Taglines: He will erase your past to protect your future.
Eraser movie storyline. U.S. Marshal deputy John Kruger is one of the toughest Marshals, his methods are to “Erase” The identities of his witnesses he is assigned to protect. Meanwhile, a woman named Lee Cullen who works for a corporation named Cyrez performed an undercover job for the FBI to unveil a top secret weapon which uses an electromagnetic pulse to dispatch targets.
Cyrez discovered this about Lee and are now out to kill her, Kruger’s job is now to protect Lee so she can testify against Cyrez. But, when Kruger was assigned to perform a job with another Marshal named Robert Deguerin, he discovers that Deguerin is behind some kind of scam that will involve the EM Gun, which will change hands to a Russian criminal if Kruger does not stop them, Kruger must not only protect Lee’s life but his own.
Eraser is a 1996 American action thriller film directed by Chuck Russell, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Coburn, Robert Pastorelli, James Caan and Vanessa L. Williams. The film follows a U.S Marshal of WITSEC who protects a senior operative testifying about an illegal arms deal and is forced to fight his former allies when one of the players is revealed to be a mole inside WITSEC.
The film was a commercial success with grossing over $242 million against a budget of $100 million. It received mixed reviews from critics, but praised Schwarzenneger’s performance, the action sequences and the visual effects. It was released in the United States on June 21, 1996 and was nominated for the Academy Award for Sound Effects Editing in 1997.
Eraser began principal photography in New York City, locations would include The Harlem Rail Yard in the South Bronx, Central Park’s Sheep Meadow and Chinatown. Following shooting in New York production moved to Washington D.C. For the action sequence which takes place in the Reptile House of New York City Zoo, interiors were built on the soundstages of the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California.
One of the most demanding action sequences in the film featured the character of Kruger forced to flee from a jet speeding through the skies at 250 miles per hour. Speaking about this scene, director Russell says: “These things are jigsaw puzzle pieces not only within shooting sequence but within each shot. You had elements that were live action, elements that were miniature, sometimes computer-generated, and they’re all married together in the final processing.”
Some of the physical stunts were performed by Schwarzenegger himself. For the “aerial” stunt Arnold was required to fall 65 feet in vertical descent and perform a back flip in mid-flight. The shot took seven takes to get right. In the final film, Kruger appears to drop along the length of the fuselage and past the flaming engine of the Jet thanks to inventive camera angles and special effects.
Eraser (1996)
Directed by: Chuck Russell
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Caan, Vanessa Williams, James Coburn, Robert Pastorelli, Roma Maffia, James Cromwell, Nick Chinlund, Michael Papajohn
Screenplay by: Tony Puryear, John Milius, Frank Darabont, William Wisher Jr.
Production Design by: Bill Kenney
Cinematography by: Adam Greenberg
Film Editing by: Michael Tronick
Costume Design by: Richard Bruno
Set Decoration by: Garrett Lewis
Art Direction by: William Ladd Skinner
Music by: Alan Silvestri
MPAA Rating: R for violent action throughout and some language.
Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: June 21, 1996
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