But for most of its length it's close to a pop classic, and probably the best metaphysical story around. In fact, Harold better watch out or he may wind up as the next M. Night Shyamalan, which is not necessarily a good thing. Awake has so many twists it makes you dizzy, as if you are the one going for surgery.

    ''I think my new heart will love you as much as my old one.''
  • September 20, 2009
    Psychological thriller about a wealthy guy (Hayden) who is awake during his heart surgery. He hears the surgeons plot how they are going to kill him. But why? There are many twists, which keeps the movie interesting. Good plot but very graphic and gorey, not for the faint hearted!
  • August 9, 2009
    Awake has a great premise but it fails to deliver the goods. Alba lacks in the acting department, no matter how 'hot' she looks on screen. Howard, normally a decent actor, phoned in his performance. Christensen seemed to deliver the best he could with a poorly written script. ...( read more) Olin delivered. The film starts out well, takes a deep nose dive, picks up steam a bit, then gives everything away towards the middle. The ending is so-so and for a film which had so much promise, a so-so ending doesn't cut it.
  • January 5, 2009
    I was afraid that this was going to play too heavily on the gimmic of the "anesthic awareness". In the end the overall story was a satisfying mystery.
  • December 13, 2008
    "Every year, one in 700 people wake up during surgery. When they planned her husband's murder, they never thought he'd be the one."

    Jessica Alba, Hayden Christensen, and Terrence Howard star in first-time director/screenwriter Joby Harold's nerve-jangling psychological ...( read more)thriller about a man who experiences the frighteningly common surgical phenomenon known as "anesthetic awareness," in which those laid out on the operating table remain acutely aware of what is going on around them despite remaining completely paralyzed and unable to cry out for help. When a successful young man (Christensen) goes under the knife and realizes that the anesthesia hasn't quite done its job, the horror quickly sets in as his worried wife (Alba) waits anxiously and a terrifying drama unfolds in the operating room.

    Review
    I was expecting it to be a bad movie but in the end, it turns out the movie got to me. The plot is pretty solid, character development isn't cluttered and the acting wasn't half bad. Well, except of course Hayden Christensen who as usual gives his worst; even voice-over jobs and he's still bad, horribly bad. Jessica Alba gave an above average performance but that doesn't matter really, she's so pretty to look at you couldn't even care less to her dialogs. Terrence Howard and Lena Olin both gives convincing performances. Although some things tend to be a bit overdone overall though, Awake is a finely executed crafty little thriller thanks to heavy set act pieces of Howard and Olin and a well done directorial effort from Joby Harold.
  • November 13, 2009
    so fucking bad. jessica alba, you are pathetic. you can't act for shit and you're not hot either.
  • October 31, 2009
    Awake is an acquired taste, personally I think the story was good enough to last the distance but with the multiple twists it just got worse and worse. Unlike movies like a beautiful mind this does not set the tone well enough at the beginning for me to really care what happens t...( read more)o the main character. Its an ok thriller with a fairly unique story but it isnt done justice here.
  • October 30, 2009
    Un thriller bastante decente , entretenido, pero no mucho mas que eso.
  • October 29, 2009
    get the feel . werrr . hahaha ...
  • October 25, 2009
    Alba lacks in the acting department, no matter how 'hot' she looks on screen. Christensen too.

Critic Reviews


December 30, 2007
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness

Makes one want to assume a state of mind opposite to the film's title. full review

December 3, 2007
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

With a couple of more drafts to mend the plot holes and restructure the middle act, Awake could have been saved. full review

December 2, 2007
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Accuracy is not the point. Suspense is. And from the moment Clay realizes he is not fully under anesthesia and can hear and feel everything that is happening, the movie had me. full review

November 30, 2007
Pete Hammond, Maxim

The filmmakers of Awake have crafted a domestic thriller that just may end up putting you ASLEEP. full review

View more Awake reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • mahapunggung
    December 28, 2008
    just cool...
  • SnugglingBunny
    May 17, 2008
    Its good, so if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.
    =)
  • wolverinespussycat
    April 18, 2008
    What the fuck is wrong with you people this movie was bad extremly bad, espeshially the acting I wasn't my money on this I really did.
  • rubee122
    March 17, 2008
    I was expecting so much more from this movie. The only suspense was the last 15 mins of the film. I think this film wanted to have this great twist at the end but the movie left me thinking, this could have been a featured on a Sci Fi movie as a supernatural film with the out of body experiences for him and the mother. I like Terrence Howard acting but he was not very convincing as a doctor. Jessica played a good part with switching personalities in the movie. I enjoyed the surprise at the end of the movie but that was it for me.
  • rajparsi28
    March 7, 2008
    Thanks a lot!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • vamshna
    December 14, 2007
    a one time must see movie, with beautiful alba, nice drama to follow through with no other scenes except the plot of hayden's kill.
  • lovecyn4ever
    December 11, 2007
    The reason i think this movie might be worth watching because of the twists specially one i didn't see it coming & besides the movie is not that long just 78 mins of your life will be wasted.I guess that's not so bad.

    Interesting film but the plot is not so convincing.Worth a rental in the near future just don't look for too much logic to this story.Check it out at your own risk.I'm sure few Jessica Alba fans will think she deserves an Oscar for this :-0
  • Haydenfan
    December 10, 2007
    I think whoever hasnt seen it yet, needs to :]
  • ayojidej40
    December 10, 2007
    its really nice not to bad,just make it simple
  • jamelypysulan
    December 9, 2007
    a breatheking movie....., superb!....

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Awake Trivia


  • For which film did Charlie Sheen stay awake for 48 hours, to achieve the proper effect for the shot?   Answer »
  • In order to play a drug addict in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Charlie Sheen stayed awake for more than 48 hours to produce the desired drugged-out effect.  Answer »
  • He wrote Unbreakable, Wide Awake and The Village?   Answer »
  • In "Mary Poppins", what song does Mary Poppins sing to Jane and Michael to coax them to sleep?  Answer »

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