Movie · 2007 · Thriller, Crime, Mystery · 1h 24m · R · English
Curator score: 0.2/10 (87.7K ratings)
Every year, one in 700 people wake up during surgery.
Overview
While undergoing heart surgery, a man experiences a phenomenon called ‘anesthetic awareness’, which leaves him awake but paralyzed throughout the operation. As various obstacles present themselves, his wife must make life-altering decisions while wrestling with her own personal drama.
Ratings
Curator score: 0.2/10
IMDb: 6.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 23%
Metacritic: 33
TMDB: 6.6/10
Director
Joby Harold
Production
The Weinstein Company, Open City Films, GreeneStreet Films
Cast
Hayden Christensen, Jessica Alba, Terrence Howard, Lena Olin, Christopher McDonald, Sam Robards, Arliss Howard, Fisher Stevens, Georgina Chapman, David Harbour, Steven Hinkle, Denis O'Hare, Charlie Hewson, Court Young, Poorna Jagannathan, Joshua Rollins, Lee Wong, Kae Shimizu, Brenda Schad, Ross Klavan
Where to watch
Philo
Curator Review
Verdict
A slick high-concept thriller with a strong hook, but the execution is uneven and often feels more interested in melodrama and twist mechanics than sustained suspense. The premise is memorable enough to make it worth a curiosity watch, especially if you enjoy pulpy medical paranoia, but it does not fully deliver on its setup.
Best for
fans of high-concept thriller premises
viewers who like medical or body-trap suspense
people in the mood for a glossy early-2000s potboiler
audiences curious about an offbeat cast against a lurid plot
Skip if
you want airtight plotting
you are looking for realistic medical drama
you dislike soap-opera style twists
you prefer tense thrillers with stronger critical consensus
Overview
Awake is built around a nightmare premise: a man under anesthesia is conscious, trapped in his own body, and forced to listen as his life unravels around him. That idea alone gives the film a nasty, memorable edge, and it plays like a paranoid thriller with a medical horror aftertaste. The setup is the main attraction, and it does a lot of heavy lifting.
Worth noting
The movie’s biggest weakness is that it keeps reaching for bigger twists and emotional reversals without always earning them. It has the glossy, overcooked energy of a mid-2000s studio thriller, where the concept is sharper than the script. Still, the tension is effective in bursts, and the central predicament is unsettling enough to linger.
Bottom line
If you’re drawn to movies about helplessness, betrayal, and bodies turning into prisons, this can scratch that itch. If you need clean logic or a fully satisfying payoff, it may leave you frustrated. As a curiosity piece and a conversation starter, though, it has enough bite to justify a watch.
Top Letterboxd reviews
kait (3.5★) · 3914 likes
is this movie good or is hayden christensen just hot? let’s discuss
mei 🛒 (5★) · 3643 likes
I HATE clay beresford. He is so annoying that I definitely would NOT carry his meds in my purse and give them to him whenever he pleased. I definitely would not do that. So he definitely shouldn’t call me at 248-524-9207. And I really hope he does not come to my house on orange avenue in Detroit Michigan. So he better know I do not want him to come after 5pm when I’m done with work. Do NOT do this clay beresford otherwise I will be really mad!
annie (3★) · 2549 likes
noo don't die ur so sexy haha
jess (3★) · 1669 likes
hayden christensen i'm on my knees
zero st patience (2.5★) · 1621 likes
you probably shouldn't watch this before a medical operation.
2000 · Mystery, Thriller · 1h 53m · R · Curator 9.1/10 (3.2M ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Peacock, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
For audiences who like fractured identity, paranoia, and a mystery structure that keeps the viewer off balance.