Butterfly on a Wheel
| Shattered: Butterfly on a Wheel | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Mike Barker |
| Produced by |
William Vince William Morrissey Pierce Brosnan |
| Written by | William Morrissey |
| Starring |
Pierce Brosnan Gerard Butler Maria Bello Callum Keith Rennie |
| Music by | Robert Duncan |
| Cinematography | Ashley Rowe |
| Edited by | Guy Bensley Bill Sheppard |
| Distributed by |
Lions Gate Entertainment (US) Icon Entertainment (non-US) Freestyle Releasing |
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Release date
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| Country | Canada United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $20 million |
Butterfly on a Wheel (US: Shattered, Europe: Desperate Hours) is a 2007 British–Canadian mystery thriller film directed by Mike Barker, co-produced and written by William Morrissey, and starring Pierce Brosnan, Gerard Butler, and Maria Bello. The film's title is an allusion to a line of Alexander Pope's poem "Epistle to Dr Arbuthnot": "Who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel?" The line is usually interpreted as questioning why someone would put great effort into achieving something minor or unimportant, or who would punish a minor offender with a disproportional punishment.
Chicago residents Neil Randall (Gerard Butler) and his wife, Abby Randall (Maria Bello) have the perfect life and a perfect marriage. With their beautiful young daughter, Sophie, they are living the American dream... until today. When Sophie is suddenly kidnapped, they have no choice but to comply with the abductor's demands. The kidnapper, Tom Ryan (Pierce Brosnan), an apparent sociopath, takes over their lives with the brutal efficiency of someone who has nothing to lose.
In the blink of an eye, Neil and Abby's safe and secure existence is turned upside down. Over the next twenty-four hours they are at the mercy of a man who wants only one thing: that they do his bidding. It soon becomes clear that Ryan's demands are all the more terrifying because he doesn't want their money. What he wants is Neil and Abby's life, the life they have built over 10 years, to be systematically dismantled and destroyed, piece by piece.
With time running out on their little girl, Neil and Abby realize their nightmare is just about to begin. They will have to submit to Ryan's challenges over the next 24-hour period. Tom asks them, how far will they go to save their child? He requires them to withdraw more than $100,000 from their bank, which Tom burns and throws along with their wallets into a river. Then he requires them to get $300 from nowhere in a part of the town where they don't have any friends. Abby pawns her bracelet and Neil his watch to get the $300. He then requires Abby to deliver a document to Neil's office within 20 min, and Tom show Neil a copy of document that contains details of Neil's hacking into customer accounts, which if leaked will ruin Neil. Neil watches Abby deliver the document from a distance. Neil and Abby try to rescue Sophie from a hotel, only to get caught by Tom, who makes Abby take off her dress and put on an enticing, short dress in front of both of them.
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