Penthouse North

"Some secrets are better left unseen."

2013 1h 25m EN

😐

5.8

MID

★5.8TMDB · 200

ThrillerDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After losing her sight while working as a photojournalist in Afghanistan, Sara Frost, now reclusive, lives quietly in a New York penthouse with her boyfriend, until a smooth but sadistic criminal looking for a hidden fortune enters her life.

“Some secrets are better left unseen.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Michelle Monaghan
Sara Frost
Michael Keaton
Hollader
Barry Sloane
Chad
Andrew W. Walker
Ryan
Kaniehtiio Horn
Blake
Trevor Hayes
Danny
Phillip Jarrett
Antonio
Timothy Paul Coderre
US Army Sergeant

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Joseph Ruben
Writers: David Loughery
Languages: English, Arabic
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

85 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

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Arabic.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Joseph Ruben, shot by Chris Seager. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Michelle Monaghan and Michael Keaton and Barry Sloane carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Some secrets are better left unseen.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Joseph Ruben directs. Chris Seager behind the camera. Mark Mancina scores. Andrew Mondshein cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Arabic.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Released 13 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Arabic.
4Directed by Joseph Ruben, shot by Chris Seager. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Mark Mancina. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Andrew Mondshein shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Michelle Monaghan and Michael Keaton and Barry Sloane carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Some secrets are better left unseen.".
9IMDB entry: tt2055709 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 16 themes, including "new year's eve", "new york city", "loss of eyesight", "hostage".

The technical file

Cinematography: Chris Seager
Original score: Mark Mancina
Editing: Andrew Mondshein
Production design: Lisa Soper
Makeup / hair: Kayla Manasseri
Stunt coordinator: Layton Morrison
Runtime: 85 min · 1h 25m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Penthouse North (2013)

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Joseph Ruben

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2017-07-23
★ 4/10
Ice Ice Baby. After being rendered blind by a suicide bomber, one time war photographer Sara (Michelle Monaghan), finds love with Ryan (Andrew Walker). But one day her life is once again turned upside down when she is terrorised in her own home... Distinctly mundane thriller that harks back to other blind women under threat thrillers released previously. Penthouse North (the swanky place where Sara lives with Ryan) brings absolutely nothing new to the formula, not even - in fact - adding a twist or any sort of surprises. It's interesting to take on board the advancements in technology for the blind, though even this aspect is short changed in the run-of-the-mill plot. The villains are a couple of staple writing jobs, with Michael Keaton as Chad phoning it in, while the attempts to make Chad extra nasty are laughably lazy and irresponsible into the bargain. Monaghan's performance is commendable, she does enough to have you rooting for her whilst enjoying her resourcefulness, and the cinematography (Chris Seager) is most pleasing, both in colour lenses and glorious city scapes. But ultimately, one can forgive implausibilities in a thriller of this type, but not lazy unadventurousness that smacks of film making to fulfil a contract or even as a tax write off job. 4/10
tmdb280390232022-09-09
★ 1/10
Not only are blind people in the movies always drop-dead gorgeous (unless they’re evil or homeless), but their eyes always are, counterintuitively, their most outstanding feature. Like Sara Taylor (Michelle Monaghan), a photojournalist stationed in Afghanistan whom an explosion leaves permanently blind. Sara will later be described, unironically, as having a "very pretty face" and "soft green eyes;" so soft and green indeed that one wonders why she bothers wearing a pair of thick, dark sunglasses. Okay, so an IED blows up right in your face with enough force to deprive you of sight forever, yet leaves you otherwise unscarred. That dog won’t hunt, monsignor. Then again, this is the kind of movie wherein a cat is thrown over the titular penthouse balcony only to reappear right before the closing credits, alive and well at ground level. Granted, it could be any other black cat, in which case the occurrence would be plain random as opposed to unfathomably stupid.