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Ned Rifle

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Ned Rifle
Film poster
Directed byHal Hartley
Screenplay byHal Hartley
Produced byHal Hartley
Matthew Myers
Nelleke Driessen
Bruce Weiss
StarringLiam Aiken
Aubrey Plaza
Parker Posey
James Urbaniak
Thomas Jay Ryan
Martin Donovan
Karen Sillas
Robert John Burke
Bill Sage
CinematographyVladimir Subotic
Edited byKyle Gilman
Music byHal Hartley
Production
company
Possible Films
Distributed byFortissimo Films
Release dates
  • September 7, 2014 (2014-09-07) (TIFF)
  • April 1, 2015 (2015-04-01) (United States)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$395,292[1]

Ned Rifle is a 2014 American drama film written and directed by Hal Hartley. It is the third and final film in a trilogy following characters introduced in Hartley's 1997 film Henry Fool and 2006 sequel Fay Grim.[2] Ned Rifle stars Liam Aiken as the title character, reprising his role from the other two films, as well as Aubrey Plaza, Parker Posey, James Urbaniak, and Thomas Jay Ryan.

The film premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival on September 7, 2014.[3]

The film was released in select theaters and on demand beginning on April 1, 2015.[4]

Plot

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Kept in a school run on devout Christian lines, at age 18 Ned is free to leave. His mission in life is to find and kill his rogue father Henry. On visiting his mother, Fay, who is serving a life sentence for terrorism, she cannot tell him her husband's whereabouts and suggests he contacts her brother Simon, who is a writer in New York. Also anxious to see Simon is a penniless postgraduate named Susan, who wants to write about his work. Learning that his father was last heard of working in Seattle, Ned rushes off to the airport. Susan follows him, because she has her own reasons for wanting to find Henry, and Ned reluctantly teams up with her, though he keeps refusing a romance with her.

In Seattle, he learns that his father has lost his mind and is being kept in a special clinic. In fact, Henry shams madness in order to enjoy a quiet life among good books (as Fay does too, though not by choice). Ned abducts his willing father, planning to shoot him in open country, but discovers that Susan has found his revolver and removed its ammunition. She then makes off with Ned's father, money, and gun. Reaching a motel near Spokane, she reveals that she was the 13-year-old girl whose parents burst in just as she had lured Henry to her bed. For that, he got seven years. Now they can carry on legally and their night of passion disturbs the whole motel. Ned meanwhile has traced the pair and in the morning is waiting outside for them to emerge. Susan, having completed her unfinished business with Henry, shoots him dead. Ned bursts in, and in a struggle with Susan accidentally stabs her to death. Outside, armed police are waiting for him.

Cast

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Production

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Development

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Like Henry Fool (1997) and Fay Grim (2006), Ned Rifle was directed, written, co-produced and composed by Hal Hartley. While promoting Fay Grim in 2007, Hartley mentioned the possibility for a third film, hinting that Aiken's character Ned would be the story's focus.[5] Hartley started writing Ned Rifle around 2012, and finished the script in two weeks.[6] The film is titled after Hartley's pseudonym, Ned Rifle, the credited name that he typically uses as composer on his films.[7] Ned Rifle was originally a character that Hartley made up for college writing assignments. For the third film, he thought it sounded like a better title than Ned Fool or Ned Grim.[8]

The storyline is done on a smaller scale compared to Fay Grim, more in line with Henry Fool. This was done in part because of a small budget, and also because Hartley did not want to make another big-production project.[9] He wanted the storyline to be simpler and more linear than Fay Grim.[7] Hartley said the structure of Ned Rifle was heavily influenced by his 2011 short film Meanwhile, which chronicles a man "as he goes from one situation to the next".[7] The character Susan and her relationship with Henry are briefly mentioned in Henry Fool. Re-watching the film over the years, Hartley regretted that the topic of this relationship was not expanded upon. While writing Ned Rifle, he felt that the story was lacking something. Upon watching Henry Fool again, he decided to incorporate Susan into the story.[10]

In May 2013, Fortissimo Films acquired the global sales rights for the film at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.[11] On November 6, 2013, Hartley launched a fundraising campaign to produce the film through Kickstarter, seeking a total of $384,000 and offering various incentives to those who donated $1 or more.[2] The main cast, as well as some crew members, appeared in several videos promoting the campaign.[2] On November 25, Hartley added a $9,000 reward tier offering the film's distribution rights for seven years in the United States and other countries, notably the first Kickstarter to propose offering film distribution rights.[12] Subsequently, Kickstarter notified Hartley that selling distribution rights is a form of investment, which is forbidden by Kickstarter's terms and conditions, and Hartley removed the option.[13] The Kickstarter campaign ended on December 4, with 1,789 donors raising $395,292.[2]

Casting

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Liam Aiken, Parker Posey, James Urbaniak, and Thomas Jay Ryan reprise their roles from the first two films. In addition, Martin Donovan, Karen Sillas, Robert John Burke, and Bill Sage had worked with Hartley on his other previous films.[8]

Casting for the character of Susan took months, with 60 to 70 women auditioning for the part, some of whom would later get other roles in the film.[10] Gemma Arterton was reportedly attached at one point.[11] In March 2014, it was announced that Aubrey Plaza joined the cast,[14] playing the role of Susan. Hartley cast Plaza after seeing her prior acting performances, including Parks and Recreation.[8] Her part in the 2012 film Safety Not Guaranteed convinced him that she would be right for the role of Susan.[10][15] Plaza sought advice from Posey and Donovan to prepare for the role.[16]

