Flatliners (1990)
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52% of critics liked it
(33 reviews) -
60% of users liked it
(61,716 ratings)
Despite its occasional lapses into silly self-consciousness, Flatliners is one of the most intriguing and well-constructed supernatural thrillers of the 1990s. A group of brilliant medical students decide to literally play with life and death. They put themselves in suspended animation,… More Despite its occasional lapses into silly self-consciousness, Flatliners is one of the most intriguing and well-constructed supernatural thrillers of the 1990s. A group of brilliant medical students decide to literally play with life and death. They put themselves in suspended animation, electronically inducing a near-deathlike state and then pulling out of it at the last possible moment. Things get hairy when one of the students (Kiefer Sutherland) becomes obsessed with the notion of really dying, the better to experience the Afterlife before being revived--if he can be revived. In her first dramatic starring role (playing a sensitive young lady on a misguided guilt trip), Julia Roberts is very, very good--completely bereft of movie-star mannerisms. Audiences flocked to see Flatliners back in 1990 due to the highly publicized off-screen romance between Roberts and Sutherland. Oh, yes: Kevin Bacon and William Baldwin are in the picture, too. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Joel Schumacher
- Written By
- Peter Filardi
- Genres
- Horror, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy
- In Theaters
- Aug 10, 1990 Wide
- Studio
- Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Critic Reviews
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Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
We're supposed to think, ''Gee, will they make it back?!'' By the third or fourth close call, we're not exactly sweating.
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Variety Staff, Variety
A cautionary tale that ends along fairly traditional horror-sci-fi lines, Flatliners is a strikingly original, often brilliantly visualized film from director Joel Schumacher and writer Peter Filardi.
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, Time Out
We're in mystical territory here, hence the flamboyant visuals; but that's no excuse for Peter Filardi's affected script.
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Caryn James, New York Times
Flatliners is a stylish, eerie psychological horror film laced with wit, a movie that thrives on its characters' guilty secrets and succeeds on the strength of the director Joel Schumacher's flair for just this sort of smart, unpretentious entertainment.
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Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
It's a movie about daring that dares nothing.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Cast
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Kiefer Sutherland
as Nelson Wright
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Julia Roberts
as Rachel Mannus
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Kevin Bacon
as David Labraccio
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William Baldwin
as Joe Hurley
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Oliver Platt
as Randy Steckle
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Kimberly Scott
as Winnie Hicks
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Joshua Rudoy
as Billy Mahoney
- Illana B'Tiste
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Cynthia Bassham
as Joe's Woman
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Patricia Belcher
as Edna the Ward Nurse
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Hope Davis
as Anne
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K.K. Dodds
as Jill
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John Duda
as Young Labraccio
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Aeryk Egan
as Young Nelson
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Evelina Fernandez
as Latin Woman
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John Fink
as Doctor
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Marilyn Dodds Frank
as Bag Lady
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Susan French
as Terminal Woman
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Gonzo Gonzalez
as Playground Kid
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Deborah Gooman
as Joe's Woman
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Beth Grant
as Housewife
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Ray Hanis
as Latin Orderly
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Anne James
as Beth
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Cage S. Johnson
as Near-Death Patient
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Tom Kurlander
as Medical Student
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Dede Latinopoulos
as Joe's Woman
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Zoaunne Le Roy
as Waitress
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Nili Levi
as Little Girl
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Ilona Margolis
as Joe's Woman
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Michelle McKee
as Joe's Woman
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Jared Milmeister
as Young Nelson's Friend
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Nancy Moran
as Joe's Woman
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Benjamin Mouton
as Rachel's Father
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Nicole Niblack
as Joe's Woman
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Elinore O'Connell
as Rachel's Mother
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Lynda Odums
as Nurse
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Natsuko Ohama
as Professor
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Ingrid Oliu
as Latin Wife
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Jim Ortlieb
as Uncle Dave
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Angela Paton
as Doctor
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Kesha Reed
as Young Winnie
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Megan Stewart
as Playground Kid
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Tressa Thomas
as Playground Kid
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Deborah Thompson
as Terry
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Deborah Torchio
as Joe's Woman
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Sarabeth Tucek
as Joe's Woman
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Sanna Vraa
as Bridget
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Julie Warner
as Joe's Woman
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Afram Bill Williams
as Ben Hicks
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Miguel M. Delgado
as Latin Husband
- Mali Finn
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John Benjamin Martin
as Man on Crack
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Patrick Gleeson
as Young Nelson's Friend


