Following (1998)
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An aspiring writer's attempt to find inspiration leads him into a dangerous criminal underworld.
The story
A struggling, unemployed young writer takes to following strangers around the streets of London, ostensibly to find inspiration for his first novel. He initially sets strict rules for himself regarding whom he should follow and for how long, but he soon discards them as he focuses on a well-groomed, handsome man in a dark suit. The man in the suit, having noticed he is being followed, quickly confronts the Young Man and introduces himself as "Cob". Cobb reveals he is a serial burglar and invites the Young Man to accompany him on burglaries. The man's true passion is using the shock of robbery to make his victims re-examine their lives.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
A struggling, unemployed young writer follows strangers around London for inspiration. He becomes obsessed with a man named Cobb, a serial burglar who invites him to join his crimes. The Young Man adopts a new identity, 'Daniel Lloyd', and begins a relationship with a woman known as 'The Blonde'. He eventually breaks into a safe belonging to a man called the 'Bald Guy' and is caught by a guard, but manages to escape with money and photos. He later learns that the Blonde and Cobb have been working together to manipulate him into mimicking Cobb's methods to deflect suspicion from a murder Cobb committed. The Young Man turns himself in to the police. However, it is revealed that Cobb actually works for the Bald Guy, and the story of the murdered woman was a lie to trap the Young Man. Cobb murders the Blonde and leaves the Young Man to face the consequences. The police find the Blonde's body and the murder weapon with the Young Man's fingerprints, while Cobb disappears.
- First release year
- 1998
- Runtime (minutes)
- 70
- Production countries
- United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Christopher Nolan
- Writers
- Christopher Nolan · writer
- Cast and characters
- Jeremy Theobald · The Young Man Bill / Daniel Lloyd; Alex Haw · Cobb; Lucy Russell · The Blonde; John Nolan · The Policeman; Dick Bradsell · The Bald Guy; Gillian El-Kadi · home owner; Jennifer Angel · waitress; Nicolas Carlotti · barman
- Genres
- neo-noir; mystery
- Themes
- obsession; logic vs impulse
- Tone and mood
- noir; tense
- Premise and plot tags
- non-linear narrative; crime; identity
- Reception
- The film received generally positive critical reception, praised for its noir atmosphere and non-linear structure, though some critics questioned the acting and the final act's payoff.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 87% · scale: percentage · review count: 89; Metacritic · score: 60 · scale: 100 · review count: 11
- Awards and nominations
- Tiger Award · International Film Festival Rotterdam · win; Best First Feature · San Francisco International Film Festival · win; Black and White award · Slamdance Film Festival · win; Grand Jury Prize · Slamdance Film Festival · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film was shot on 16mm film stock.; The character 'Cobb' was later used in the film Inception.; The production was so low-budget that a real hammer was used because a gun prop could not be sourced.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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