Timecode (2000)

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Directed by Mike Figgis.

Starring Xander R. Berkeley, Richard Edson, Holly Hunter, Kyle MacLachlan, Stellan Skarsgård, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Salma Hayek, Saffron Burrows, Leslie Mann, Golden Brooks.

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Director Mike Figgis helmed this ground-breaking experimental feature, filmed with four synchronized digital video cameras in four separate locations. The story, outlined in advance but otherwise improvised, was enacted in a single continuous take, like a stage play, with the unedited images from all four locations presented on the screen at once. Figgis and his crew chose the best single run-through, and the result is the film's final release version. The story focuses on four main characters around the casting sessions for a film called Bitch of Louisiana to be directed by Lester Moore (Richard Edson): Alex Green (Stellan Skarsgard), the studio executive overseeing Moore's project; his wife Emma (Saffron Burrows); gangster Lauren Hathaway (Jeanne Tripplehorn); and her unfaithful lover Rose (Salma Hayek). These characters' paths cross as murder, infidelity, and dirty dealings are interrupted by an earthquake and its aftershocks. Time Code 2000 also features Kyle MacLachlan, Holly Hunter, Julian Sands, Steven Weber, Danny Huston, Viveka Davis, and Laurie Metcalf. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

Re:Top 5 Uses of Split Screen
by chrismorrell in Top 5

hasn't rated it.

"[quote user="mercurial"] When done right, a scene that utilizes split screen techniques can become unforgettable. Done wrong, and, well . . . %$*@! 5.) Jackie Brown - Adds that extra something during the latter half of the film. I could switch this with Kill Bill, but I personally like the use of it here a little more. 4.) Requiem For A Dream - Used throughout the film to emphasize the effects of the various drugs consumed by the characters. I'd say it worked. 3.) When Harry Met Sally - The bedroom scene in which Harry and Sally are watching television from their own separate bedrooms but split screen to appear they are in the same bed. Amazing dialogue and just plain fun. 2.) Timecode - Four interweaving stories occurring simultaneously, each a single continuous shot. Wow. 1.) The Rules of Attractions - reinventing how a split screen shot can be made; two separate stationary to tracking shots were combined in post-production to give the illusion that they merge into a single wid ... " [More]

Re:Top 5 Uses of Split Screen
by leeroy711 in Top 5

hasn't rated it.

Top 5 Uses of Split Screen
by mercurial in Top 5

is neutral about it.

"When done right, a scene that utilizes split screen techniques can become unforgettable. Done wrong, and, well . . . %$*@! 5.) Jackie Brown - Adds that extra something during the latter half of the film. I could switch this with Kill Bill, but I personally like the use of it here a little more. 4.) Requiem For A Dream - Used throughout the film to emphasize the effects of the various drugs consumed by the characters. I'd say it worked. 3.) When Harry Met Sally - The bedroom scene in which Harry and Sally are watching television from their own separate bedrooms but split screen to appear they are in the same bed. Amazing dialogue and just plain fun. 2.) Timecode - Four interweaving stories occurring simultaneously, each a single continuous shot. Wow. 1.) The Rules of Attractions - reinventing how a split screen shot can be made; two separate stationary to tracking shots were combined in post-production to give the illusion that they merge into a single widescreen shot. Amazing. " [More]

Trailer of the Day: 88 Minutes
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"I know star power isn’t what it used to be, but doesn’t it seem like we still give Al Pacino more credit than he’s worth? Despite his receiving an Oscar fifteen years ago, the guy hasn’t been a completely dependable actor in more than two decades. And yet a lot of people write about his upcoming movies as if they could maybe, possibly, hopefully be on par with the actor’s ’70s work. I’m not denying that he’s excellent in a few films of even the past ten years (particularly The Insider), but let’s not forget he was also in Gigli, so it isn’t like he’s making the same smart choices he was making as a younger man. And now here’s 88 Minutes, another movie that attempts to give us a thrilling plot in real time, a la 24. But despite such a gimmick working with old films like High Noon and 12 Angry Men, when it’s presented as a gimmick, and clearly as the only reason a movie is made (as in the cases of Nick of Time, Timecode and Phone Booth), it always comes off as forced and (obviously) ... " [More]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

is neutral about it.

Almost by default, Mike Figgis' audacious experiment with the powers of digital video is one of the director's better efforts. The design of the film -- four continuous takes, onscreen at once -- virtually guarantees that something interesting will be happening at least 25% of the time. At its best, there's too much to absorb in one sitting. Figgis' choice of improvisers, however, proves to be a mixed bag. Stellan Skarsgård and Holly Hunter shine in scenes which require them to be honest, sardonic, and even tragic; Julian Sands and Salma Hayek, meanwhile, show a heretofore unseen comic side. On the other hand, femme fatales Jeanne Tripplehorn and Saffron Burrows essentially twiddle their thumbs for much of the film and overact when they get the opportunity to say or do anything. For all its claims of "invention," Timecode is actually conventionally engrossing: with its simplistic plot -- involving infidelity and insensitivity at a slick Hollywood production company -- the overall result is like watching a juicy soap opera through four grainy surveillance cameras. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide

Tags: experimental , real-time , mindbending , splitscreen , casting
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