Shattered Glass

Director: Billy Ray Billy Ray

Overview

Shattered Glass, Billy Ray's unfairly overlooked drama about unethical journalist Stephen Glass, comes to DVD with a widescreen transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of the film. The English soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1. English, and Spanish subtitles are accessible. The engaging supplemental materials are headed by a commentary track recorded by director Ray and the real-life Chuck Lane, who is portrayed in the film by Peter Sarsgaard (who won a handful of awards for his work in the movie). They provide a great deal of fascinating information both about the real-life events depicted in the film, as well as the troubles Ray encountered while making his first film. The other major extra is a 60 Minutes piece by Steve Kroft in which he interviews the real Stephen Glass. Having Glass' own side of the story makes this disc something special. Shattered Glass deserved a better fate at the box office, and this DVD should help expose the film to the audience it richly deserves.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/23/2004
UPC:	0031398117049
Original Release:	2003
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	LIONSGATE - 600000-AEC LGE
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:34:00
Sales rank:	42,380

Special Features

Closed Caption; 60 Minutes interview with the real Stephen Glass

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Hayden Christensen	Stephen Glass
Peter Sarsgaard	Charles `Chuck' Lane
Chloe Sevigny	Caitlin Avey
Rosario Dawson	Andy Fox
Melanie Lynskey	Amy Brand
Hank Azaria	Michael Kelly
Steve Zahn	Adam Penenberg
Mark Blum	Lewis Estridge
Simone-Elise Girard	Catarina Bannier
Chad Donella	David Bach
Jamie Elman	Aaron Bluth
Luke Kirby	Rob Gruen
Cas Anvar	Kambiz Foroohar
Linda E. Smith	Gloria
Ted Kotcheff	Marty Peretz
Owen Rotharmel	Ian Restil
Bill Rowat	George Sims
Michele Scarabelli	Ian's Mother
Terry Simpson	Joe Hiert
Howard Rosenstein	Suit No. 1
Louis-Philippe Dandenault	Michael
Morgan Kelly	Joe
Christian Tessier	Cade
James Berlingieri	Jason
Brett Watson	Seth
Andrew Airlie	Alec Shumpert
Russell Yuen	Emmit Rich
Pierre LeBlanc	Monica Merchant No. 1
Pauline Little	Monica Merchant No. 2
Kim Taschereau	Stout Woman
Phillip Cole	Security Guard
Mark Camocho	Glass' Lawyer
Ian Blouin	Chuck's Son
Lynne Adams	Kelly's Colleague
Caroline Goodall	Mrs. Duke
Brittany Drisdell	Megan
Mychael Danna	Composer
Greg Kinnear	Actor
Maggie Gyllenhaal	Actor

Technical Credits

Billy Ray

Billy Ray	Director,Screenwriter
Craig Baumgarten	Producer
Tove Christensen	Producer
Tom Cruise	Executive Producer
Gaye Hirsch	Producer
Cassandra Kulukundis	Casting
David McKeown	Stunts
Adam Merims	Producer
Tom Ortenberg	Executive Producer
Michael Paseornek	Executive Producer
Paula Wagner	Executive Producer

Scene Index

Side #1 --
1. Young Republic [3:58]
2. Political Scene [3:43]
3. Journalistic Integrity [4:27]
4. Serious Charges [4:51]
5. Story Telling [4:41]
6. Defender [4:47]
7. Enemy Territory [4:07]
8. Scooped [3:16]
9. Hypocrite [2:54]
10. Piece by Piece [3:44]
11. Eager to Please [3:48]
12. Late Night Call [3:23]
13. Suspicious [3:03]
14. Unraveling [5:00]
15. Great Editor [2:34]
16. Search for Proof [3:31]
17. Panic Time [3:20]
18. Spin Doctor [2:48]
19. Ducking Responsibility [3:41]
20. Flood of Lies [5:09]
21. Emotional Blackmail [4:06]
22. In It Together [5:26]
23. Know Your Strengths [3:31]
24. End Credits [3:34]

Menu

Side #1 --
   Play Movie
   Scene Selection
   Special Features
      Commentary with Director Billy Ray and Chuck Lane: On
      Commentary with Director Billy Ray and Chuck Lane: Off
      "60 Minutes" Interview with Stephen Glass
   Subtitles
      English: On
      English: Off
      Spanish: On
      Spanish: Off

Editorial Reviews

The world of bookish, passive-aggressive reporters doesn't seem like the stuff of compelling drama, but Billy Ray's Shattered Glass manages to make one egghead's pathetic desperation a rousing time at the movies. Comparisons to The Paper Chase or even All the President's Men aren't that far out of line: Glass presents a sad, late-'90s alternate universe to Woodward and Bernstein, where journalists -- ostensible purveyors of truth -- have to scramble to ferret out the lies in their own offices. Unlike Steven Spielberg's jocular Catch Me If You Can, Shattered Glass doesn't offer a pat explanation for its anti-hero's pathological lying. He isn't abandoned by a parent, and it isn't implied by anyone other than Hayden Christensen's Stephen Glass that he's attempting to live up to stratospheric expectations "back home." Instead, the character's rationale is inherent in Christensen's cagey, live-wire performance: He's a composite of every dog-ate-my-homework brown-noser that ever walked into a newsroom, classroom, or job interview, desperate for approbation and willing to stroke any ego to get it. A-list screenwriter Ray takes some liberties of his own in the name of cinema -- conflating a character here and there, and focusing almost solely on the piece that brought Glass down -- but the result is a tightly crafted, swiftly edited exposé that never curries obvious audience sympathy.

All Movie Guide - Michael Hastings

Presents Glass as a masterfully corrupt fabulist who convinced himself of the ultimate seductive lie, which is that there can't be anything wrong with telling people what they want to hear.

Entertainment Weekly - Owen Gleiberman

An astute and surprisingly gripping drama not only about the ethics of magazine writing, but also, more generally, about the subtle political and psychological dynamics of modern office culture.

New York Times - A.O. Scott