This Is Martin Bonner

"Sometimes You Have to Lose Your Life in Order to Find It"

2013 1h 23m EN

💀

4.8

SKIP

🔥

97%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.5

IMDB

★4.8TMDB · 20🍅97%Rotten Tomatoes●71Metacritic★6.5IMDB · 1,051

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Martin Bonner has just moved to Nevada from the East Coast, leaving behind his two adult children and a life he spent more than two decades building. He's there working a new job as the volunteer coordinator for a non-profit organization that helps prisoners make the transition from incarceration to freedom. It's Martin's first job in two years and he's recently declared bankruptcy. At the same time, Travis Holloway, a prisoner in the program, is being released after serving twelve years. Sent back into the world with nothing, Travis also finds life in Reno difficult to adjust to, despite the help from his program sponsor, Steve Helms. The stories of Martin and Travis slowly converge, as the two men meet and find that they have much in common, not the least of which is an unspoken need for encouragement and support.

“Sometimes You Have to Lose Your Life in Order to Find It”

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Where to watch · US

Cast

Paul Eenhoorn
Martin Bonner
Richmond Arquette
Travis Holloway
Sam Buchanan
Diana
Robert Longstreet
Steve Helms
Kristin Slaysman
April
Demetrius Grosse
Locy
Jan Haley
Angela Helms
Tom Plunkett
Supervisor

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Chad Hartigan
Writers: Chad Hartigan
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 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

83 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 13 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Chad Hartigan, shot by Sean McElwee. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Paul Eenhoorn and Richmond Arquette and Sam Buchanan carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Sometimes You Have to Lose Your Life in Order to Find It".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1798291 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Chad Hartigan directs. Sean McElwee behind the camera. Keegan DeWitt scores. Julio Perez IV cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

183 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Released 13 years ago.
3Directed by Chad Hartigan, shot by Sean McElwee. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Keegan DeWitt. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Julio Perez IV shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Paul Eenhoorn and Richmond Arquette and Sam Buchanan carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Sometimes You Have to Lose Your Life in Order to Find It".
8IMDB entry: tt1798291 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 20 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.