A Perfect Getaway

"Welcome to paradise. Enter at your own risk."

2009 1h 38m EN

😐

6.3

MID

🍅

62%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.5

IMDB

★6.3TMDB · 1,491🍅62%Rotten Tomatoes●63Metacritic★6.5IMDB · 78,772

ThrillerMysteryAdventure

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

For their honeymoon, newlyweds Cliff and Cydney head to the tropical islands of Hawaii. While journeying through the paradisaical countryside the couple encounters Kale and Cleo, two disgruntled hitchhikers and Nick and Gina, two wild but well-meaning spirits who help guide them through the lush jungles. The picturesque waterfalls and scenic mountainsides quickly give way to terror when Cliff and Cydney learn of a grisly murder that occurred nearby and realize that they're being followed by chance acquaintances that suspiciously fit the description of the killers.

“Welcome to paradise. Enter at your own risk.”

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Cast

Steve Zahn
Cliff
Milla Jovovich
Cydney
Timothy Olyphant
Nick
Kiele Sanchez
Gina
Chris Hemsworth
Kale
Marley Shelton
Cleo
Holt McCallany
Police Lieutenant
Anthony Ruivivar
Chronic

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Twohy
Writers: David Twohy, Brian Murray
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Twohy, shot by Steve Koster. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Boris Elkis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tracy Adams shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Steve Zahn and Milla Jovovich and Timothy Olyphant carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Welcome to paradise. Enter at your own risk.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0971209 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Twohy directs. Steve Koster behind the camera. Boris Elkis scores. Tracy Adams cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 17 years ago.
2Directed by David Twohy, shot by Steve Koster. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Boris Elkis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Tracy Adams shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Steve Zahn and Milla Jovovich and Timothy Olyphant carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Welcome to paradise. Enter at your own risk.".
7IMDB entry: tt0971209 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Steve Koster
Original score: Boris Elkis
Editing: Tracy Adams
Production design: Joseph C. Nemec III
Costume design: Laura Goldsmith
Makeup / hair: Matthew W. Mungle
VFX supervisor: Jonah Loop
Sound: Tony Lamberti
Stunt coordinator: Matt Birman
Runtime: 98 min · 1h 38m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $14,000,000
Box office: $22,852,638
Return: 163% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: A Perfect Getaway (2009)
Rotten Tomatoes: 62% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 63/100
IMDB rating: 6.5/10 · 78,772 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

1 nomination total

Also by

David Twohy

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2024-01-18
★ 6/10
Great island locations but the story is essentially a... Two newlyweds (Steve Zahn and Milla Jovovich) set out to enjoy their honeymoon hiking the incredibly scenic Kaua'i, Hawaii. Unfortunately they catch word that a crazy murderous couple is on the loose and they become seriously suspicious of other hikers (Timothy Olyphant and Chris Hemsworth, amongst others). Will they escape their honeymoon alive? "A Perfect Getaway" (2009) is worthwhile if, like me, you enjoy island-adventure movies like "Mysterious Island," "Robinson Crusoe" and "Six Days Seven Nights." The film was shot at Kaua'i, Puerto Rico and Jamaica (the sea cave sequence) and these locations are spectacular. Also, the character played by Timothy Olyphant and his woman (Kiele Sanchez) are likable and you can't help but start to root for them by the time the third act roles around. Olyphant is "outstanding." Chris Hemsworth (Thor) is also impressive as a grim/laconic badaxx hiker in a glorified cameo. Marley Shelton easily wins the Best Beauty award, but her role is too small and the filmmakers fail to take advantage of her presence. Everyone knows by now that this is a 'twist' film and consequently the story takes a jarring turn in the final act. I'm not going to spoil it for you if you haven't seen it. I recommend seeing "A Perfect Getaway" if you like island flicks or films with surprising plot twists (or both). See if you can figure out the twist before it happens. I did and will explain below why it was easy. However, let me humbly add that I didn't have it figured out 100%; I just suspected the twist and that's how it turned out. The film is good for what it is, but there are a couple of things that turned me off. One has to do with the twist, explained below. The other has to do with the film being a whodunit thriller. By it's very nature the story has to cast suspicion on several characters and, as such, they are often portrayed in a negative or weirdo light, which doesn't change until the last act when the real murderers are revealed. In short, there's just too much negative energy amongst the players, but this is somewhat offset by the impressive redemption of a couple of the characters in the third act. The movie runs 1 hour, 38 minutes. GRADE: B- SPOILER ALERT (Don't read any further unless you've seen the film). We discover in the third act that the main protagonists played by Zahn & Jovovich are the murderers and that they're actually impostors of a recently murdered newlywed couple. The reasons I was able to figure this out was because (1) I knew beforehand there was going to be a plot twist and so was looking for it and (2) in a murder-twist scenario it's usually the most innocent/vulnerable persons who are guilty (e.g. "Howling V: The Rebirth"). Twist films like this have now become so common that they're no longer even surprising. What would really be refreshing and 'cutting edge' is if the film simply played it straight, i.e. the people we think are the protagonists remain the protagonists throughout and the suspicious/evil people get their comeuppance ("Cape Fear" is a good example). My problem with the twist is that it makes the whole story a lie -- the very people we come to care about and root for in the first hour end up being despicable criminal scum of the lowest depth (at least Zahn's character anyway) and the suspicious characters that we're led to believe are the murderers wind up being the protagonists we should care about. To the film's credit we DO end up caring about Olyphant's character and his mate by the end of the story. Yes, I realize that, in a way, the film isn't lying to the viewer once the characters played by Zahn and Jovovich are understood to be the murderers. When this is understood, most (maybe all) of their conversations are authentic as the impostors/killers but not as the innocent newlyweds, if you know what I mean. It's all a matter of perspective. But, still, this doesn't take away from the fact that the viewer has essentially been baited and switched -- the very people we think are the innocent/vulnerable protagonists end up being the guilty/malevolent scum bags. Consequently, the viewer can't help but feel hoodwinked at the climax.

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