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{{for-multi|the 1975 Austrian film|The Condemned (1975 film)|the Doctor Who audio play|The Condemned (Doctor Who audio)}}
{{Infobox_Film
{{Infobox film
|name=The Condemned
| name = The Condemned
| image = The-condemned-poster.jpg
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = [[Scott Wiper]]
| producer = Joel Simon
| screenplay = {{plainlist|
* Scott Wiper
* [[Rob Hedden]]
}}
| story = {{plainlist|
* [[Scott Wiper]]
* Rob Hedden
* Andrew Hedden
}}
| starring = {{plainlist|
* [[Stone Cold Steve Austin|Steve Austin]]
* [[Vinnie Jones]]
* [[Robert Mammone]]
* [[Tory Mussett]]
* [[Manu Bennett]]
* [[Madeleine West]]
* [[Rick Hoffman]]
}}<!--Starring roles are determined by poster billing block. See Template:Infobox film instructions-->
| music = [[Graeme Revell]]
| cinematography = Ross Emery
| editing = Derek Brechin
| studio = {{plainlist|
* [[WWE Studios|WWE Films]]
* Colossal Entertainment
* New Wave Entertainment
}}
| distributor = [[Lionsgate Films|Lionsgate]]
| released = {{Film date|2007|4|27|United States}}
| runtime = 113 minutes
| country = {{plainlist|
* United States
* Australia
}}
| language = English
| budget = $20 million
| gross = $8.6 million<ref name="mojo">{{mojo title|condemned}}. {{Retrieved|access-date=2009-10-31}}</ref>
}}


'''''The Condemned''''' is a 2007 [[action film]] written and directed by [[Scott Wiper]]. The film stars [[Stone Cold Steve Austin|Steve Austin]], [[Vinnie Jones]], [[Robert Mammone]], [[Tory Mussett]], [[Madeleine West]] and [[Rick Hoffman]].
|caption=Official movie poster courtesy of [[IGN]].
|director=[[Scott Wiper]]
|producer=[[Vince McMahon]]<br>Joel Simon<br>Jason Constantine<br>John Sacchi
|writer=Scott Wiper<br>[[Rob Hedden]]<br>Andrew Hedden
|starring=[[Stone Cold Steve Austin|Steve Austin]]<br>[[Vinnie Jones]]
|music=
|cinematography=
|editing=
|distributor=[[Lions Gate Entertainment]]
|released=[[April 27]] [[2007]]
|runtime=
|language=[[English language|English]]
|budget=$1.3 million
|imdb_id=0443473
|}}


The film centers on ten convicts who are forced to fight each other to the death as part of an illegal game which is being broadcast to the public. ''The Condemned'' was filmed in [[Queensland, Australia]].<ref name="queensland">{{Cite web
'''''The Condemned''''' is a [[thriller film]] [[film director|directed]] and [[screenwriter|written]] by [[Scott Wiper]], and starring former [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]] [[wrestler]] [[Stone Cold Steve Austin|"Stone Cold" Steve Austin]] and [[Vinnie Jones]]. The fights are co-ordinated by [[Richard Norton]], who also stunt doubles for Jones on some scenes. The movie is being produced by [[WWE Films]] and released by [[Lions Gate Entertainment|Lions Gate Films]].
| url = http://www.carnivalaskew.com/content/nines-new-drama-series-to-be-filmed-in-queensland
| title = Nine's new drama series to be filmed in Queensland | publisher=Carnival Askew
| quote = "In 2006, the company worked on the WWE feature film The Condemned in the Sunshine State"
| access-date = 2009-04-27 }} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> [[stage combat|Fight choreography]] was coordinated by [[Richard Norton (actor)|Richard Norton]], who also stunt doubles for Jones on some scenes. A sequel titled ''[[The Condemned 2]]'' starring [[Randy Orton]] was released in 2015.


The film was produced by [[WWE Studios|WWE Films]] and distributed by [[Lions Gate Entertainment|Lionsgate]] on April 27, 2007.
The [[Motion Picture Association of America|MPAA]] has given the film an "R" rating for ''pervasive strong brutal violence, and for language.''


