Trauma (2004 film)

Trauma
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMarc Evans
Written byRichard Smith
Produced byNicky Kentish Barnes
Jonathan Cavendish
StarringColin Firth
Mena Suvari
Naomie Harris
Sean Harris
Neil Edmond
CinematographyJohn Mathieson
Nic Sadler
Edited byMags Arnold
Music byAlex Heffes
Production
companies
BBC Films
Isle of Man Film
Little Bird Productions
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
  • 17 September 2004 (2004-09-17)
Running time
94 minutes[1]
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Trauma is a 2004 British psychological thriller film directed by Marc Evans and written by Richard Smith.

Plot

Ben (Colin Firth) awakens from a coma to discover his wife has been killed in a car accident. A few weeks later, Ben is out of the hospital and, attempting to start a new life, he moves home and is befriended by a beautiful young neighbour Charlotte (Mena Suvari). Haunted by visions of his dead wife, Ben starts to lose his grip on reality.

Cast

Critical reaction

The film is described by critics as a psychological thriller in the same vein as David Cronenberg,[2] Memento,[3] and Jacob's Ladder;[4] however, most find that the film pales in comparison, with Eye Weekly calling it "just another pretentious Jacob's Ladder knockoff.[5]" The film has been described as stylish, with iofilm calling it "a triumph of style over content.[6]" Shadows on the Wall adds, "Evans fills the screen with... moody, atmospheric, and evocative visuals,[3]" and Filmcritic.com says the film has "The Ring-inspired creepy imagery."[7]

Neil Young's Film Lounge describes the film's visual in this way: "Evans (along with cinematographer John Mathieson, production-designer Richard Smith and editor Mags Arnold) tries desperately to jazz everything up, deploying all manner of distorted visuals - extreme camera angles and close-ups, plus over-atmospheric lighting effects and jagged cuts - in a strenuous attempt to get us into Ben's tormented state-of-mind."[8]

Colin Firth's performance is the most praised aspect of the film. "He delivers a performance which highlights the range of his considerable talent"[2] cites one critic. eFilmCritic says Firth "does the best with what he's given"[9] and iofilm says, "Firth puts in a sterling performance in the central role."[6] Reel Film Reviews adds "Firth's performance, not surprisingly, is the best thing about the movie, and the actor does a nice job of portraying Ben's increasing paranoia."[4]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 25% of 16 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.5/10.[10]

Film festivals

Listed Chronologically

References

  1. ^ "Trauma (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 28 April 2004. Retrieved 27 February 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Trauma" Review Archived 15 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine, Tiscali
  3. ^ a b Rich Cline, "Trauma" Review, Shadows on the Wall
  4. ^ a b David Nusair, "Trauma" Review, Reel Films Reviews
  5. ^ Jason Anderson, "Trauma" Review Archived 18 September 2004 at the Wayback Machine, Eye Weekly
  6. ^ a b "Trauma" Review Archived 25 November 2005 at the Wayback Machine, iofilm - film inside out
  7. ^ Christopher Null, "Trauma" Review Archived 27 November 2005 at the Wayback Machine, Filmcritic.com
  8. ^ Neil Young, "Trauma" Review, Film Loungue
  9. ^ Scott Weinberg, "Trauma" Review, efilmcirtic.com
  10. ^ "Trauma". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
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