Seconds (1966)
87%RT Audience Score: 87%
Awards & Nominations: 9 wins & 6 nominations
Featuring dazzling, disorienting cinematography from the great James Wong Howe and a strong lead performance by Rock Hudson, Seconds is a compellingly paranoid take on the legend of Faust
Seconds is a wild ride that will leave you questioning everything you know about identity and the human experience. With a cast led by the unexpected but impressive Rock Hudson, this film is a masterclass in suspense and horror. Director John Frankenheimer has crafted a cautionary tale that will stick with you long after the credits roll. And let’s not forget about James Wong Howe’s stunning black-and-white cinematography that adds to the eerie atmosphere. If you’re looking for a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat, Seconds is the perfect choice. Just be prepared for a mind-bending journey that will leave you reeling.
Production Company(ies)
13 Productions, ARTE Fondazione Montecinemaverita
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Long Beach Naval Shipyard – Ocean Boulevard & Navy Way, Long Beach, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for violence, sexuality and language
Year of Release
2000
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:DTS Dolby Digital SDDS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:1h 46m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 5, 1966 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 13, 2013
Genre(s)
Mystery & Thriller/Sci-Fi
Keyword(s)
starring Rock Hudson, Salome Jens, John Randolph, Will Geer, Jeff Corey, Murray Hamilton, directed by John Frankenheimer, written by Lewis John Carlino, Mystery & thriller/Sci-fi, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Myles Standish, Louis Cook, Marjory Adams, William J Nazzaro, Philip K Scheuer, Dick Banks, Elston Brooks, Brian Eggert, Gordon Stoneham, John Bustin, Jacob Siskind, Stanley Eichelbaum, produced by John Frankenheimer, Edward Lewis, R-rated, Faust legend, new existence, completely new face and life, artist, manservant, disorienting cinematography, paranoid, disorienting, compelling, suspenseful, psychological, eerie, haunting, shocking, thrilling, original, B&W cinematography, Jerry Goldsmith score, relevant, cautionary tale, middle-aged angst, transformation, identity, surreal, disturbing, mind-bending, thought-provoking, introspective, atmospheric, intense, gripping, engrossing, captivating, mesmerizing, unforgettable
Worldwide gross: $237,202,299
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $411,407,409
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 374
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 44,864,494
US/Canada gross: $101,648,571
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $176,300,885
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 428
US/Canada opening weekend: $25,336,048
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $43,943,241
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 275
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $90,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $156,097,420
Production budget ranking: 207
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $84,058,460
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $171,251,529
ROI to date (est.): 71%
ROI ranking: 1,054
Salome Jens – Nora Marcus
John Randolph – Arthur Hamilton
Will Geer – Old Man
Jeff Corey – Mr. Ruby
Murray Hamilton – Charlie
Director(s)
John Frankenheimer
Writer(s)
Lewis John Carlino
Producer(s)
John Frankenheimer, Edward Lewis
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
9 wins & 6 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (59) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (46) | Rotten (13)
It is a brilliant, fascinating, weird and horrifying piece of work which probably will emerge as one of the best films of the year.
September 23, 2021
Myles Standish
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
TOP CRITIC
It’s a little difficult to figure Rock Hudson in a chiller but he shows an unexpected professional acting quality in Seconds.
September 23, 2021
Louis Cook
Detroit Free Press
TOP CRITIC
I think Mr. Frankenheimer was the one with bad dream. While the picture is superbly directed and has reasonably mature dialogue, he has failed to make the idea engrossing or convincing.
September 23, 2021
Marjory Adams
Boston Globe
TOP CRITIC
It suffers from more than a few faults, but anyone who appreciates film entertainment made by a master craftsman will enjoy this harrowing exercise in mounting suspense.
September 23, 2021
William J. Nazzaro
Arizona Republic
TOP CRITIC
It makes a dramatic actor out of the till now fashionably predictable farceur Rock Hudson. He’s not great, but he puts together a pretty good fac-simile of a man suffering the tortures of the damned.
September 23, 2021
Philip K. Scheuer
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
The half-world of twilight horror and stark realism that director John Frankenheimer probed so chillingly in The Manchurian Candidate has come under the Frankenheimer scalpel again in a remarkable motion picture called Seconds.
September 23, 2021
Elston Brooks
Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com
TOP CRITIC
Perhaps the director’s most personal film, Seconds holds a deeply human message and marvelous cautionary tale, ever hopeful to viewers who heed its warning.
February 23, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
Seconds is an exceptionally original shocker, nicely balanced between plausibility and cruel fantasy.
September 23, 2021
Dick Banks
Charlotte Observer
[Frankenheimer] succeeds in making the tale a weirdly absorbing thriller, full of twists and fascinating surprises, and that cinematographer James Wong Howe complements the eerie spell with his inventive black-and-white photography.
September 23, 2021
John Bustin
Austin American-Statesman
It’s a harrowing little story, well adapted by John Lewis Carlino from David Ely’s novel, and director John Frankenheimer, with the assistance of James Wong Howe’s fluid black-and-white photography, has done it up in a stark and uncompromising style.
September 23, 2021
Gordon Stoneham
Ottawa Citizen
It isn’t often that someone finds something new to say with the Faust legend, but John Frankenheimer has managed to come up with something that, while not completely satisfying is still engrossing.
September 23, 2021
Jacob Siskind
Montreal Gazette
Hudson, however, can’t be blamed for the story going to pot. It never does regain the hypnotic appeal of the initial sequences. Yet Hudson actually turns in the most forcefully convincing performance of his career.
September 23, 2021
Stanley Eichelbaum
San Francisco Examiner…
Plot
In exchange for his little brother’s life, the reformed car thief, Randall “Memphis” Raines, has to do the impossible: in less than three days, he has to steal not one, but fifty exotic supercars for the ruthless crime lord, Ray Calitri. To stand a chance of pulling off this intricate and time-sensitive grand theft auto, once more, Memphis has to rely on his old gang
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Rock Hudson delivers a surprisingly strong lead performance in Seconds.
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