''The Gift'' is a 2000 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Sam Raimi, written by

Billy Bob Thornton Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...

and Tom Epperson, and based on the alleged

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use extrasensory perception (ESP) to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance, or who performs acts that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws ...

experiences of Thornton's mother. It centers on Annie ( Cate Blanchett), who is involved in a murder case when she acquires knowledge of it through her

extrasensory perception Extrasensory perception or ESP, also called sixth sense, is a claimed paranormal ability pertaining to reception of information not gained through the recognized physical senses, but sensed with the mind. The term was adopted by Duke Universit ...

and psychic abilities. The cast also includes Keanu Reeves,

Giovanni Ribisi Antonino Giovanni Ribisi (; born December 17, 1974) is an American actor known for his starring roles in the TV series ''Sneaky Pete'' and the films ''Avatar'' (2009), '' Lost in Translation'' (2003), '' Ted'' (2012) and its sequel '' Ted 2'' (2 ...

Hilary Swank Hilary Ann Swank (born July 30, 1974) is an American actress and film producer. She first became known in 1992 for her role on the television series '' Camp Wilder'' and made her film debut with a minor role in ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1992 ...

, Katie Holmes, and

Greg Kinnear Gregory Buck Kinnear (born June 17, 1963) is an American actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in ''As Good as It Gets'' (1997). Kinnear has appeared in many popular films, including '' Sabrina'' (1 ...

Plot

In the town of Brixton,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, widow Annie Wilson is a

clairvoyant Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

fortune-teller who has visions of her late grandmother. After Jessica King, the promiscuous fiancée of the local school's principal, Wayne Collins, disappears, Annie receives a vision revealing that Jessica has been killed and her body thrown into a pond. She informs local sheriff Pearl Johnson of her vision, and despite his skepticism, Johnson searches a pond at the home of Donnie Barksdale, the abusive husband of one of Annie's clients, Valerie. Donnie has repeatedly threatened Annie and her three children after Annie advised Valerie to leave him, accusing Annie of being a

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

and telling her and her children that she will burn in hell. Valerie permits the search while Donnie is absent, but he returns while the search is proceeding. The police find Jessica's body in the pond and Donnie is arrested for her murder. Buddy Cole, a mentally ill acquaintance of Annie's, harbors a hatred for his father, and tries to explain to Annie why, but Annie is preoccupied and refuses to listen. That evening, Buddy's mother calls Annie to come to their house, as Buddy has snapped and has his father bound to a chair. Buddy sets his father on fire, and it is revealed that Buddy's father

sexually abused Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

him as a child. Buddy is arrested and taken to a mental hospital. During Donnie's trial for Jessica's murder, it is revealed that they had an affair. Donnie is convicted and sent to prison. Later, Annie receives more visions revealing that Donnie is innocent and that someone else wants to kill her. She asks prosecutor David Duncan to reopen the case. After Duncan declines, Annie counters that if he does not do so, she will reveal David and Jessica's affair, which she witnessed. Duncan attempts to bribe Annie in exchange for her silence, but Annie refuses. Annie tells Wayne that Donnie is not responsible for Jessica's death and that Duncan will not reopen the investigation. At Wayne's suggestion, he and Annie drive out to the pond at night, where Annie learns from a vision that Wayne is actually the murderer. Wayne confesses to Annie that he was angry after he discovered that Jessica was cheating on him with Donnie. Wayne attempts to kill Annie by striking her in the head with a flashlight, but Buddy appears and knocks him out. Annie and Buddy lock the unconscious Wayne in the trunk of Annie's car. Buddy tells Annie that he escaped from the mental hospital, and hands her a wash cloth to wipe her bloody head with. The two drive to the police station. Annie tells Buddy that he will have to return to the hospital, and he waits in the car while she enters the station. When she returns to the car with police, Buddy has disappeared. Annie explains to Johnson what happened at the pond, but he informs her that Buddy could not have aided her as he had died by suicide at the mental hospital earlier that day. Annie reaches in her pocket and pulls out the wash cloth Buddy gave her to wipe her head. Annie returns home and looks at photographs of her late husband Ben. The next morning, she and her sons are at his grave, mourning his premature death.

Cast

Production

The film was written by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson before the success of ''

Sling Blade A sling blade or kaiser blade is a heavy, hooked, steel blade at the end of a long (around ) handle that is usually made of wood. The blade is double-edged, and both sides are usually kept sharp. It is used to cut brush, briar, and undergrowth. ...

''.

Reception

Critical response

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the film has an approval rating of 57% based on 122 reviews, with an average score of 5.90/10. The site's consensus states "the A-list cast can't prevent the movie from becoming a by-the-numbers whodunit with an ending that's all but unsatisfactory." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

it has a score of 62% based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B on scale of A to F. Roger Ebert gave the film 3 out of 4, and called it "Ingenious in its plotting, colorful in its characters, taut in its direction and fortunate in possessing Cate Blanchett." Peter Travers of

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

wrote: "Raimi's flair for rich atmospherics — expertly abetted by cinematographer Jamie Anderson (Grosse Pointe Blank) and composer Christopher Young (Wonder Boys) — and a cast that goes full throttle hold you in thrall. " Todd McCarthy of

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wrote: "Raimi eschews trendy, over-emphatic effects in favor of a straightforward approach that makes for a solid tale well told." Kenneth Turan of the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

gave it a mixed review and was critical that the "Characters lean too heavily toward the Southern grotesque, and the direction the plot is heading is more predictable than it should be." Despite praising the cast, Turan wrote: "Overly familiar material, even well done, cannot be made more intrinsically interesting than it is. Not even by Cate Blanchett and Keanu Reeves." A. O. Scott of

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

wrote: "The picture is saved from mediocrity by Mr. Raimi's smooth competence, and by the unusually high quality of the acting." Curt Fields of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' called it "So chock-full of stereotypes as to be a filmic Southern Country Safari" and advised "Don't Bother Opening This 'Gift'"

Box office

The film grossed $12,008,642 at the U.S. box office against a production budget of $10 million.

Accolades

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gift 2000 films 2000 horror films 2000s mystery thriller films 2000 thriller drama films American horror thriller films American mystery thriller films American supernatural horror films American supernatural thriller films American ghost films American thriller drama films Supernatural drama films Films about domestic violence Films directed by Sam Raimi Films produced by James Jacks Films set in Georgia (U.S. state) Films shot in Georgia (U.S. state) Films shot in Savannah, Georgia Incest in film Lakeshore Entertainment films Paramount Vantage films Southern Gothic films Films scored by Christopher Young Films produced by Tom Rosenberg Films produced by Gary Lucchesi Films about precognition 2000 drama films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films