== Plot ==
It was filmed on location in [[Queensland, Australia]] and [[Vancouver]].
Jack Conrad awaits execution in a corrupt [[El Salvador|Salvadoran]] prison. He is "purchased" by a wealthy television producer and transported to a deserted island in the South Pacific along with nine other condemned criminals from prisons around the world. They are "offered" the opportunity to avoid capital punishment and win back their freedom with a pocket full of cash by fighting to the death in an illegal game to be filmed and broadcast live over the Internet.


A bomb is placed on the ankle of every contestant, each featuring a 30-hour countdown timer, a failsafe mechanism that will set off the device, a tracking device, and a pin (similar to a [[grenade]]) that will detonate the bomb after a ten-second delay. The winner will have the bomb removed and be given their freedom as well as a pocket full of cash as the prize. Ian Breckel, the TV show's creator and showrunner, is aiming for online ratings that equal or beat the latest [[Super Bowl]] reception of 40 million television viewers.
==Plot==
Jack Conrad ([[Stone Cold Steve Austin]]) is a dangerous convict currently awaiting execution in a corrupt Central American prison. "Purchased" by wealthy television producer Ian Breckel ([[Robert Mammone]]) and transported to a deserted island, the formidable inmate is offered the opportunity to avoid capital punishment and win back his freedom by fighting to the death against nine other condemned criminals in an illegal game of death to be broadcast uncensored over the Internet.


As the broadcast progresses, [[FBI]] agents discover Conrad's real identity as Jack Riley after a tip from one of Conrad's former classmates. Conrad is discovered to be a former [[Delta Force]] operative who was captured on a [[Black ops]] mission to El Salvador after bombing a building controlled by drug dealers. Conrad's girlfriend Sarah becomes aware of the situation and watches the show at the local bar she works at as it unfolds.


As the contestants were dropped off on the island, there was a mishap where Italian contestant Dominic Giangrasso fell on a dilapidated pier and died after being impaled by one of the beams. Ewan McStarley and Saiga team up to remove the competition, while Yasantwa uses her wiles to trick Bruggerman and Mackie to their death. Conrad manages to kill Raudsep and teams up with Paco, who was desperate to find his wife. After reuniting with Rosa, Paco is severely injured by McStarley and Saiga and is forced to watch them rape and kill Rosa. Conrad manages to pull Paco away and after seeing the show's broadcast tower before the show, Conrad infiltrates the tower and calls Sarah, managing to tell her the latitude of the island before he is chased off by Baxter, Breck's head security guy.

McStarley and Saiga discover and kill Paco, then set him ablaze. Breck's girlfriend, Julie, and his head production guy, Goldman, begin to express disdain over the show. Yasantwa, discovered by McStarley and Saiga, sets off her own explosive, killing her. After seven contestants have already died, Conrad is left alone against McStarley and Saiga. He stabs Saiga, and McStarley flees. Eventually, a helicopter drops a shotgun down to McStarley, who uses it to hunt down Conrad. After Conrad falls into a stream, McStarley runs into the cameraman and his armed guard dressed in [[ghillie suit|ghillie suits]] while searching for Conrad, and shoots them, picking up the guard's [[Heckler & Koch MP5|MP5]] [[submachine gun]].

When McStarley and Conrad meet again, Conrad ends up rolling over a cliff and into a stream to avoid being shot by McStarley's shotgun. Conrad is presumed dead by the fall, and McStarley is declared the winner. As McStarley is being driven to the control tower to collect his prize, Breckel hears that the FBI has sent [[United States Navy SEALs]] to take him into custody. Goldman catches wind of it and calls Breck out for it, and Breck has Baxter kill him. After he meets McStarley and de-activates his bomb, he tells him that he will not receive his prize money as it is revealed that Breckel has fixed the game in McStarley's favor. Conrad is then discovered by Breck and Baxter and Conrad kills Baxter as Breck flees. McStarley takes an MP5 from one of the guards, and kills the tech team in the building, one by one, even though they truthfully did not know that Breckel was abandoning them all. When he corners Julie, Breckel's girlfriend, he is confronted by Conrad, who shoots him several times after talking briefly about McStarley's past and how he was repeatedly raped whilst serving time in a prison in Africa. Conrad grabs McStarley's two machine guns and chases down Breckel, who is fleeing the island in a helicopter. After emptying the two guns firing at the helicopter, he is given McStarley's re-activated ankle bomb by Julie. Conrad throws it into the helicopter, and Breckel reaches for it; however, the helicopter explodes, and crashes into a cliff, killing Breckel and bringing his vicious game to an end. He then deactivates his own bomb.

