Safe House

"No one is safe"

2012 1h 55m EN

😐

6.5

MID

🥫

52%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 4,052🥫52%Rotten Tomatoes●52Metacritic★6.7IMDB · 248,951

ActionThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A dangerous CIA renegade resurfaces after a decade on the run. When the safe house he's remanded to is attacked by mercenaries, a rookie operative escapes with him. Now, the unlikely allies must stay alive long enough to uncover who wants them dead.

“No one is safe”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Denzel Washington
Tobin Frost
Ryan Reynolds
Matt Weston
Vera Farmiga
Catherine Linklater
Brendan Gleeson
David Barlow
Sam Shepard
Harlan Whitford
Rubén Blades
Carlos Villar
Nora Arnezeder
Ana Moreau
Robert Patrick
Daniel Kiefe

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Daniel Espinosa
Writers: David Guggenheim
Languages: English, Afrikaans, Spanish
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

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $85M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 14 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Afrikaans, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Daniel Espinosa, shot by Oliver Wood. 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 Ramin Djawadi. 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 Richard Pearson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds and Vera Farmiga carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "No one is safe".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Daniel Espinosa directs. Oliver Wood behind the camera. Ramin Djawadi scores. Richard Pearson cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Afrikaans, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $85M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Released 14 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Afrikaans, Spanish.
4Directed by Daniel Espinosa, shot by Oliver Wood. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Ramin Djawadi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Richard Pearson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds and Vera Farmiga carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "No one is safe".
9IMDB entry: tt1599348 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 12 themes, including "martial arts", "central intelligence agency (cia)", "microchip", "betrayal".
11Released under 11 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Oliver Wood
Original score: Ramin Djawadi
Editing: Richard Pearson
Production design: Brigitte Broch
Costume design: Susan Matheson
Makeup / hair: Nadine Prigge
VFX supervisor: Simon Hughes
Sound: Frank A. Montaño
Stunt coordinator: Greg Powell
Runtime: 115 min · 1h 55m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $85,000,000
Box office: $208,076,205
Return: 245% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Safe House (2012)
Rotten Tomatoes: 52% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 52/100
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 248,951 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

1 win & 7 nominations total

Also by

Daniel Espinosa

Stills · wallpapers

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Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

gerithecat2012-06-03
fast paced action thriller delivers from beginning to end. great performances from Reynolds and Washington. A tense and thrilling reminder of the great three days of the condor (1975)
JPV8522021-04-11
★ 8/10
Tries really hard to be a Bourne-like espionage-thriller and while the action sequences aren't as well done, still has some entertaining moments. Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington have some great scenes together. Kind of surprised, given it's Universal, there hadn't been a few direct-to-video sequels at this point... 3.75/5
CinemaSerf2024-05-29
★ 7/10
"Matt" (Ryan Reynolds) is a bored, ambitious CIA agent looking after a safe house in South Africa desperate for something meatier to do. Then his wish comes true as he finds himself looking after a "most wanted" "Frost" (Denzel Washington). Needless to say, their safe house turns out to be anything but, and now they are chased all over the place unsure who to/not to trust in this is perfectly functional action thriller. Daniel Espinosa keeps it all taut and interesting and the pair make for quite a convincing team on-the-run. Brendan Gleeson and Sam Shepard chip in now and again to a storyline that works quite well too. Worth a watch.