Altered States (1980)

Country of Origin: USA
Year of Production: 1980
Running Times: 97 mins (Germany)     98 mins (Spain)     99 mins (UK)     102 mins (USA)
Format: Technicolor     35mm
Ratio: 1.85:1
Sound: Dolby

PRODUCTION
Production Company: Warner Brothers
Executive Producer: Daniel Melnick
Producer: Howard Gottfried
Associate Producer: Stuart Baird
Unit Production Manager: Dave Silver

SCRIPT
Script: Sidney Aaron (rn: Paddy Chayevsky)
Novel: Paddy Chayevsky

DIRECTION
Director: Ken Russell
Assistant Director: Gary Daigler
2nd Assistant Director: Peter Schindler

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Jordan Cronenweth
Macro Photography: Oxford Scientific Film Ltd
Time Lapse Photography: Lou Schwartzberg
Camera Operator: James Glennan
1st Assistant Camera Operator: John Jensen
2nd Assistant Camera Operator: Carey Jones
Gaffer: Gary Holt
Key Grip: Bobby Rose
Stills: Morgan Rennard
Lenses/Panaflex Cameras: Panavision

EDITING AND POST PRODUCTION
Editor: Eric Jenkins
Assistant Editors: Thomas Penick, Arthur W. Forney
Apprentice Editor: Cari Coughlin

MUSIC
Music: John Corigliano
Orchestrations: John David Earnest
Song: Jim Morrison (Light My Fire
Song Performed By: The Doors
Music Conducted By: Christopher Keane
Assistant to Composer: Sheldon Shkolnik
Music Editor: Don Harris
Scoring Mixer: Dan Wallin (uncredited)
Music Playback: Brian L. McCarty (uncredited)

SOUND
Supervising Sound Editor: Michael Colgan
Sound Editors: Jay Wertz, Fred Stafford, Don Higgins, Colin Waddy
Assistant Sound Editor: Laurey Condon
Sound Mixer: Willie Burton
Boom: Marvin Lewis
Re-Recording Mixers: Les Fresholtz, Arthur Piantadosi, Michael Minkler
Sound Consultant: Stephen Katz

COSTUMES AND MAKE-UP
Make Up: Michael Hancock
Hair: Dione Taylor-Domsky
Costume Designer: Ruth Myers
Mens Costumer: Darryl Athons
Womens Costumer: Shanan Harrell

SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS
Special Make Up: Dick Smith
Special Make Up Assistants: Carl Fullerton, Craig Reardon

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Visual Effects: Brian Ferren
Special Effects: Chuck Gaspar
Special Effects Assistant: Larry Fuentes
Special Optical Effects: Robbie Blalack, Jaime Shourt
Optical Effects: Cinema Research Corp, The Optical House Inc
Special Laser Effects: Laser Media Inc
Titles: R/Greenberg Associates Inc, Richard Greenberg

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Richard McDonald
Assistant Art Director: Jeff Howard
Set Decorator: Thomas Roysden
Title Designer: Richard Greenberg
Illustrator: Joe Hurley
Props Supervisor: Stephane Goulet (uncredited)
Props: Syd Greenwood
Assistant Props: Stan Cockerell
Construction Co-Ordinator: Roger Irvin
Leadman: Ron Jacobs

MISCELLANEOUS
Script Supervisor: Caroline Davis-Dyer
Production Assistant: Jimsie Eason, Tod Scott Brody
Assistant to Producer: Christina Lear
Assistant to Director: Vivian Jolly
Production Secretary: Lee Stitch
Transportation Co-Ordinator: John Woodward
Research Assistant: Susan Tarr
Technical Consultant: Scott Bartlett
Excerpts from Viole D'Orphee: Pierre Henry
Marketing Consultant: Craig Miller (uncredited)
Medical Facilities: VA Medical Center, Sepulveda, California

LOCATIONS
Location Manager: Paul Pav
Locations: Columbia University, New York City, New York, USA; McCracken County, Kentucky, USA; VA Medical Center, Sepulveda, California, USA; Burbank Studios, Burbank, California

STUNTS
Stunts: M. James Arnett

CASTING
Casting: Howard Feuer, Jeremy Ritzer
Additional Casting: Steve Kolzak, Joel Thurm