Conrad is driven back to Sarah's home in Texas, a free man. Sarah, who presumed him dead after he fell off the cliff in his struggle against McStarley, greets him.


==Cast==
==Cast==
* [[Stone Cold Steve Austin|Steve Austin]] as Jack Conrad / Jack Riley, a highly trained Delta Force operative and contestant
{| class="wikitable"
* [[Vinnie Jones]] as Ewan McStarley, a psychopathic British mercenary and contestant
|-
* [[Manu Bennett]] as Paco Pacheco, a Mexican criminal and contestant with his wife, Rosa
! style="background-color:silver;" | Actor
* [[Nathan Jones (wrestler)|Nathan Jones]] as Petr Raudsep, the Russian contestant
! style="background-color:silver;" | Role
* [[Masa Yamaguchi]] as Go Saiga, the Japanese contestant
|-
* [[Emelia Burns]] as Yasantwa Adei, the Ghanaian contestant
| [[Stone Cold Steve Austin|Steve Austin]] || Jack Conrad
* Marcus Johnson as Kreston Mackie, an American drug dealer and contestant
|-
* [[Dasi Ruz]] as Rosa Pacheco, a Mexican criminal and contestant with her husband, Paco
| [[Vinnie Jones]] || Ewan McStarley
* Andy McPhee as Helmut Bruggerman, the German contestant
|-
* Rai Fazio as Dominic Giangrasso, the Italian contestant
| [[Robert Mammone]] || Ian Breckel
* [[Rick Hoffman]] as Goldman, Breck's head production crewman
|-
* [[Robert Mammone]] as Ian "Breck" Breckel, a rogue Hollywood producer running the Condemned
| [[Rick Hoffman]] || Goldman
* [[Tory Mussett]] as Julie, Breck's girlfriend and crew member
|-
| [[Tory Mussett]] || Julie
* [[Sam Healy]] as Bella
* [[Madeleine West]] as Sarah Cavanaugh, Jack's girlfriend
|-
* [[Sullivan Stapleton]] as Brad Wilkins
| [[Madeleine West]] || Sarah
* [[Luke Pegler]] as Baxter, Breck's head of security
|-
| [[Nathan Jones]] || The Russian
* [[Angie Milliken]] as Donna Sereno
* [[Christopher James Baker]] as Eddie C
|-
| [[Masa Yamaguchi]] || Saiga
|-
| [[Taylor Lautner]] || Drake Styles
|-
|}


==Production==
== Soundtrack ==
{{Infobox album
* During production, [[Rick Hoffman]] suffered a near-death experience. <ref>http://tomgreen.com/ondemand/?video=387</ref>
| name = The Condemned (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
| type = soundtrack
| artist = Various artists
| cover =
| caption =
| alt =
| released = 24 April 2007
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = [[Rock (music)|Rock]]
| length = 54:53
| label = [[WWE Music Group]]
| producer =
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}


'''The Condemned (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)''' was released on April 24, 2007. It was composed by Graeme Revell. It is exclusively available on the [[iTunes Store]].
==Promotion==
As before with past films starring professional wrestlers (and the past two WWE produced films), this movie will be promoted during [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]] programming, most notably Steve Austin's appearance at [[WrestleMania 23]] as a special guest referee for the ''Battle of the Billionaires'' match.


{{ Track listing
On March 30, 2007, WWE Hosted The World Premiere of "The Condemned" at the legendary [[Fox Theatre (Detroit)|Fox Theatre]] In [[Detroit, Michigan|Detroit]], which featured all of the WWE Superstars and roughly 5,000 fans. This was also promotion for the movie itself and [[WrestleMania 23]], which was 2 days after the premiere.
| extra_column = Artist
| total_length = 54:53