Filming

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In March 2014, Hartley scouted locations in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, as well as locations that could double for parts of Washington state.[17]

Principal photography began in early April 2014, and took place entirely in New York. Filming locations included Brooklyn, Long Island City,[18][19] and the SUNY Purchase campus.[20] Urbaniak said, "Every time I revisit the character of Simon Grim I have to relearn how to be awkward and uptight".[16] Posey shot her scenes in a day.[6][8] Filming wrapped on April 26,[21] after 22 days.[18]

Release

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A teaser for Ned Rifle was released on July 22, 2014.[22] The film premiered on September 7, 2014 at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.[23] It was also screened in the Panorama section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival on February 6, 2015.[24] The film's US debut premiered at SXSW in Austin, Texas on March 13, 2015[25] and was available for viewing on demand on Hartley's official website beginning on April 1, 2015.[26] The film was released in a limited release on the same day.[27]

Critical reception

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On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 78% based on 32 reviews, and an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Ned Rifle serves as a satisfying conclusion to Hal Hartley's "Henry Fool" trilogy - and one of the strongest late-period works from a distinguished filmography."[28] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[29]

References

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  1. ^ "Ned Rifle by Hal Hartley". Kickstarter. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d "NED RIFLE by Hal Hartley". Kickstarter. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  3. ^ Hartley, Hal (August 19, 2014). "The Toronto Film Festival premiere of Ned Rifle will be Sunday September 7 at 6pm. Passes are available now. Single tickets go on sale August 31st". Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  4. ^ Salon Staff. "Watch Aubrey Plaza go grocery shopping in this exclusive clip from Hal Hartley's "Ned Rifle"". salon.com.
  5. ^ "Parker Posey and Hal Hartley Interviewed – FAY GRIM". Collider. May 7, 2007. Archived from the original on July 9, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  6. ^ a b Kohn, Eric (April 2, 2015). "Hal Hartley's Grim Family: An Oral History From 'Henry Fool' to 'Ned Rifle'". IndieWire. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  7. ^ a b c Sicinski, Michael (March 31, 2015). "'Just a Normal Guy with Completely Predictable Middle-Class Morality': Hal Hartley on Ned Rifle". Filmmaker. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d Spitz, Marc (April 4, 2015). "Hal Hartley's epic oral history: The "Henry Fool" trilogy, Parker Posey and the real sage of '90s indie film". Salon. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  9. ^ Wilner, Norman (April 1, 2015). "Interview: Hal Hartley & Liam Aiken". Now. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  10. ^ a b c Coffin, Lesley (April 1, 2015). "Interview: Hal Hartley on the End of the Grim Family Trilogy". The Mary Sue. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Brzeski, Patrick (May 14, 2013). "Cannes: Fortissimo Takes Sales Rights to Hal Hartley's 'Ned Rifle'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  12. ^ Bernstein, Paula (November 25, 2013). "Hal Hartley Explains Why He is Offering Distribution Rights to 'Ned Rifle' as Kickstarter Backer Reward". Indiewire. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  13. ^ Saperstein, Pat (November 25, 2013). "Updated: Hal Hartley Can't Offer Distribution Rights as Kickstarter Reward". Variety. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  14. ^ McNary, Dave (March 13, 2014). "Aubrey Plaza Joins Hal Hartley's 'Ned Rifle' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  15. ^ Gayne, Zach (April 6, 2015). "Interview: Hal Hartley And Aubrey Plaza Talk Ned Rifle". Screen Anarchy. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  16. ^ a b Olsen, Mark (April 2, 2015). "Cinefamily salutes indie director Hal Hartley, new film 'Ned Rifle'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  17. ^ Colangelo, Lisa L. (March 4, 2014). "Indie film director Hal Hartley uses Queens as the backdrop for his new project". Daily News. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  18. ^ a b "Hal Hartley and Aubrey Plaza Talk 'Ned Rifle' and 'Dirty Grandpa' at SXSW". Collider. March 30, 2015. 5:30. Retrieved June 3, 2022 – via YouTube.
  19. ^ "We've enjoyed having @PossibleFilms at #thepaperfactoryhotel today filming the new Ned Rifle movie. #nedrifle #hollywoodinqueens". Twitter. April 11, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  20. ^ "Film director and Purchase alum Hal Hartley was on campus earlier this week filming scenes from "Ned Rifle," the final chapter in the Henry Fool Trilogy". SUNY Purchase. April 17, 2014. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  21. ^ "Principle [sic] Photography Wrapped". Kickstarter. April 26, 2014. Retrieved April 27, 2014.
  22. ^ "Ned Rifle World Premiere". Possible Films. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  23. ^ Jagernauth, Kevin (July 22, 2014). "TIFF 2014 Lineup Includes 'The Imitation Game,' 'While We're Young,' 'Nightcrawler,' 'Men, Women & Children' & More". Indiewire. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  24. ^ "Panorama 2015: Probing the Past to Shape the Future". Berlinale. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  25. ^ Wiese, Christina. "SXSW Announces 2015 Features Lineup". SXSW. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  26. ^ "www.possiblefilms.com". Hal Hartley. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  27. ^ McNary, Dave (December 3, 2014). "Hal Hartley's 'Ned Rifle,' Starring Aubrey Plaza, Set for Spring Release". Variety. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  28. ^ "Ned Rifle (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  29. ^ "Ned Rifle Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
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