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Lifebreath

  • 1997
  • R
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
5.4/10
399
YOUR RATING
Luke Perry in Lifebreath (1997)
DramaRomanceThriller

A man plans a perfect murder to get a lung transplant for his dying wife.A man plans a perfect murder to get a lung transplant for his dying wife.A man plans a perfect murder to get a lung transplant for his dying wife.

  • Director
    • P.J. Posner
  • Writers
    • Joel Posner
    • P.J. Posner
  • Stars
    • Luke Perry
    • Francie Swift
    • Gia Carides
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.4/10
    399
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • P.J. Posner
    • Writers
      • Joel Posner
      • P.J. Posner
    • Stars
      • Luke Perry
      • Francie Swift
      • Gia Carides
    • 13User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos3

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    Top cast31

    Edit
    Luke Perry
    Luke Perry
    • Martin Devoe
    Francie Swift
    Francie Swift
    • Chrystie Devoe
    Gia Carides
    Gia Carides
    • Gale Pullman
    Gary Basaraba
    Gary Basaraba
    • John
    Jack Gilpin
    Jack Gilpin
    • Dr. Stevens
    LisaGay Hamilton
    LisaGay Hamilton
    • Dr. Quinlan
    David Margulies
    David Margulies
    • Abe Gross
    Matt McGrath
    Matt McGrath
    • Todd Rusk
    Hillary B. Smith
    Hillary B. Smith
    • Edie Weinreb
    Karen Shallo
    • Group Therapy Leader
    Diane Kagan
    • Gale's Mother
    Maureen Shannon
    • Kitty Hughes
    Alison Hildreth
    • Laura Burden
    • (as Alyson Hildreth)
    Bill McIntyre
    • Jack MacLaughlin
    Gerta Grunen
    • Blood Bank Doctor
    Jonathan Baltzer
    • Mr. Derry
    Margaret Devine
    Margaret Devine
    • Hope
    Monique Fowler
    • Joyce Burden
    • Director
      • P.J. Posner
    • Writers
      • Joel Posner
      • P.J. Posner
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews13

    5.4399
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    Featured reviews

    7janefgdoe

    Very sobering but realistic movie

    When I watched this movie long time ago, it deeply impressed me, mostly because of the ending. As other people have noted, it's very shocking, but to me, it totally made sense. Later, a relative of mine developed CF, I developed another lung disease and suddenly, the movie became very very realistic. I know people won't like to believe it, but even now, 2020, patients with lung diseases have very problematic existence. And yes, it is disgusting, it is sad, it is sometimes sexless, it's very hard for the relatives and most of all, the fight is for every breath. So that part of the movie is very realistic. Now, the transplant part is not realistic - double lungs transplants are hard, rare, and as a whole, it's complicated. But it's very unlikely what happened in the movie. What happened at the end, however, is very likely. I'll explain it like this - not being able to breath makes you a different person. You have to measure every movement, every desire, every thought. And if you suddenly become normal again - you become a new person. In her case, she was angry, but she didn't have a way to express it. So when she finally could express it, this was her revenge for the whole situation. A lot of people will see what he did as an act of love, but very little people would accept that kind of act of "love". So yeah, I've seen this movie long long ago, but I still have the final scence in front of my eyes. It's a hard movie to watch, but it has its value, if you want to glimpse into the life of people with lung diseases.
    7Emily-65-Roses

    For Those of You Annoyed With the Sex and Mucus...

    Very few movies address cystic fibrosis at all. This is one of the few that does, and does so in an effective fashion. You may think mucus is really "icky" and "gross" but it's a very real part of CF. People show cancer patients vomiting in movies all the time. This is NO different.

    As for the sex, it's to illustrate another very real part of CF. Breathing gets in the way of *everything*. Sex goes from being a joy, to being difficult, to being a chore, to being impossible. Being that sex is such a big part of most married couples' lives, it makes sense that it was addressed. I wonder if the director knew someone with CF, because of how well it was handled. The CFer's spouse was constantly worried, and freaked out if his wife was so much as 15 minutes late. Their sex was difficult. Many things in this movie were done well, in regards to the CF.

    Not my favorite movie, as I don't much like the way it ended, among other things. But I had to comment about people who complained about the really "icky" mucus. It's real. You don't even have to deal with it. Until your spouse is the one choking on that much mucus, you have no place to call it gross.
    8vampyrecowboy

    One of the best movies I've ever watched.

    I think that I've watched well over 500 000 movies and this ranks well above most of them.

    It's one of the best movies I've ever watched and look forward to seeing more films in this style.

    I love the writing, story and everything about it.

    With a bigger budget, more publicity would have taken this to be a more well known film.

    Wow...

    When you want something that is fresh and doesn't contain Brad Pitt or Angelie Jolie - try this one.
    Ginny-8

    A man loves his wife enough to kill for her.

    A husband, Luke Perry, loves his ill, but unfaithful wife enough, to kill a suitable organ donor in order save her life. Luke Perry = Martin Devoe

    Francine Swife = Francine Devoe
    1JeffreyDJ

    A exercise in badly written dialog and plot twists.

    Doesn't really contain any spoliers, but read at your own risk:

    This movie is an exercise in futility. It had a wonderful premise: Wife needs transplant, Husband will do anything to make sure she gets it.

    However, the execution of the script was poor. There are numerous unneeded scenes of sex with A LOT of flesh (but no nudity -- go figure). The dialog was trite and not believable. There are characters that appear briefly to move the story along with no explanation of who they are.

    And the ending. No spoiler, but you could see it coming RIGHT at you -- and unfortunately it couldn't be dodged. The last 2 minutes of the film are painfully inane and hard to watch.

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    Storyline

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    • Trivia
      Delaine Yates's debut.

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    FAQ1

    • Ticket to Nowhere

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 7, 1997 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Last Breath
    • Filming locations
      • New York City, New York, USA
    • Production companies
      • Felder Pomus Entertainment
      • First Look International
      • Two-Pound Bag
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 30 minutes
    • Color
      • Color

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