| title1 = Opening Titles (Score)
==Soundtrack==
| extra1 = [[Graeme Revell]]
The soundtrack for ''the Condemned'' was released on [[April 24]], [[2007]] exclusively on the [[iTunes Store]].
| length1 = 3:33
| title2 = [[Black Betty]]
| extra2 = [[Spiderbait]]
| length2 = 3:27
| title3 = Hands of Time
| extra3 = [[Groove Armada]]
| length3 = 4:22
| title4 = Umbrella
| extra4 = Chymera
| length4 = 7:23
| title5 = This Colorful World
| extra5 = [[Eliot Morris]]
| length5 = 4:45
| title6 = You Say
| extra6 = Aya Peard
| length6 = 5:01
| title7 = Casino (Solid State Remix)
| extra7 = Tommi Eckhardt
| length7 = 5:44
| title8 = To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)
| extra8 = [[Ryan Adams]]
| length8 = 3:04
| title9 = The Island and Conrad (Score)
| extra9 = Graeme Revell
| length9 = 3:58
| title10 = [[Souljacker Part I|Souljacker, Pt. 1]]
| extra10 = [[Eels (band)|Eels]]
| length10= 3:15
| title11 = Over & Under
| extra11 = [[Egypt Central]]
| length11= 3:01
| title12 = Unbreakable
| extra12 = [[Cage9]]
| length12= 3:15
| title13 = I Won't Do What You Tell Me (Josh Wink Remix)
| extra13 = [[Josh Wink]]
| length13= 3:55
}}


; Additional tracks
#"Unbreakable" - [[Cage9]]
Other songs featured in the film, but not included on the soundtrack:
#"Over & Under" - [[Egypt Central]]
* "[[You Don't Know (Eminem song)|You Don't Know]]" by [[Eminem]], [[50 Cent]], [[Lloyd Banks]] & [[Cashis]]
#"I Won't Do What You Tell Me (Josh Wink remix)" - Josh Wink
* "[[Lonely Train]]" by [[Black Stone Cherry]]
#"Black Betty" - [[Spiderbait]]
#"You Say" - [[Aya Peard]]
* "[[In the Air Tonight]]" by [[Phil Collins]]
#"Umbrella" - [[Chymera]]
* "Out of Line" by [[Buckcherry]]
* "Backwoods Gold" by Black Stone Cherry
#"[[Souljacker part I]]" - [[Eels (band)|Eels]]
* "[[Driven (Sevendust song)|Driven]]" by [[Sevendust]]
#"This Colorful World" - [[Eliot Morris]]
#"Opening Titles (Score)" - [[Graeme Revell]]
* "[[Bullet with a Name]]" by [[Nonpoint]]
* "Shooting Star" by Black Stone Cherry
#"The Island and Conrad (Score)" - [[Graeme Revell]]
* "[[Soulcrusher (song)|Soulcrusher]]" by [[Operator (band)|Operator]]
#"Hands of Time" - [[Groove Armada]]
* "[[Firestarter (The Prodigy song)|Firestarter]]" by [[The Prodigy]]
#"To Be Young (is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)" - [[Ryan Adams]]
* "[[Savin' Me]]" by [[Nickelback]]
#"Casino (Solid State remix" - [[Tommi Eckhardt]]


== Release ==
Some more songs played in trailers but not put in the soundtrack include:
*"[[You Don't Know]]", by [[Eminem]], [[50 Cent]], [[Lloyd Banks]] & Ca$his
*"[[Lonely Train]]", by [[Black Stone Cherry]]


=== Critical response ===
The Song "[[Firestarter (song)|Firestarter]]", by [[The Prodigy]] was played in the movie.
As of April, 2020, [[Rotten Tomatoes]] listed the film with a 15% rating, based on 101 reviews. The site's consensus stated: "''The Condemned'' is a morally ambiguous, exceedingly violent and mostly forgettable action film."<ref>{{rotten-tomatoes|condemned|The Condemned (2007)}}. {{Retrieved|access-date= 2020-04-25 }}</ref> As of April, 2020, [[Metacritic]] gave the film a score of 23 Out of 100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/condemned |title= Condemned, The |access-date= 2020-04-25 |publisher= Meta Critic |archive-date= 2008-12-09 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081209013937/http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/condemned? |url-status= live }}</ref> Reviews of ''The Condemned'' included complaints of plot holes, overly preachy tone, lack of plot progression, hypocritical morals, poor fight choreography and one "fake" wrestler.


