Seconds (1966 film)
| Seconds | |
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Theatrical release poster for Seconds
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| Directed by | John Frankenheimer |
| Produced by | Edward Lewis |
| Screenplay by | Lewis John Carlino |
| Based on |
Seconds, a novel by David Ely |
| Starring |
Rock Hudson Salome Jens John Randolph |
| Music by | Jerry Goldsmith |
| Cinematography | James Wong Howe |
| Edited by |
David Newhouse Ferris Webster |
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Production
company |
Joel Productions
John Frankenheimer Productions Gibraltar Productions |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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100 min / USA:107 min (re-release: 1996) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.75 million (est. US/ Canada rentals) |
Seconds is a 1966 American science fiction drama film directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Rock Hudson. The screenplay by Lewis John Carlino was based on Seconds, a novel by David Ely. The film was entered into the 1966 Cannes Film Festival and released by Paramount Pictures. The cinematography by James Wong Howe was nominated for an Academy Award.
In 2015, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Seconds is a mystery dealing with the obsession with eternal youth and a mysterious organization which gives people a second chance in life.
Arthur Hamilton (John Randolph) is a middle-aged man whose life has lost purpose. He's achieved success, but finds it unfulfilling. His love for his wife has dwindled and he seldom sees his only child. Through a friend, a man he thought was dead, Hamilton is approached by a secret organization, known simply as the "Company" which offers him a new life.
Upon arriving for a meeting, Hamilton arrives at a meat packing plant. He is given workman overalls and hat, then exits the facility out a different door where he is next seated inside the back of a truck which proceeds to another building. He disappears into a large complex filled with dark, empty hallways where he awaits his transformation. The Company gives Hamilton the body of a young man (Rock Hudson) through plastic surgery and a new identity, namely 'Antiochus "Tony" Wilson'. He later discovers this identity has been taken from someone who recently passed on.
He is resettled into a community filled with people like him who are "reborns". Eventually, Hamilton decides the new life isn't what he wants. He contacts the Company, letting them know he wants a different identity and they seem to agree. It turns out to be a lie and Hamilton learns as he is wheeled to the operating room, before being sedated, that he is to be killed.
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Wikipedia