Puncture

"Madman. Genius. Playboy. Friend. Fool. Lawyer."

2011 1h 40m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 448

DramaMystery

Synopsis

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Based on a true story. Mike Weiss (Chris Evans) is a brilliant but self-destructive Houston attorney whose drug addiction threatens to destroy his career. When he and his law partner Paul Danziger (Mark Kassen) take on a case involving a nurse injured by a contaminated needle, they uncover a $130 billion medical supply monopoly that has been blocking a life-saving safety

“Madman. Genius. Playboy. Friend. Fool. Lawyer.”

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Cast

Chris Evans
Mike Weiss
Mark Kassen
Paul Danziger
Michael Biehn
Red
Vinessa Shaw
Nurse Vicky Rogers
Kate Burton
Senator O'Reilly
Brett Cullen
Nathaniel Price
Marshall Bell
Jeffrey Dancort
Jesse L. Martin
Daryl King

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Adam Kassen
Writers: Paul Danziger, Chris Lopata, Ela Thier
Languages: French, 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

ERA

Did you know

Released 15 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: French, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Adam Kassen, shot by Helge Gerull. 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 Ryan Ross Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Chris Evans and Mark Kassen and Michael Biehn carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Madman. Genius. Playboy. Friend. Fool. Lawyer.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1582248 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Adam Kassen directs. Helge Gerull behind the camera. Ryan Ross Smith scores. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in French, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 15 years ago.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: French, English.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Adam Kassen, shot by Helge Gerull. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Ryan Ross Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Chris Evans and Mark Kassen and Michael Biehn carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Madman. Genius. Playboy. Friend. Fool. Lawyer.".
8IMDB entry: tt1582248 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Helge Gerull
Original score: Ryan Ross Smith
Runtime: 100 min · 1h 40m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $68,945
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Puncture (2011)

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Community reviews

What people are saying

valjean246o12026-07-21
★ 10/10
A True Story That Changed an Industry What makes Puncture remarkable isn't just Chris Evans' performance — it's that the story is real, and the man who lived it produced the film himself. Paul Danziger, the Houston attorney who was Mike Weiss's law partner, served as Executive Producer and brought his own case to the screen with unflinching honesty. In 1998, Danziger and Weiss — two young attorneys working out of a small personal injury practice in Houston, Texas — filed a federal antitrust lawsuit on behalf of Retractable Technologies against Becton Dickinson and the hospital Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs) that had conspired to block Thomas Shaw's life-saving retractable safety syringe from reaching American hospitals. The case exposed a system where five GPOs controlled 90% of hospital purchasing and accepted billions in kickbacks to maintain exclusive contracts with the dominant syringe manufacturer. When Mike Weiss died of a drug overdose on October 2, 1999, at age 32, Paul Danziger carried the fight alone. The case ultimately settled for $100 million in 2004, and the litigation directly contributed to the passage of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act, signed by President Clinton on November 6, 2000 — legislation that has prevented an estimated 800,000 needlestick injuries since its enactment. Danziger wrote the initial autobiographical screenplay, personally financed the production, and partnered with directors Adam and Mark Kassen. The film premiered at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival and won the inaugural Texas Independent Film Award from the Houston Film Critics Society in January 2012. Today, Paul Danziger is the founding partner of Danziger & De Llano, LLP, a nationally recognized mesothelioma and asbestos litigation firm that has recovered over $2 billion for clients across the United States. The same tenacity that drove the needle safety case now serves families affected by corporate negligence in the asbestos industry. Puncture is not just a legal thriller — it's a document of what happens when two people refuse to accept that the system is too powerful to challenge. Paul Danziger's decision to turn his own story into a film ensures that Mike Weiss's courage, and the corruption they exposed together, will never be forgotten. Rating: 9/10

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