V.A. Musetto of the ''[[New York Post]]'' gave the film zero stars out of four, describing it as a "sickeningly violent and inane movie" and complaining that it is a bad rip-off of ''[[Battle Royale (film)|Battle Royale]]'' and ''[[The Most Dangerous Game (film)|The Most Dangerous Game]]''.<ref name="nyp">{{cite news
==Critical reaction==
| author = V.A. Musetto
| date = April 27, 2007
| title = Executioner's wrong: Fans condemned to bad cinema.
| url = http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/executioner_wrong_CZrUJRpBxUnOjTOHrAnRDI
| quote = "Amazingly, "The Condemned" received an R rating, more proof that the censors are more concerned with sex and nudity (there is none here) than violence."
| work = [[New York Post]]
| access-date = 2009-10-31
| archive-date = 2010-11-01
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101101051031/http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/executioner_wrong_CZrUJRpBxUnOjTOHrAnRDI
| url-status = live
}} {{Rating|0|4}}</ref>


One of the few positive reviews came from Michael Booth of ''[[The Denver Post]]''. He described the concept as "''[[The Truman Show]]'' meets ''[[Con Air]]''" and makes positive notes about the [[reality television]] aspects of the story, although he cautions readers not to expect "high art" based on the 3 star rating he gives the film.<ref>{{cite news
The critical response to the film was overwhelmingly negative. [[Rotten Tomatoes]] gave the film a 14% rating, registering ten "fresh" reviews out of 69,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/condemned/|title= The Condemned (2007)|accessdate= 2007-04-27|publisher= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref> while Meta Critic scored the film a 21 out of 100.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/condemned|title= Condemned, The|accessdate= 2007-04-27|publisher= Meta Critic}}</ref> Complaints against ''The Condemned'' included accusations of [[plot hole]]s, [[sexual objectification]] of the female characters, and massive amounts of violence untempered by [[comic relief]], [[irony]], or plot progression.
| author = Michael Booth
| date = 2007-04-27
| title = "Condemned" pins lust for violence to the wall
| url = http://www.denverpost.com/movies/ci_5749594
| work = [[The Denver Post]]
| quote = The Deadliest Game has played out many times on screen, including with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a post-apocalypse ''The Running Man'', but rarely is it aimed as squarely at the pitfalls of pop culture as in ''The Condemned''.
| access-date = 2009-10-31
| archive-date = 2011-06-05
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110605031109/http://www.denverpost.com/movies/ci_5749594
| url-status = live
}} {{Rating|3|5}}</ref>
<!-- http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/condemned/?critic=creamcrop#contentReviews -->
<!-- This is a fast-paced, well-made piece of garbage. Richard Roeper -->
<!-- Cheesy enough to satisfy your B-movie cravings in half Grindhouse's running time. Marc Bernardin, Entertainment Weekly -->


== See also ==
=== Box office ===
The film debuted with a $3.8 million opening weekend in the US. The film lasted only 4 weeks in theaters and posted a big loss, closing with a total of $7,371,706.<ref name="the-numbers" /> The movie fared worse internationally, taking only $1,271,152 in limited foreign markets, for a total of $8,642,858.
*[[Human hunting]]


=== Home media===
*[[Stone Cold Steve Austin]]
{{Anchor|DVD|Video}}
On September 18, 2007, ''The Condemned'' was released on DVD and Blu-ray. Opening at number four, ''The Condemned'' brought in $6.5 million in the first week. Overall, it has sold an estimated 1.185 million DVD units earning $22.7 million.<ref name="the-numbers">The Numbers [http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2007/CNDMN.php The Condemned] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090603204028/http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2007/CNDMN.php |date=2009-06-03 }} {{Retrieved|access-date= 2009-10-31}}</ref> The DVD made its release in the [[United Kingdom]] on March 24, 2008, with a rating of 18 (Contains Strong Violence and Language). This was a straight to DVD release in the United Kingdom.


==Sequel==
*[[Lions Gate]]
A sequel titled ''[[The Condemned 2]]'' starring [[Randy Orton]] was released on November 6, 2015.