CAST
William Hurt (Dr Eddie Jessop)
Blair Brown (Emily Jessop)
Bob Balaban (Dr Arthur Rosenberg)
Charles Haid (Mason Parrish)
Thaao Penghilis (Eccheverria)
Miguel Godreau (primal man)
Dori Brenner (Sylvia Rosenberg)
Peter Brandon (Hobart)
Charles White Eagle (the brujo)
Drew Barrymore (Margaret Jessup)
Megan Jeffers (Grace Jessup)
Jack Murdock (Hector Orteco)
Frank McCarthy (Obispo)
Deborah Baltzell (schizophrenic patient)
Evan Richards (young Rosenberg)
Hap Lawrence (endocrinology fellow)
John Walter Davis (medical technician)
Cynthia Burr (Parrish's girl)
Susan Bredhoff (Eccheverria's girl)
John Larroquette (X-ray technician)
George Gaynes (Dr Wissenschaft)
Ora Rubinstein (young medical student)
Paul Larsson (Charlie Thomas)
Eric Forst (Mingus)
Adriana Shaw (Dr Antonini)
Martin Fiscoe (graduate student)
Olivia Michelle (Veronica)

Scientist Dr Eddie Jessop subjects himself to all manner of bizarre experiments in an effort to achieve another state of consciousness. While his bemused wife Emily and their kids struggle to deal with what he's doing, Jessop experiments with a sensory deprivation tank and takes hallucinogenic drugs in his obsessive quest for the meaning of it all. Eventually, he succeeds in regressing to an ape man and beyond, climaxing in a bizarre confrontation with the Absolute at the very birth of the universe.

Who would have thought that mad visionary Ken Russell would make of the best science fiction films of all time? Superbly acted by all involved, especially Hurt, who's never really been this watchable since, and directed with real flair by Russell, Altered States tackles 'Big Issues' in an intelligent and inventive fashion, and it works on many levels. Russell walked a shaky tightrope here, slung across an abyss of pretension, and at times the sheer weight of ideas threatens to throw both him and his film over the edge. But to his credit, Russell seemed to have recaptured some of his old self-control, and was at last able to vindicate the belief held by some of us that he's a genuine - if somewhat erratic - talent.

UK
Theatrical Distributor: Warner Brothers
Video Distributor: Warner Brothers Home Video

USA
Theatrical Distributor: Warner Brothers
Video Distributor: Warner Brothers Home Video
DVD Distributor: Warner Home Video (11076)
Laserdisc Distributors: Warner Home Video (16772); Warner Home Video (LV 11076)

Australia
Rating: M

Finland
Rating: K-16

France
Rating: -12

Germany
Rating: 16

Norway
Rating: 18

Sweden
Rating: 15

UK
Rating: X; 18

USA
Rating: R

1981
Academy Awards, USA
Best Music, Original Score (John Corigliano) - nominated
Best Sound (Willie D. Burton, Les Fresholtz, Michael Minkler, Arthur Piantadosi) - nominated

Golden Globes, USA
New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture: Male (William Hurt) - nominated

1981
July
9: UK - theatrical release

September
30: France - theatrical release

November
20: Finland - theatrical release

1982
January
15: Sweden - theatrical release

February
12: Norway - theatrical release

1998
December
1: USA - laserdisc release (Warner Home Video (16772))
29: USA - DVD release (Warner Home Video (11076))

SEE ALSO
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Evil Dead II (1987)
Ghostbusters (1984)
Simon (1980)

Aurum Film Encyclopedia: Science Fiction p.358
credits, review

Elliot's Guide to Films on Video p.20
credits, review

Halls of Horror 27 p.16
note

Halls of Horror 30 p.12
note

Hoffman's Guide to Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Movies 1991 - 1992 p.21
credits, review

Illustrated Dinosaur Movie Guide
credits, review

Science Fiction Film Source Book pp.25-26
credits

screen
credits

Starburst 35 pp.22-25
illustrated review

Strange Adventures 19 pp.16-17
review (by Kevin Lyons)

Video Viewer December 1982
illustrated review

Virgin Film Yearbook 1983 pp.9, 11
credits, review

Last Updated: 12 September, 2009