The Clearing (2004)

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details
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures
Rating: R
Release Date: Jul 2, 2004
Running Time: 91 mins.
Country Of Origin: United States
synopsis
Wayne and Eileen Hayes appear to be living theAmerican dream. But all illusions are shattered when Wayne is kidnapped in broad daylight from the Hayes’ peaceful Pittsburgh estate. Under the microscope of a probing FBI investigation and her own painstaking introspection, Wayne’s wife Eileen also becomes a victim. The interrogation introduces a lifeunderneath outward appearances; the suspicions, the secrets, the inadequacies, and what can happen along the way to achieving the American dream. Suddenly the man who, at one point in his life, prided himself on being a cunningnegotiator finds his fate resting in the hands of a kidnapper who has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Will he succeed in the most important negotiation ever--for his life?
cast + crew
Wayne Hayes
Eileen Hayes
Arnold 'Arn' Mack
Tim Hayes
FBI Agent Ray Fuller
Jill Hayes
Louise Miller
Tom Finch
Eva Finch
Cindy Mack
Screenplay
Story By
Producer
Producer
Executive Producer
Co-Producer
Associate Producer
reviews
Source
rating  PETER TAVERS - June 16, 2004
Kidnap dramas hold few surprises. As a mystery man (Willem Dafoe) snatches fat-cat executive Wayne Hayes (Robert Redford) from the Pittsburgh mansion he shares with his wife, Eileen (Helen Mirren), you wait for the plot gears to grind in the timeworn thriller manner.

That they do. The pleasures of this endeavor, directed with a keen eye for detail by Pieter Jan Brugge, come from what the actors bring to the material. Dafoe adds a note of vulnerability to the menace he has made his stock in… Continued

Source

The Clearing is a dull and anticlimactic suspense drama that pales in comparison to savvier psychological thrillers with clever plots twists to which moviegoers have become accustomed.

Story

At a glance, Wayne and Eileen Hayes (Robert Redford, Helen Mirren) lead a perfect life. They live on a gorgeous estate in a Pittsburgh suburb where Eileen, the quintessential Martha Stewart, maintains a seemingly perfect household. But when jilted ex-employee Arnold Mack (Willem Dafoe) kidnaps Wayne for… Continued