==References==
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
<references/>


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.watchthemdielive.com Official Website]
*{{official website|http://www.watchthemdielive.com/}}
*[http://www.wwe.com/inside/thecondemned/ ''The Condemned''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217092607/http://www.wwe.com/inside/thecondemned/ |date=2008-12-17 }} at [[WWE.com]]
*{{imdb title|id = 0443473 |title = The Condemned}}
*{{IMDb title|id=0443473|title=The Condemned}}
*[http://www.wwe.com/content/media/video/promos/wwe_movies/4147314/thecondemnedcomingsoon?section=%2F Trailer]
*{{mojo title|id=condemned|title=The Condemned}}
*[http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?article_class=12&no=358220&rel_no=1 ''The Condemned Review''] at OhmyNews International
*{{rotten-tomatoes|id=condemned|title=The Condemned}}
*[http://www.hollywoodchicago.com/2007/04/condemned-is-mental-ninja-attempting.html ''The Condemned''] review, production interviews at HollywoodChicago.com
*[http://www.hollywoodsnitch.com/GOTO.php?artnum=251 The Condemned review] on [http://www.hollywoodsnitch.com Hollywood Snitch]


{{The Most Dangerous Game}}
{{Thriller-film-stub}}
{{WWE Studios}}
{{Stone Cold Steve Austin}}


[[Category:2006 films|Condemned, The]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Condemned, The}}
[[Category:Lions Gate films|Condemned, The]]
[[Category:2000s chase films]]
[[Category:WWE Films|Condemned, The]]
[[Category:2000s dystopian films]]
[[Category:2007 films]]
[[Category:2007 action thriller films]]
[[Category:Australian action thriller films]]
[[Category:American action thriller films]]
[[Category:American chase films]]
[[Category:American dystopian films]]
[[Category:2000s English-language films]]
[[Category:Films about death games]]
[[Category:Films about snuff films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Graeme Revell]]
[[Category:Films shot at Village Roadshow Studios]]
[[Category:Films set in the Pacific Ocean]]
[[Category:Films set on uninhabited islands]]
[[Category:Films shot in Queensland]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Rob Hedden]]
[[Category:Lionsgate films]]
[[Category:WWE Studios films]]
[[Category:2000s American films]]
[[Category:English-language science fiction films]]
[[Category:English-language action thriller films]]

Latest revision as of 03:39, 31 December 2024

For the 1975 Austrian film, see The Condemned (1975 film). For the Doctor Who audio play, see The Condemned (Doctor Who audio).
The Condemned
Theatrical release poster
Directed byScott Wiper
Screenplay by
Story by
Produced byJoel Simon
Starring
CinematographyRoss Emery
Edited byDerek Brechin
Music byGraeme Revell
Production
companies
  • WWE Films
  • Colossal Entertainment
  • New Wave Entertainment
Distributed byLionsgate
Release date
  • April 27, 2007 (2007-04-27) (United States)
Running time
113 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • Australia
LanguageEnglish
Budget$20 million
Box office$8.6 million[1]

The Condemned is a 2007 action film written and directed by Scott Wiper. The film stars Steve Austin, Vinnie Jones, Robert Mammone, Tory Mussett, Madeleine West and Rick Hoffman.

The film centers on ten convicts who are forced to fight each other to the death as part of an illegal game which is being broadcast to the public. The Condemned was filmed in Queensland, Australia.[2] Fight choreography was coordinated by Richard Norton, who also stunt doubles for Jones on some scenes. A sequel titled The Condemned 2 starring Randy Orton was released in 2015.

The film was produced by WWE Films and distributed by Lionsgate on April 27, 2007.

Plot

[edit]

Jack Conrad awaits execution in a corrupt Salvadoran prison. He is "purchased" by a wealthy television producer and transported to a deserted island in the South Pacific along with nine other condemned criminals from prisons around the world. They are "offered" the opportunity to avoid capital punishment and win back their freedom with a pocket full of cash by fighting to the death in an illegal game to be filmed and broadcast live over the Internet.

A bomb is placed on the ankle of every contestant, each featuring a 30-hour countdown timer, a failsafe mechanism that will set off the device, a tracking device, and a pin (similar to a grenade) that will detonate the bomb after a ten-second delay. The winner will have the bomb removed and be given their freedom as well as a pocket full of cash as the prize. Ian Breckel, the TV show's creator and showrunner, is aiming for online ratings that equal or beat the latest Super Bowl reception of 40 million television viewers.

