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The Rock streaming

1996 Movie United States Action, Adventure, Thriller 137 min Ages 15+
By: Michael Bay With: Danny Nucci, Ralph Peduto, John C. McGinley, Jack Yates, Howard Platt

Stanley Goodspeed, who lives in Washington, D.C., is a biochemist who works for the F.B.I. Soon after his fiancée Carla Pestalozzi announces that she is pregnant, Stanley gets a call from F.B.I. Director James Womack. Womack tells Stanley that San Francisco's Alcatraz Island has been taken hostage, along with eighty-one tourists, by Marine General Francis Xavier Hummel who, for years, has been protesting the government's refusal to pay benefits to families of war veterans who died during covert military operations. The death of his wife Barbara on March 9, 1995 drove General Hummel over the edge, and now he's holding hostages in order to get his point across. Stanley is needed because General Hummel has stolen some VX gas warheads and has announced that he will launch them onto San Francisco unless his demands are met. Stanley knows how to disarm the bombs, but he needs someone who knows Alcatraz well enough to get him inside. That man is former British Intelligence Agent John Patrick Mason, who has been in prison for the past thirty years without a trial because he was accused of stealing the private files of J. Edgar Hoover. In 1962, John became the only inmate ever to escape from Alcatraz, and he stayed out of Alcatraz long enough to father a daughter named Jade Angelou. Despite his extreme hatred of the F.B.I., John agrees to help Stanley. When John and Stanley are sent into Alcatraz with a Navy S.E.A.L. team, General Hummel's men kill the entire S.E.A.L. team, leaving Stanley and John to work on their own to rescue the hostages.

Filmium rating
74%

Festival Achievements

International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam 1996
Selections:
IDFA Archive

Mood

Action-Packed
Dramatic
Intense
Thrilling

Cast & Crew

Michael Bay
Mark Rosner
Douglas Cook
David Weisberg
Dwight Hicks
Celeste Weaver
Ken Kells
Nicolas Cage
Jack Yates
John Laughlin
Stuart Wilson
Matthew James Gulbranson
John Spencer
Fred Salvallon
Sean Connery
Robert Ben Rajab
Stanley Anderson
Howard Platt
Marshall R. Teague
Juan A. Riojas
Mike Mahrer
Danny Nucci
Rick Toms
Billy Devlin
Xander Berkeley
Anthony Guidera
Ronald Simmons
Claire Forlani
Vanessa Marcil
Ralph Peduto
Tom Towles
Brendan Kelly
Jack Ford
Hans Georg Struhar
David Morse
Willie Garson
Steve Harris
Todd Louiso
Jim Maniaci
Joseph Patrick Kelly
John Enos III
Raymond Cruz
Luenell
Tony Todd
Robert C. Besgrove
Michael Biehn
Leonard McMahan
Raymond O'Connor
Ingo Neuhaus
Ed Harris
Joseph Hawes
Dennis Chalker
John C. McGinley
Steve Decker
John W. Love Jr.
Thomas J. Hageboeck
Sam Whipple
John Nathan
Anthony Clark
William Forsythe
Gregory Sporleder
David Bowe
Greg Collins
Jim Caviezel
David Marshall Grant
Jane Sanguinetti
Bokeem Woodbine
Pat Skipper
Buck Kartalian
Raquel Krelle
Robert M. Anselmo
Philip Baker Hall
Carlos Sandoval

Budget

Blockbuster
Expensive Production
High-Budget
Mid-Budget

Cinematic Technique

Dynamic Camera Work
Practical Effects
Super 35
Widescreen
Widescreen Format

Narrative Structure

Action-Driven
Escalating Tension
Goal-Oriented
Linear

Pace

Fast
Fast-Paced
High-Energy
Non-Stop
Unrelenting

Runtime

Epic Length
Long Runtime

Soundtrack

Action-Oriented Music
Dramatic Score
Hans Zimmer Score
Intense Soundtrack
Orchestral
Thrilling Music

Style

Cinematic
Fast-Paced
Spectacular
Stylized

Time-Period

1990S
90S Action

Central Conflict

Chemical Attack
Chemical Threat
Hostage Rescue
Hostage Situation
Military Coup
Terrorist Threat

Characters

Fbi Agent
Fbi Chemist
Former Operative
Former Sas Operative
Rogue General

Ending

Bittersweet
Heroic Victory
Microfilm Recovered
Mission Success
Open-Ended
Sacrificial

Historical Context

1990S
Government Negotiation
Hostage Crisis
Military Conflict
Military Thriller
Post-Cold War

Key Plot Points

Betrayal
Disarming Rockets
Hostage Takeover
Rocket Disarmament
Saving Hostages
Seizing Alcatraz

Plot

Alcatraz Siege
Chemical Weapons
Hostage Crisis
Military Action
Rescue Mission

Setting

Alcatraz Island
Military Facility
Prison Setting
San Francisco
Urban Backdrop

Shooting Location

Alcatraz Island
Alcatraz Prison
California
Historic Prison
San Francisco
Urban Setting

Theme

Betrayal
Heroism
Patriotism
Redemption
Sacrifice

Genre

Action
Adventure
Military
Thriller

Audiences

Action Enthusiasts
Action Fans
Adult Audience
Adults
Thriller Enthusiasts
Thriller Fans

Titles

The Rock

Awards

Academy Award Nomination
Best Sound

Box Office Success

$335 Million Worldwide
Top Grossing 90S Film

Critical Reception

Ebert Praised
Mixed Reviews
Positive

Popularity

Cult Action Film
Popular 90S Film

Ratings

58 Metacritic
67% Rotten Tomatoes

Reception

Award Nominations
Box Office Hit
Cult Classic
Positive Reviews

Production Countries

United States

Release Year

1996
mowizz ID: 3f3daa84-a291-4a0b-bc85-d844e6cc5ac3
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