Gattaca [Limited Edition] [SteelBook] [4K Ultra HD Blu-ray/Blu-ray]

Overview

New Zealand screenwriter Andrew Niccol (The Truman Show) made his feature directorial debut with this science fiction drama, set in a future when one's life is determined by genetic engineering rather than education or experience. The wealthy can choose the genetic makeup of their descendants. People are designed to fit into whatever role is decided before birth. But what happens when someone desires another way of life? Citizens in this impersonal future-world are fashioned as perfect specimens, so those in the natural-born minority are viewed as inferior to the pre-planned perfect specimens (aka "Valids") who dominate. One of the natural-borns (aka "In-Valids"), Vincent Freeman (Ethan Hawke), has several defects (poor vision, emotional problems, and short 30-year life expectancy), but he also develops a different outlook on his pre-ordained fate. He yearns to break free from society's constraints, and he dreams of a journey into space as a Gattaca Corp. navigator. To accomplish his goal, he enlists the aid of DNA broker German (Tony Shalhoub) and makes contact with Jerome Morrow (Jude Law), who was paralyzed in an accident and is willing to sell his superior genetic materials. Vincent assumes Jerome's identity and is scheduled for a flying mission. However, a week before his flight, a Gattaca mission director is murdered, and all members of the program are the suspects. Meanwhile, he develops a romantic interest in a beautiful Valid, Irene (Uma Thurman), prevented from going into space because of her heart defect. Tracked by a relentless investigator who is methodically jigsawing all the pieces together, Jerome finds his aspirations dissolving into stardust.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/27/2022
UPC:	0043396584594
Original Release:	1997
Source:	Sony Pictures
Language:	English
Format:	Blu-ray
Sales rank:	394

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ethan Hawke	Vincent/Jerome
Uma Thurman	Irene
Jude Law	Jerome/Eugene
Gore Vidal	Director Joseph
Alan Arkin	Detective Hugo
Loren Dean	Anton
Jayne Brook	Marie
Elias Koteas	Antonio
Chad Christ	Young Vincent
William Lee Scott	Young Anton
Tony Shalhoub	German
Ernest Borgnine	Caesar
Xander Berkeley	Lamar
Blair Underwood	Geneticist
Maya Rudolph	Delivery Nurse
Una Damon	Head Nurse
Elizabeth Dennehy	Pre-School Teacher
Mason Gamble	Younger Vincent
Vincent Nielson	Younger Anton
Clarence Graham	Personnel Officer
Carlton Benbry	Gattaca Hoover
Grace Sullivan	Sequencing Customer
Ken Marino	Sequencing Technician
Cynthia Martells	Cavendish
Gabrielle Reece	Gattaca Trainer
Ryan Dorin	Twelve-Fingered Pianist
Dean Norris	Cop On The Beat
Russell Milton	Gattaca Detective
George Marshall Ruge	Beaten Detective
Steve Bessen	Blood Test Detective
Lindsey Lee Ginter	Mission Commander
Beverly Griffith	Actor
David Lebell	Actor
Greg Sestero	Actor
Carlton Bembry	Gattaca Hoover
Michael Nyman	Conductor,Composer

Technical Credits

Andrew Niccol

Roger Spottiswoode

Andrew Niccol	Director,Screenwriter
Danny DeVito	Producer
Mike Cassidy	Stunts
Gary D'Amico	Special Effects,Special Effects
Norman Howell	Stunts
Francine Maisler	Casting
Michael Shamberg	Producer
Stacey Sher	Producer
Chris Watts	Special Effects
Roger Spottiswoode	Screenwriter
Gail Lyon	Producer
Mario Peixoto	Special Effects
Janek Sirrs	Special Effects
Stephan Vonhase Mihalik	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Elegantly accompanied by an award-winning soundtrack, this "mood piece" utilizes a futuristic and stylized setting to reveal a universal tale of human struggle. Gattaca's cerebral tone comes off more dramatic than science fiction-oriented, manifesting explorations of both the human psyche and the human soul through the moral clashing of the characters. Jude Law portrays the wheelchair-bound Jerome Morrow with signature intensity, bringing forth themes of the pain of a failed perfectionist. In fact, the Vincent character (Ethan Hawke) is solitary in his convictions to make his own goals and decide his own level of perfection. While the onscreen romance between Vincent and Irene (Uma Thurman) seems less than ebullient at times, the film makes a case for placing emphasis on individuality over love story. Stylistically enthralling, the elaborate sets are complemented by the strange yellow tint of the film to complete the feel of existing in another time, and also earned the movie two Academy Award nominations for best set design in 1997. Gattaca explores relationships, values, and family issues, all through the eyes of a character who has clearly defined for himself what his life should be like, regardless of the values imposed on him by others. The box office proved ungracious towards this psychological treasure, although its writer (Andrew Niccol) would be better received with The Truman Show (1998), which explored similar thematic realms.

All Movie Guide - Sarah Sloboda