In Gus Van Sant's GERRY, a film more concerned with atmosphere and visual breadth than with story or plot, a frivolous hike through the desert evolves into an existential journey for two young men. The film features only two characters, both named Gerry and played by the film's co-creators Casey Affleck and Matt Damon. Driving through a desert populated with imposing rock formations and bordered by miles of sky, the two Gerrys stop to see an unspecified "thing" which they are unable to find. The two young men then attempt to return to their car, but cannot find the pathway back. As they wander through the increasingly difficult desert terrain, their journey strains their friendship and becomes an exploration that is clearly about more than just finding the car.

After several commercial projects, GERRY is in some ways a return to roots for director Gus Van Sant. The motifs of moving clouds and the desert imagery may recall his early works--MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO and EVEN COWGIRLS GET THE BLUES--but GERRY is even more ambitious than those revered projects. Highly influenced by Hungarian filmmaker Bela Tarr (WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES), the film uses minimal dialogue and long, languishing shots to achieve a meditative mood.

Theatrical release: February 14, 2003

DVD Features:

Region 1
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen - 2.35
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound - English

Distributor Notes: Gerry

From the groundbreaking director of GOOD WILL HUNTING and FINDING FORRESTER, GERRY stars Academy Award(R) winner Matt Damon (Best Original Screenplay, GOOD WILL HUNTING, 1997; THE BOURNE IDENTITY, OCEAN'S ELEVEN) and Casey Affleck (OCEAN'S ELEVEN, SOUL SURVIVORS) in a suspenseful and highly provocative story of two men pushed to the limit! A pair of best friends (Affleck and Damon), who've nicknamed each other "Gerry," set out on a desert hike. But what begins as a simple daytime adventure turns into an intense life-and-death journey that will test the strength of human endurance and ultimately, their friendship! Written by Damon, Affleck, and Director Gus Van Sant, this uncommonly compelling and starkly visualized film is a must-see motion picture that has earned the overwhelming praise of critics nationwide!

Source: Buena Vista Home Entertainment.

Casey Affleck: Actor - brother of Ben
Matt Damon: American actor, screenwriter, GOOD WILL HUNTING (1997)

Gus Van Sant: American Director/Screenwriter, MILK, LAST DAYS

Dany Wolf: Executive Producer, FINDING FORRESTER

Casey Affleck: Actor - brother of Ben
Gus Van Sant: American Director/Screenwriter, MILK, LAST DAYS

Arvo Pärt: Estonian composer, OFFICER'S WARD (2002)

"...Intriguing....The eye reads narrative and meaning into the landscape, photographed coolly by Harris Savides..."
"The camera movement speaks to a modern condition of disassociation..."
"...GERRY seeps into your pores like the wind-whipped sand that stings the faces of these disoriented hikers..."
"...A movie like this doesn't come along every day..."
"...A tough, vigorous exercise in cinematic form and pure aesthetics....Meaning is continuously seeping out of these images..."
"...GERRY is a very slow and beautiful and compelling movie....By the end of the movie, you know that you've been somewhere..."