''Anonymous Rex'' is a 2004
science fiction film
Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstell ...
directed by
Julian Jarrold and starring
Sam Trammell
Sam Trammell (born January 29, 1969) is an American actor, known for his role as Sam Merlotte on the HBO fantasy drama series ''True Blood''. He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance as Richard ...
and
Daniel Baldwin
Daniel Leroy Baldwin (born October 5, 1960) is an American actor. He is the second oldest of the four Baldwin brothers, all of whom are actors. Baldwin played the role of Detective Beau Felton in the NBC TV series '' Homicide: Life on the Str ...
. The film was produced as a "
backdoor pilot
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in television in the United States, United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a te ...
" for an unproduced television series of the same name.
It is based on the
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
''Casual Rex'' by
Eric Garcia. It was aired on
Sci Fi Channel.
Plot
In an alternate timeline, dinosaurs have managed to survive the
KT Extinction Event and now live amongst humans using disguises. Vincent Rubio is a ''
Velociraptor
''Velociraptor'' (; ) is a genus of small dromaeosaurid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous epoch, about 75 million to 71 million years ago. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the p ...
''
private investigator
A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...
along with his partner, Ernie Watson, a ''
Triceratops
''Triceratops'' ( ; ) is a genus of herbivorous chasmosaurine ceratopsid dinosaur that first appeared during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous period, about 68 million years ago in what is now North America. It is ...
''.
When Ernie's ex-girlfriend's brother is found dead, the incident is dismissed as suicide. However she doesn't believe her brother would kill himself and asks Ernie to investigate ("for free," Vincent observes). When the pair investigate the crime scene, Vincent notices the
scent of another dinosaur on the windowsill, concluding it was not a suicide.
At the funeral Vincent talks to a man dressed in a strange suit who belongs to the
cult
In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal ...
that the deceased had previously joined, "The Voice of Progress." He pretends to be interested in their ideals and gets himself and Ernie invited to a gathering. During the funeral, Vincent detects the same scent from the victim's bedroom, indicating the killer is nearby.
Vincent and Ernie go to the cult meeting where they are told the Voice of Progress' ideals and history: The Voice of Progress is revealed to be both the title of their leader and a collection of dinosaurs who believe that the prolonged use of disguises has robbed the dinosaur community of its
unique identity. The cult also believes that humans have caused dinosaurs to see themselves as monsters and humans as normal. While Ernie appears indifferent to the cult's ideals, Vincent is profoundly impacted by the cult's beliefs.
As their investigation continues, Vincent and Ernie come to realize what one man in the cult is planning: a dinosaurian revolution by turning cult members into violent,
feral
A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...
dinosaurs and releasing them on the humans. The resulting conflict will force both sides to face each other, and allow dinosaurs to reveal themselves. Though Vincent is somewhat sympathetic to the cult, he disagrees with the idea of a violent revolution (knowing it could end in disaster for both sides), leaving him unsure which side he's on.
Cast
*
Sam Trammell
Sam Trammell (born January 29, 1969) is an American actor, known for his role as Sam Merlotte on the HBO fantasy drama series ''True Blood''. He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance as Richard ...
as Vincent Rubio
*
Daniel Baldwin
Daniel Leroy Baldwin (born October 5, 1960) is an American actor. He is the second oldest of the four Baldwin brothers, all of whom are actors. Baldwin played the role of Detective Beau Felton in the NBC TV series '' Homicide: Life on the Str ...
as Ernie Watson
*
Stephanie Lemelin as Gabrielle Watson
*
Tamara Gorski
Tamara Gorski is a Canadian actress. She is of Ukrainian
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of ...
as Circe
*
Alan van Sprang as Raal
*
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songw ...
as Elegant Man
*
Faye Dunaway
Dorothy Faye Dunaway (born January 14, 1941) is an American actress. She is the recipient of many accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and a BAFTA Award. In 2011, the government of France made ...
as Shin
Dinosaurs featured
*''
Velociraptor
''Velociraptor'' (; ) is a genus of small dromaeosaurid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous epoch, about 75 million to 71 million years ago. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the p ...
''
*''
Triceratops
''Triceratops'' ( ; ) is a genus of herbivorous chasmosaurine ceratopsid dinosaur that first appeared during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous period, about 68 million years ago in what is now North America. It is ...
''
*''
Carnotaurus
''Carnotaurus'' (; ) is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the Late Cretaceous period, probably sometime between 71 and 69 million years ago. The only species is ''Carnotaurus sastrei''. Known from a single well-p ...
''
*''
Brontosaurus
''Brontosaurus'' (; meaning "thunder lizard" from Greek , "thunder" and , "lizard") is a genus of gigantic quadruped sauropod dinosaurs. Although the type species, ''B. excelsus'', had long been considered a species of the closely related ''A ...
''
*''
Stegosaurus
''Stegosaurus'' (; ) is a genus of herbivorous, four-legged, armored dinosaur from the Late Jurassic, characterized by the distinctive kite-shaped upright plates along their backs and spikes on their tails. Fossils of the genus have been fou ...
''
*''
Tyrannosaurus
''Tyrannosaurus'' is a genus of large theropod dinosaur. The species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' (''rex'' meaning "king" in Latin), often called ''T. rex'' or colloquially ''T-Rex'', is one of the best represented theropods. ''Tyrannosaurus'' live ...
''
*''
Allosaurus
''Allosaurus'' () is a genus of large carnosaurian theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 145 million years ago during the Late Jurassic epoch ( Kimmeridgian to late Tithonian). The name "''Allosaurus''" means "different lizard" alludi ...
''
Production
The pilot was originally produced for the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelv ...
network, but was picked up by the
Sci-Fi Channel instead.
[
]
See also
* List of American films of 2004
* List of films featuring dinosaurs
* Eric Garcia
References
External links
*
* http://www.goodreads.com/series/58143-anonymous-rex
{{Julian Jarrold
2004 television films
2004 films
American science fiction television films
Films about dinosaurs
2004 science fiction films
2004 fantasy films
Syfy original films
Films directed by Julian Jarrold
Films shot in Toronto
Television films as pilots
Television pilots not picked up as a series
Films based on American novels
Television shows based on American novels
2000s English-language films
2000s American films