As the broadcast progresses, FBI agents discover Conrad's real identity as Jack Riley after a tip from one of Conrad's former classmates. Conrad is discovered to be a former Delta Force operative who was captured on a Black ops mission to El Salvador after bombing a building controlled by drug dealers. Conrad's girlfriend Sarah becomes aware of the situation and watches the show at the local bar she works at as it unfolds.

As the contestants were dropped off on the island, there was a mishap where Italian contestant Dominic Giangrasso fell on a dilapidated pier and died after being impaled by one of the beams. Ewan McStarley and Saiga team up to remove the competition, while Yasantwa uses her wiles to trick Bruggerman and Mackie to their death. Conrad manages to kill Raudsep and teams up with Paco, who was desperate to find his wife. After reuniting with Rosa, Paco is severely injured by McStarley and Saiga and is forced to watch them rape and kill Rosa. Conrad manages to pull Paco away and after seeing the show's broadcast tower before the show, Conrad infiltrates the tower and calls Sarah, managing to tell her the latitude of the island before he is chased off by Baxter, Breck's head security guy.

McStarley and Saiga discover and kill Paco, then set him ablaze. Breck's girlfriend, Julie, and his head production guy, Goldman, begin to express disdain over the show. Yasantwa, discovered by McStarley and Saiga, sets off her own explosive, killing her. After seven contestants have already died, Conrad is left alone against McStarley and Saiga. He stabs Saiga, and McStarley flees. Eventually, a helicopter drops a shotgun down to McStarley, who uses it to hunt down Conrad. After Conrad falls into a stream, McStarley runs into the cameraman and his armed guard dressed in ghillie suits while searching for Conrad, and shoots them, picking up the guard's MP5 submachine gun.

When McStarley and Conrad meet again, Conrad ends up rolling over a cliff and into a stream to avoid being shot by McStarley's shotgun. Conrad is presumed dead by the fall, and McStarley is declared the winner. As McStarley is being driven to the control tower to collect his prize, Breckel hears that the FBI has sent United States Navy SEALs to take him into custody. Goldman catches wind of it and calls Breck out for it, and Breck has Baxter kill him. After he meets McStarley and de-activates his bomb, he tells him that he will not receive his prize money as it is revealed that Breckel has fixed the game in McStarley's favor. Conrad is then discovered by Breck and Baxter and Conrad kills Baxter as Breck flees. McStarley takes an MP5 from one of the guards, and kills the tech team in the building, one by one, even though they truthfully did not know that Breckel was abandoning them all. When he corners Julie, Breckel's girlfriend, he is confronted by Conrad, who shoots him several times after talking briefly about McStarley's past and how he was repeatedly raped whilst serving time in a prison in Africa. Conrad grabs McStarley's two machine guns and chases down Breckel, who is fleeing the island in a helicopter. After emptying the two guns firing at the helicopter, he is given McStarley's re-activated ankle bomb by Julie. Conrad throws it into the helicopter, and Breckel reaches for it; however, the helicopter explodes, and crashes into a cliff, killing Breckel and bringing his vicious game to an end. He then deactivates his own bomb.

Conrad is driven back to Sarah's home in Texas, a free man. Sarah, who presumed him dead after he fell off the cliff in his struggle against McStarley, greets him.

Cast

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  • Steve Austin as Jack Conrad / Jack Riley, a highly trained Delta Force operative and contestant
  • Vinnie Jones as Ewan McStarley, a psychopathic British mercenary and contestant
  • Manu Bennett as Paco Pacheco, a Mexican criminal and contestant with his wife, Rosa
  • Nathan Jones as Petr Raudsep, the Russian contestant
  • Masa Yamaguchi as Go Saiga, the Japanese contestant
  • Emelia Burns as Yasantwa Adei, the Ghanaian contestant
  • Marcus Johnson as Kreston Mackie, an American drug dealer and contestant
  • Dasi Ruz as Rosa Pacheco, a Mexican criminal and contestant with her husband, Paco
  • Andy McPhee as Helmut Bruggerman, the German contestant
  • Rai Fazio as Dominic Giangrasso, the Italian contestant
  • Rick Hoffman as Goldman, Breck's head production crewman
  • Robert Mammone as Ian "Breck" Breckel, a rogue Hollywood producer running the Condemned
  • Tory Mussett as Julie, Breck's girlfriend and crew member
  • Sam Healy as Bella
  • Madeleine West as Sarah Cavanaugh, Jack's girlfriend
  • Sullivan Stapleton as Brad Wilkins
  • Luke Pegler as Baxter, Breck's head of security
  • Angie Milliken as Donna Sereno
  • Christopher James Baker as Eddie C

Soundtrack

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The Condemned (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
Released24 April 2007
GenreRock
Length54:53
LabelWWE Music Group

The Condemned (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) was released on April 24, 2007. It was composed by Graeme Revell. It is exclusively available on the iTunes Store.

