Compliance
United States
2012
90 Min
Color
1.85:1
English
Synopsis
Becky and Sandra aren’t the best of friends. Sandra is a middle-aged manager at a fast-food restaurant; Becky is a teenaged counter girl who really needs the job. One stressful day (too many customers and too little bacon), a police officer calls, accusing Becky of stealing money from a customer’s purse, which she vehemently denies. Sandra, overwhelmed by her managerial responsibilities, complies with the officer’s orders to detain Becky. This choice begins a nightmare that tragically blurs the lines between expedience and prudence, legality and reason.
Craig Zobel (his Great World of Sound appeared at the Festival in 2007) returns with this riveting film, based on a true story. The cast delivers hauntingly authentic performances that make the appalling events unfolding onscreen all the more difficult to watch, but impossible to turn away from. Delving into the complex psychology of the real-life story under its sensationalized surface, Compliance proves that sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction. –Sundance Film Festival
Director
Craig Zobel
Craig Zobel is an American film director who also co-founded Homestar Runner.
Zobel was born in New York and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, later studying film at the North Carolina School of the Arts alongside David Gordon Green and other future collaborators. After graduation, Zobel worked on Green’s first three films — George Washington (2000), All the Real Girls (2003) and Undertow (2003), as either co-producer, production manager or second unit director.He currently lives in New York.
Zobel has directed, written, and produced several films, including George Washington, Turkey in the Straw and Great World of Sound. –Wikipedia
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Kays Vanderest
21May13
A true 4 1/2, white knuckle, thought provoking, brilliant piece of thriller filmmaking. One of the best of 2012, easily.
Paul Pastoor
18May13
I appreciated it showing the side of the people getting the hoax or prank pulled on them. I don't have any real structural complaints like point of view, directing, writing, performances, etc. It just wasn't that compelling to me. Maybe i'm too jaded or my perversions are too dark, i don't know.
mannequinlegs
5Apr13
"The social psychology of this century reveals a major lesson: often it is not so much the kind of person a man is as the kind of situation in which he finds himself that determines how he will act" - Stanley Milgram
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Articles
Our roundup of essays and articles on this film.
Sundance 2012. Craig Zobel's "Compliance"
By David Hudson on January 27, 2012
It may be the most controversial film at this year’s festival, but it’s being met with generally favorable reviews.
Review: COMPLIANCE is a Taut, Brilliant Character Piece
By Twitchfilm.com on August 18, 2012
If I told you that Compliance is a taut, brilliant character piece, would you believe me without question? Anybody who has read of the Milgram experiment in the 60’s is probably convinced that they wouldn’t
COMPLIANCE Trailer Asks How Far Is Too Far?
By Twitchfilm.com on July 2, 2012
That is a long list of accolades and supportive quotes pulled from reviews of Craig Zobel’s second feature Compliance. Do not be fooled however as Zobel’s film proved to be one of the more divisive titles
SXSW 2012 Review: COMPLIANCE Presents Cheap, Dishonest Thrills
By Twitchfilm.com on March 16, 2012
An interesting thing happened while I was viewing Compliance. It’s something that might be unique to a festival viewing experience, but it nonetheless brings a few of the film’s problems to the forefront
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Reviews
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Irreproachably awful, and not in a good way
By Luke Stephen Richardson on February 25, 2013
Compliance is just about one of the most abhorrent films I’ve ever seen.
In 2007, there were 70 exceptional cases were reported across to the American Police department. While they all had their… read review
Film Review: 'Compliance'
By Wilsonjd2 on September 5, 2012
“Compliance” is a genuinely powerful, chilling film about the consequences of following authority blindly, all the more difficult to watch because the story is plucked from reality. If it weren’t crafted… read review
Obedience to Authority
By Mugino on August 25, 2012
“Compliance” is the kind of interactive piece that is shaped more by the viewer’s reaction to the film than its contents. At the screening I attended, I heard women vocalizing their shock (“What… read review
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Compliant Reactions
10 posts by 5 people
2 months ago
Trailer for Compliance
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11 months ago
Woman makes ranting YouTube video after walking out of screening
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over 1 year ago