Betrayed (1988 film)
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| Betrayed | |
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| Directed by | Costa Gavras |
| Produced by | Irwin Winkler |
| Written by | Joe Eszterhas |
| Starring | Debra Winger Tom Berenger John Heard John Mahoney |
| Music by | Bill Conti |
| Distributed by | United Artists/MGM |
| Release date(s) | 26 August 1988 |
| Running time | 127 min. |
| Language | English |
Betrayed is a 1988 motion picture drama directed by Costa Gavras, written by Joe Eszterhas and starring Tom Berenger and Debra Winger.
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[edit] Plot summary
Set in the American Midwest, the film begins with the murder of a Jewish radio host in Chicago. FBI undercover agent Catherine Weaver (Winger), alias Katie Phillips, sets out to infiltrate a farming community, suspected of harbouring those responsible.
After receiving a warm welcome from land-owner and farmer Gary Simmons (Berenger), his two children and extended family, she begins to believe that the FBI lead is erroneous. Throwing caution to the wind, she moves in and falls in love with Simmons, a Vietnam War veteran who appears to command the respect of the local community. A short while later, her suspicions are aroused by talk of family secrets and as more chilling events unfold, Katie is exposed to the fact that Gary is the leader of a Klan-like white supremacy group involved in heinous, often gut-wrenching, acts of racial violence.
In too deep, Katie pleads with boss and mentor Michael Carnes (John Heard) to release her from the assignment, but he refuses, instead turning the screw on her mixed loyalties. Ultimately, she must betray either the man she loves or the country she has sworn to protect.
The film's beginning is loosely based on the 1984 murder of Denver DJ Alan Berg, who was murdered by white supremacists known as The Order. This is also the theme of the Oliver Stone movie Talk Radio.
This film is culturally significant in one of the first accurate contemporary depictions of social computer networking. In a subtle chilling scene, the extent of the racist organization is revealed by a look at their usenet group.
[edit] Reviews
Most independent reviewers found the storyline both compelling and powerful. Certainly, the scenes of racial violence are amongst the most hard-hitting and shocking to be witnessed by the movie-going public. The performances of the main actors were universally applauded, particularly Winger, who needed to convey complex and mixed emotions throughout. Critics of the film point to a muddled and sometimes unbelievable unravelling of the plot.
[edit] Trivia
- In a 1996 interview, Tom Berenger named Betrayed as his favourite film, shrugging off any media criticism with the retort "It was exactly what it was meant to be".
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Betrayed at the Internet Movie Database
