Altered States with William Hurt: DVD Cover
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Altered States Director: Ken Russell Cast: William Hurt, Blair Brown, Bob Balaban, Charles Haid

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  • DVD Release Date: 12/29/1998
  • Original Release: 1980
  • Rating: Rated R
  • Sales Rank: 11,733

Viewer Rating: (3 ratings)

Detailed Rating: "Plot" See All

 
  • Overview
  • Editorial Reviews
  • Scenes
  • Customer Reviews
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Scenes

Features

Soundtrack remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1; Interactive menus; Production notes; 5 theatrical trailers and 2 TV spots; Scene access; Languages and subtitles: English, Français

Full Product Details

Scene Index

Side #1 -- WIDESCREEN
0. Jump to a Scene
1. Trying the tank. [2:14]
2. Credits. [1:30]
3. Where will we be going? [2:50]
4. Two whiz kids. [2:28]
5. Fascinating bastard. [4:00]
6. Dream on fire. [1:55]
7. Hearts touched and untouched. [3:59]
8. Unafraid of solitary pain. [4:37]
9. Ourselves and nothing but. [1:46]
10. His unborn soul. [2:45]
11. The ritual. [2:26]
12. Straight for the brain. [6:21]
13. New tank for dumb experiments. [5:35]
14. No longer observing [3:44]
15. Before I reconstitue. [3:15]
16. X-rays - of a gorilla. [3:27]
17. Transformation! [3:30]
18. A small quantum jump. [5:00]
19. Out of the tank. [3:13]
20. Animal loose. [4:32]
21. Visiting the zoo. [3:53]
22. Supremely satisfying. [3:46]
23. What the hell was that? [3:53]
24. Altered state observed. [3:04]
25. Through the primordial void. [5:59]
26. Ravished by truth. [3:03]
27. Afterglow of a breakthrough. [2:12]
28. Now real to Eddie. [2:18]
29. The final fight back. [1:31]
30. "I love you, Emily." [:44]
31. End Credits. [2:59]
Side #2 -- FULLSCREEN
0. Jump to a Scene
1. Trying the tank. [2:14]
2. Credits. [1:30]
3. Where will we be going? [2:50]
4. Two whiz kids. [2:28]
5. Fascinating bastard. [4:00]
6. Dream on fire. [1:55]
7. Hearts touched and untouched. [3:59]
8. Unafraid of solitary pain. [4:37]
9. Ourselves and nothing but. [1:46]
10. His unborn soul. [2:45]
11. The ritual. [2:26]
12. Straight for the brain. [6:21]
13. New tank for dumb experiments. [5:35]
14. No longer observing [3:44]
15. Before I reconstitue. [3:15]
16. X-rays - of a gorilla. [3:27]
17. Transformation! [3:30]
18. A small quantum jump. [5:00]
19. Out of the tank. [3:13]
20. Animal loose. [4:32]
21. Visiting the zoo. [3:53]
22. Supremely satisfying. [3:46]
23. What the hell was that? [3:53]
24. Altered state observed. [3:04]
25. Through the primordial void. [5:59]
26. Ravished by truth. [3:03]
27. Afterglow of a breakthrough. [2:12]
28. Now real to Eddie. [2:18]
29. The final fight back. [1:31]
30. "I love you, Emily." [:44]
31. End Credits. [2:59]

Scene Index

Editorial Reviews

In this 1980 sci-fi horror film, William Hurt plays Eddie Jessup, a scientist obsessed with discovering mankind's true role in the universe. To this end, he submits himself to a series of mind-expanding experiments. By enclosing himself in a sensory-deprivation chamber and taking hallucinogenic drugs, Jessup hopes to explore different levels of human consciousness, but instead is devolved into an apelike monster. Director Ken Russell helmed Altered States from a script by Paddy Chayefsky, who adapted his own novel of the same name. Unhappy with the finished product, Chayefsky had his name replaced with his pseudonym Sydney Aaron. Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Customer Reviews

  • Viewer Rating:
  • Ratings: 3Reviews: 2

Tanks for the Memoriesby Gonzo84

Reader Rating:
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January 14, 2009: I viewed this film on Christmas of 2007 and what a movie to be watching on the biggest holiday of the year. I stumbled across this movie accidentally in a movie retail store and just by the cover and the title; I had to check it out. Now I'm not saying anything incriminating, but the fact that the film is about consiousness expansion and the exploration of the mind with the use of psychedelics was a big draw. I'm in no way advocating the use of psychedelics or drugs, but I myself have had my fair share of experimentation and this film very much so touches on that subject; "Experimentation," only to a whole crazier level. Pretty much this film shows us what happens when we take experimenting too far or as a friend of mine would call it the "Syd Barrett Syndrome." The one thing that really drew my attention to the film was the use of Sensory Deprivation Tanks, which is widely unknown. Deprivation Tanks are used to explore and expand consiousness without the use of any drugs or psychedelics, but all with the brain, which in fact is the biggest psychedelic known to man. A tank is filled with water set to body temperature (98degrees) and the subject submerges themselve into the water and shutting the door behind him leaving no light. This creates Sensory Deprivation - No seeing, no feeling, etc. Then you relax and let the mind meditate and the trip begins. The Adrenal gland releases chemicals in the brain which allows the person to go on a visual journey, very much like looking at mandalas. So pretty much the reason why I'm babbling about all this is that the beginning of the film starts out with William Hurt's character submerged in a tank for a test study. The film follows his addiction to the exploration of the mind and in essence mankind. The film shows how his passion for exploring kills off his marraige, friendships and his job at a prestiges university. The feature is set in the 1960s during the time of the LSD revolution and doesn't really touch on the subject. The only other psychedelics the film discusses is Psylicibe Mushrooms (Magic Mushrooms) and DMT (the strongest psychedelic drug known to man). So the setting travels throughout his career from the 1960s into the late 70s. The film in my mind takes a huge left turn when the plot changes with Hurt's character thrusts into overdrive and goes from exploring the Mind to exploring Human Life. The visual aspect of the film is astonishing, especially for being a film made in the early ages of the 1980s. The film won an oscar nod with the sound editing which I can't blame for the intense sequences the feature provides. All in all, Altered States brings you an intellectual look into the world of consiousness expansion rather than other types of movies which glorify the use of drugs in a comedic manner or portray addiction in a commerical manner like "This is your brain on drugs." I was highly impressed and could only wish that there would be more films of this sort.

I Also Recommend: Super High Me, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

dream a horrible dreamby Anonymous

Reader Rating:
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March 20, 2007: i saw this movie when i was fourteen in 1980.it freaked me out.however it was very insightful, in a post-modern sort of way. it is comelling in characters and the bizarre journey of Hurt's scientist character. enjoyable but freaky.