The Survivor
Release poster
Directed byBarry Levinson
Written byJustine Juel Gillmer
Produced by
  • Aaron L. Gilbert
  • Matti Leshem
  • Barry Levinson
  • Scott Pardo
  • Jason Sosnoff
Starring
CinematographyGeorge Steel
Edited byDouglas Crise
Music byHans Zimmer
Production
companies
Distributed byHBO Films
Release dates
  • September 13, 2021 (2021-09-13) (TIFF)
  • April 27, 2022 (2022-04-27) (United States)
Running time
129 minutes[1]
Countries
  • Canada
  • United States
LanguageEnglish

The Survivor is a 2021 biographical drama film, directed by Barry Levinson, from a screenplay by Justine Juel Gillmer. Ben Foster stars as Harry Haft, a real-life survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp, where he boxed fellow inmates to survive. Vicky Krieps, Billy Magnussen, Peter Sarsgaard, John Leguizamo, and Danny DeVito co-star. The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2021, and was released on HBO on April 27, 2022. The film received positive reviews from critics, particularly for Foster's lead performance.

Cast

Production

In November 2018, it was announced that Ben Foster had joined the cast of the film, along with Barry Levinson, who was supposed to direct the film from a screenplay by Justine Juel Gillmer, with Matti Leshem, Aaron L. Gilbert, Jason Sosnoff, Levinson and Scott Pardo producing under their New Mandate, Bron Studios and Creative Wealth Media banners, respectively.[2] In March 2019, Billy Magnussen, Danny DeVito, Vicky Krieps, Peter Sarsgaard, Dar Zuzovsky and John Leguizamo joined the cast of the film.[3] Hans Zimmer composed the film's score.[4] The film was re-titled The Survivor from the working title, Harry Haft.[5] Principal photography began in February 2019.[6]

Release

The Survivor had its world premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival in September 2021.[7] In October 2021, HBO Films acquired distribution rights to the film.[8] The film debuted on HBO and HBO Max on April 27, 2022.

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 85% of 67 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Ben Foster's gripping work in the central role further elevates The Survivor's affectingly character-driven approach to its weighty themes."[9] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 71 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[10]

Accolades

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2022
 Hollywood Critics Association Awards Best Broadcast Network or Cable Live-Action Television Movie The Survivor Won [11]
Best Actor in a Broadcast Network or Cable Limited or Anthology Series Ben Foster Nominated
Best Directing in a Broadcast Network or Cable Limited or Anthology Series Barry Levinson Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Television Movie Ben Foster, Matti Leshem, Aaron L. Gilbert, Barry Levinson, Jason Sosnoff, and Scott Pardo Nominated [12]
2023
 Critics' Choice Awards Best Movie Made for Television The Survivor Nominated [13]
Satellite Awards Best Motion Picture Made for Television Nominated [14]

References

  1. ^ "The Survivor". Toronto International Film Festival. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  2. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (November 5, 2018). "BRON & New Mandate Set Barry Levinson To Direct Ben Foster-Starrer 'Harry Haft'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  3. ^ Kay, Jeremy (March 1, 2019). "Danny DeVito, Vicky Krieps, Peter Sarsgaard, John Leguizamo join 'Harry Haft'". Screen International. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  4. ^ "Hans Zimmer Scoring Barry Levinson's 'Harry Haft'". FilmMusicReporter. June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  5. ^ "The Survivor". Bron Studios. Archived from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  6. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (March 1, 2019). "Danny DeVito, Vicky Krieps, Peter Sarsgaard, John Leguizamo To Co-Star Barry Levinson's 'Harry Haft'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  7. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (July 20, 2021). "2021 Toronto Festival Unveils 'Dear Evan Hansen' As Opening Night Premiere; Check Out First Slated Films". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  8. ^ D’Alessandro, Anthony (October 4, 2021). "HBO Picks Up Barry Levinson's 'The Survivor' About Boxer Harry Haft Post TIFF". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  9. ^ "The Survivor". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 2023-03-12. Edit this at Wikidata
  10. ^ "The Survivor". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  11. ^ Petski, Denise (July 7, 2022). "This Is Us, Succession, Severance, Ted Lasso Lead 2022 HCA TV Nominations". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
  12. ^ "2022 Creative Arts Emmys: See full winners list". Entertainment Weekly. September 4, 2022. Archived from the original on September 5, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  13. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (January 15, 2023). "Critics Choice Awards: Full List of Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  14. ^ "IPA Reveals Nominations for the 27th Satellite™ Awards". International Press Academy. December 8, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.

External links

Films directed by Barry Levinson
Categories