| City of Ember | |
 theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Gil Kenan |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Tom Hanks Gary Goetzman |
| Written by | Jeanne Duprau (novel) Caroline Thompson |
| Starring | Saoirse Ronan Harry Treadaway Bill Murray Mackenzie Crook |
| Music by | Andrew Lockington Daniel Pipes (add'l) |
| Cinematography | Xavier Pérez Grobet |
| Editing by | Adam P. Scott Zach Staenberg |
| Studio | Walden Media Playtone |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | October 10, 2008 |
| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $55 million |
| Gross revenue | $17,869,048[1] |
City of Ember is a 2008 science fiction-fantasy film based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Jeanne Duprau. It was directed by Gil Kenan from a screenplay by Caroline Thompson, and stars Saoirse Ronan, Harry Treadaway, Bill Murray and Mackenzie Crook, and featuresMartin Landau and Tim Robbins.
[edit]Plot
Ember is a fully-contained city built underground to house a human community for 200 years as a shelter from an unspecified disaster. A box has been provided which automatically opens after 200 years, and contains a plastic card and instructions for returning to the surface. Mayors of Ember keep the box a secret and only disclose its existence to their successors in office. When a mayor suddenly dies while still in office, the box is passed on to the mayor's family, and is left in a closet in their house. It is thus unnoticed by anyone when it automatically opens as designed.
Some decades later Ember's food supplies are becoming depleted and blackouts are increasingly frequent and longer-lasting, as thehydroelectric generator that powers the city has deteriorated. Much of the knowledge and technology from the city's near-mythic Builders and earlier generations has been lost.
Two young people, messenger Lina Mayfleet (Saoirse Ronan) and pipe worker Doon Harrow (Harry Treadaway) are witnessing the city's decay. After a major malfunction of the generator during Ember's annual celebration, Lina, a descendant of the earlier mayor who died in office, finds the box in her home. It contains ripped up pieces of paper and a plastic card. Lina and Doon realize the paper contains instructions on how to exit City of Ember. They explore the city's tunnels, trying to understand the directions, and happen upon the secret bunker where Mayor Cole (Bill Murray) is stockpiling food. Lina attempts to report Cole's hoarding, but is brought to the mayor, who suspects the box Lina is carrying belonged to her ancestor. He and his henchmen attempt to grab it, but there is a blackout and Lina grabs the second plastic card around the Mayor's neck and escapes. Mayor Cole retreats to his bunker where he finds a giant star-nosed mole.
Lina and Doon put together the instructions, use the two joined plastic cards as a key and discover the way out. They receive unexpected assistance from Doon's elderly mentor Sul (Martin Landau). Arriving at the surface they are initially disappointed that it is dark there as well, as described in Ember's folklore, but when the sun rises they discover that light has returned to the skies and the planet has recovered. Seeing through a hole the lights of Ember deep below the surface they tie a message to a rock with instructions on how to leave. It is found by Doon's father, Loris Harrow (Tim Robbins), who understands its meaning.
[edit]Comparison with the book
The film, while mostly faithful to the book, contained several differences and omissions. One of the notable new scenes was one featuring a giant mole. Another added scene shows Doon finding a large, injured moth which he heals with a shoelace. Other additions include a subplot involving Lina and Doon's father trying to escape Ember. The character of Doon's mentor, Sul, was created for the movie.
Downplayed scenes included Lina's drawing of the city, Grannie's death, the instructions to escape Ember. Omissions included a scene in which Lina discovers that the store supplies colored pencils, thought to be used up, and the following scene where Lina leaves her sister Poppy on the street during a blackout is omitted.
[edit]Cast
- Saoirse Ronan as Lina Mayfleet
- Harry Treadaway as Doon Harrow
- Bill Murray as Mayor Cole
- Toby Jones as Barton Snode
- Marianne Jean-Baptiste as Clary
- Martin Landau as Sul
- Tim Robbins as Loris 'Barrow' Harrow
- Liz Smith as Granny
- Amy Quinn & Catherine Quinn as Poppy Mayfleet
- Mary Kay Place as Mrs. Murdo
- Mackenzie Crook as Looper
- Lucinda Dryzek as Lizzie Bisco
[edit]Production
In October 2004, Playtone partners Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman paid in the mid-six figures[2] to purchase the film rights to Jeanne Duprau's 2003 novel The City of Ember. They entered negotiations with Caroline Thompson to adapt the novel and Gil Kenan to direct the film. The deal also includes an option on the sequel novel The People of Sparks.[3]
Filming was scheduled to begin in early summer of 2007 and to wrap up in October of the same year,[4] a 16-week shooting process. A former paint hall in the shipyard of Harland and Wolffin Belfast's Titanic Quarter was converted into the post-apocalyptic city.[5]
[edit]Marketing
Walden Media hired Lucas Cruikshank to promote the movie in his internet series "Fred". The video was released October 4, 2008 with an edited version of clips from the film, including "Fred's" face superimposed on the faces of characters from the trailer.[6]
[edit]Reception
The film received mixed reviews from critics. According to the consensus from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film "is visually arresting, and boasts a superb cast, but is sadly lacking in both action and adventure." Of the 114 reviewers listed, 51% of the critics gave positive reviews.[7] Metacritic scored the film as 57/100 rating falling under the category of "mixed or average reviews", based on 27 reviews.[8]
City of Ember was a box-office failure. On its opening weekend, the film opened poorly at #11 at the box office with $3,129,473.[9] As of March 31, 2009, the film has grossed $7,873,007 domestically and $9,975,860 internationally totaling $17,848,867 worldwide, well below its $55 million budget.[1]
[edit]Awards and honors
Saoirse Ronan was nominated for a 2009 Irish Film and Television Award as "Best Actress in a Lead Role in a Film", and art director Jon Billington and production designer Martin Laingwere nominated for Satellite Awards in 2008 for their design of the film, as was Ruth Myers for her costume design.[10]
[edit]DVD
The DVD was released on January 20, 2009. The Blu-ray disc edition is scheduled for release on June 16, 2009.
[edit]Notes
- ^ a b "City of Ember". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2009-03-31.
- ^ TCM Misc. notes
- ^ Michael Fleming (2004-10-31). "Playtone warms up to 'Ember'". Variety. Retrieved on 2007-04-27.
- ^ Jane Loughrey (2007-03-07). "Hanks' firm to shoot film in Belfast's Titanic Quarter". UTV. Retrieved on 2007-04-27.
- ^ "Robbins' role in City of Ember". BBC. 2007-07-14. Retrieved on 2007-07-20.
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/Fred
- ^ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/city_of_ember/
- ^ http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/cityofember
- ^ "Box Office Weekend Grosses from 10/10/08 to 10/01/09". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2008-10-26.
- ^ IMDB Awards
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