Academy Award winner director Danny Boyle creates an intricate brainteaser with Trance, extending an invitation to explore the mysteries of the mind, seen through the intriguing process of the hypnotic trance. In this film, the prolific director ventures to explore the complexities of the human mind.

Simon (James McAvoy), an employee of a fine art auction house, joins forces with a group of criminals lead by Franck (Vincent Cassel) to steal a painting worth millions. The plan has an unexpected outcome when Simon receives a blow to the head that knocks him out on the spot. He wakes up with no memory of where he hid the painting. As death threats and torture fail to get answers, Franck recurs to hypnotherapist Elizabeth Lamb (Rosario Dawson) as a last resource to recover Simon’s memories.

James McAvoy, Vincent Cassel and Rosario Dawson portray the powerful trio that drives the complex plot of Trance. The characters in this vivid mind puzzle live in a constant altered state of consciousness and their darkest secrets are unveiled as the story guides the audience into the hidden corners of their subconscious.

Once again, Boyle redefines genre conventions and displays his own version of the psychological thriller, also using elements of other genres such as film noir and gangster flicks. To create uncertainty and send a signal to the audience that there is more to the story, he resorts to various reflective surfaces. Also he makes a point in the use of Goya’s painting, Witches in the Air as an analogy for the visual representation of the subconscious in the film. Boyle describes Goya as the first artist that painted the inside of the mind, as he illustrated his own madness.

In the movie Trance, Boyle crafts imagery that defies the perception of what is real.  To create the stylish aesthetic of the film, he relies on the experienced eye of his long time collaborator, director of photography, Anthony Dod Mantle (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours) and the praised editing skills of Jon Harris (Snatch, 127 Hours). The work of production designer Mark Tildesley (28 Days Later, The Constant Gardener) set the perfect foundation to build the distinctive visual aspects of Trance. As in all of Boyle’s films, sound design (Glen Freemantle), sound recording (Simon Hayes) and music (Rick Smith) play a crucial role. The carefully articulated balance between well constructed images and detailed audio elements make this film a multisensory experience. In that way the chaos inside the maze of the human psyche is truly shown and the audience is inevitably pulled into the story.

TRANCE will be released in limited theaters this Friday, April 5!

NEW YORK:
AMC Lincoln Square
Angelika Film Center

LOS ANGELES:
The Landmark Theater
Arclight Hollywood