Primal Fear
Sooner or later, a man who wears two faces forgets which one is real.
Defense attorney Martin Vail takes on jobs for money and prestige rather than any sense of the greater good.His latest case involves an altar boy, accused of brutally murdering the archbishop of Chicago.Vail finds himself up against his ex-pupil and ex-lover, but as the case progresses and the Church's dark secrets are revealed, Vail finds that what appeared a simple case takes on a darker, more dangerous aspect.
- Director
- Gregory Hoblit
- Signature
- Craft · Drama · Tension
- Worldwide
- $103M
Who's in it
Cast
The billed ensemble, with character names. Open any performer for their Nutevio filmography.
The Nutevio profile
Movie DNA
How Primal Fear actually feels to watch, measured on the twelve traits our editors track across every Nutevio title.
Perfect if you enjoyed
Story overview
What It's About
Spoiler-free. Read the analysis below for the full argument.
Defense attorney Martin Vail takes on jobs for money and prestige rather than any sense of the greater good. His latest case involves an altar boy, accused of brutally murdering the archbishop of Chicago. Vail finds himself up against his ex-pupil and ex-lover, but as the case progresses and the Church's dark secrets are revealed, Vail finds that what appeared a simple case takes on a darker, more dangerous aspect.
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
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Why We Recommend It
Why It's Ranked
Primal Fear appears in 2 Nutevio collections. Here is the argument behind each placement.
- Best Courtroom Dramas Ranked #10
Placed at #10 by the Nutevio ranking model. An editor's written case is on the way.
- Top 100 Crime Movies Ranked #73
Placed at #73 by the Nutevio ranking model. An editor's written case is on the way.
The record
Awards
0 wins · 1 nomination
Academy Awards
No wins yet · 1 nomination
- WinnerAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actor
The numbers
Box Office & Release
Primal Fear returned 3.4× its budget worldwide.
- Budget
- $30M
- Opening weekend
- —
- Domestic gross
- —
- International gross
- —
- Worldwide gross
- $103M
- Release date
- Apr 3, 1996
- Runtime
- 2h 10m
- MPAA rating
- —
- Language
- English, Spanish
- Country
- United States of America
Figures from the verified production record. Fields we cannot source are left blank rather than estimated.
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