Synopsis

A mild-mannered diner owner becomes a local hero after defending his customers from two violent robbers. The attention brings strangers who claim to know his hidden past, forcing him to confront the identity he thought he had left behind. As danger closes in, his family must reckon with the possibility that the man they love may be capable of terrible violence.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film is loosely adapted from the 1997 graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke. Screenwriter Josh Olson used the source as a starting point, substantially reshaping its story and emphasizing questions of identity, family, and the consequences of violence.

• Most of the production was filmed in Ontario, including Millbrook, Tottenham, and Eaton Hall Mansion in King City.

• The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2005, before its United States theatrical release later that year.

• It received two Academy Award nominations at the 78th Academy Awards: William Hurt for Best Supporting Actor and Josh Olson for Best Adapted Screenplay.

• Its home-video release had an unusual place in media history. The DVD and VHS editions arrived on March 14, 2006, and the VHS edition is widely regarded as the last major Hollywood film released in that format.

• During the filming of the first bar scene, Viggo Mortensen reportedly struggled to stop laughing while working with Ed Harris. Harris eventually completed the scene wearing only his underwear beneath the bar, where it remained hidden from view.