No.TitleArtistLength
1."Opening Titles (Score)"Graeme Revell3:33
2."Black Betty"Spiderbait3:27
3."Hands of Time"Groove Armada4:22
4."Umbrella"Chymera7:23
5."This Colorful World"Eliot Morris4:45
6."You Say"Aya Peard5:01
7."Casino (Solid State Remix)"Tommi Eckhardt5:44
8."To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)"Ryan Adams3:04
9."The Island and Conrad (Score)"Graeme Revell3:58
10."Souljacker, Pt. 1"Eels3:15
11."Over & Under"Egypt Central3:01
12."Unbreakable"Cage93:15
13."I Won't Do What You Tell Me (Josh Wink Remix)"Josh Wink3:55
Total length:54:53
Additional tracks

Other songs featured in the film, but not included on the soundtrack:

Release

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Critical response

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As of April, 2020, Rotten Tomatoes listed the film with a 15% rating, based on 101 reviews. The site's consensus stated: "The Condemned is a morally ambiguous, exceedingly violent and mostly forgettable action film."[3] As of April, 2020, Metacritic gave the film a score of 23 Out of 100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[4] Reviews of The Condemned included complaints of plot holes, overly preachy tone, lack of plot progression, hypocritical morals, poor fight choreography and one "fake" wrestler.

V.A. Musetto of the New York Post gave the film zero stars out of four, describing it as a "sickeningly violent and inane movie" and complaining that it is a bad rip-off of Battle Royale and The Most Dangerous Game.[5]

One of the few positive reviews came from Michael Booth of The Denver Post. He described the concept as "The Truman Show meets Con Air" and makes positive notes about the reality television aspects of the story, although he cautions readers not to expect "high art" based on the 3 star rating he gives the film.[6]

Box office

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The film debuted with a $3.8 million opening weekend in the US. The film lasted only 4 weeks in theaters and posted a big loss, closing with a total of $7,371,706.[7] The movie fared worse internationally, taking only $1,271,152 in limited foreign markets, for a total of $8,642,858.

Home media

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On September 18, 2007, The Condemned was released on DVD and Blu-ray. Opening at number four, The Condemned brought in $6.5 million in the first week. Overall, it has sold an estimated 1.185 million DVD units earning $22.7 million.[7] The DVD made its release in the United Kingdom on March 24, 2008, with a rating of 18 (Contains Strong Violence and Language). This was a straight to DVD release in the United Kingdom.

Sequel

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A sequel titled The Condemned 2 starring Randy Orton was released on November 6, 2015.

References

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  1. ^ The Condemned at Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2009-10-31.
  2. ^ "Nine's new drama series to be filmed in Queensland". Carnival Askew. Retrieved 2009-04-27. In 2006, the company worked on the WWE feature film The Condemned in the Sunshine State [dead link‍]
  3. ^ The Condemned (2007) at Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2020-04-25.
  4. ^ "Condemned, The". Meta Critic. Archived from the original on 2008-12-09. Retrieved 2020-04-25.
  5. ^ V.A. Musetto (April 27, 2007). "Executioner's wrong: Fans condemned to bad cinema". New York Post. Archived from the original on 2010-11-01. Retrieved 2009-10-31. Amazingly, "The Condemned" received an R rating, more proof that the censors are more concerned with sex and nudity (there is none here) than violence.
  6. ^ Michael Booth (2007-04-27). ""Condemned" pins lust for violence to the wall". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2009-10-31. The Deadliest Game has played out many times on screen, including with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a post-apocalypse The Running Man, but rarely is it aimed as squarely at the pitfalls of pop culture as in The Condemned.
  7. ^ a b The Numbers The Condemned Archived 2009-06-03 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2009-10-31.
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