The Giver

"Search for truth. Find freedom."

2014 1h 37m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 4,718

DramaScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world.

“Search for truth. Find freedom.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Jeff Bridges
The Giver
Meryl Streep
Chief Elder
Brenton Thwaites
Jonas
Alexander Skarsgård
Father
Katie Holmes
Mother
Odeya Rush
Fiona
Cameron Monaghan
Asher
Taylor Swift
Rosemary

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Phillip Noyce
Writers: Michael Mitnick, Robert B. Weide
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 12 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Phillip Noyce, shot by Ross Emery. 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 Marco Beltrami. 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 Barry Alexander Brown 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

Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep and Brenton Thwaites carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Search for truth. Find freedom.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0435651 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Phillip Noyce directs. Ross Emery behind the camera. Marco Beltrami scores. Barry Alexander Brown 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 12 years ago.
2Directed by Phillip Noyce, shot by Ross Emery. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Marco Beltrami. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Barry Alexander Brown shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep and Brenton Thwaites carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Search for truth. Find freedom.".
7IMDB entry: tt0435651 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 9 themes, including "new love", "based on novel or book", "dystopia", "anti conformity".
9Released under 14 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Ross Emery
Original score: Marco Beltrami
Editing: Barry Alexander Brown
Production design: Ed Verreaux
Costume design: Diana Cilliers
Makeup / hair: Chris Lyons
Runtime: 97 min · 1h 37m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $25,000,000
Box office: $66,980,456
Return: 268% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: The Giver (2014)

Also by

Phillip Noyce

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Grant English2014-11-04
★ 3.5/10
I like this genre of film plus with Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep, I was expecting more. Bridges and Streep deliver top-shelf performances it's just there is not enough of them in the film. There's a scene where Streep and Bridges get into the conversation of whether free will is worth the hurt and pain that comes with it. It's 10 minutes of acting every one should watch. The problem is this scene comes near the end of the movie and it's not enough to offset the other 100 minutes of complete blandness. There isn't this sense of dread or tension in the movie at all. There really isn't any sense of drama or pace to the movie and what results is a movie that feels like a late night documentary. I'm tempted to blame the young actors on drawing the audience in but that's completely fair. The film utilizes the voice of the main character - Jonas - as its narrator. While this is a quick way to give the film its voice, it also diffuses all the drama out of the film. We know that the narrator 'makes it out okay' since he's telling the story. There are so many themes - free will, destiny, joy, war, hope, emotion vs. rationalism - that completely get overlooked because the narrator is trying to get us through the story instead of just inviting us into the story. As a result, there isn't any tension in the first act to make you care about any of the characters.
dmaloir2014-11-13
★ 2/10
Although the cast is good (for the young actors), and excellent for Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep, this movie just has no scenario. The no-emotion dystopia has been covered many times in the literature and movie industry but, here, the story is just too simplistic and gives no satisfaction at all. The subject had a lot more depth in 'A brave new world'. Heck, even Equilibrium had more content. I got through the 90 minutes of the movie and ended up with the sour feeling that the director skipped from the exposition to the conclusion without developing anything. Really not worth the time.