Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalHispanic Heritage MonthIMDb Stars to WatchSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Poison

  • TV Movie
  • 2000
  • R
  • 1h 33m
IMDb RATING
3.9/10
420
YOUR RATING
Rosanna Arquette, Jürgen Prochnow, and Mandy Schaffer in Poison (2000)
MysteryThriller

Traci is a devious teenage girl who befriends and kills anyone who comes between her and her mother, Dana, a failed movie actress who lies for and protects Traci.Traci is a devious teenage girl who befriends and kills anyone who comes between her and her mother, Dana, a failed movie actress who lies for and protects Traci.Traci is a devious teenage girl who befriends and kills anyone who comes between her and her mother, Dana, a failed movie actress who lies for and protects Traci.

  • Director
    • Dennis Berry
  • Writers
    • Andreas Grünberg
    • Dennis Berry
  • Stars
    • Rosanna Arquette
    • Jürgen Prochnow
    • Mandy Schaffer
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    3.9/10
    420
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Dennis Berry
    • Writers
      • Andreas Grünberg
      • Dennis Berry
    • Stars
      • Rosanna Arquette
      • Jürgen Prochnow
      • Mandy Schaffer
    • 10User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos67

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 60
    View Poster

    Top cast17

    Edit
    Rosanna Arquette
    Rosanna Arquette
    • Dana
    Jürgen Prochnow
    Jürgen Prochnow
    • Carl Krieger
    Mandy Schaffer
    • Traci
    Michael Des Barres
    Michael Des Barres
    • Evan Lazlo
    Suzanne Coy
    • Carmen
    Mark Humphrey
    Mark Humphrey
    • David
    Stacy Grant
    Stacy Grant
    • Mary Collins
    Thomas Kretschmann
    Thomas Kretschmann
    • Johnny Krieger
    James Leard
    James Leard
    • Sheriff
    Glenn Hallworth
    • PR Man
    Chris Kent
    • Judge
    Patrick J. Phillips
    • Lawyer
    • (as Patrick Phillips)
    Miki Rusu
    • Dancing Girl
    Dan Rae
    • Doctor
    Pauline Gaete
    • Traci's Friend
    Martin Christopher
    • Principal
    • (uncredited)
    Jennifer Anne Lee
    Jennifer Anne Lee
    • Hairstylist
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Dennis Berry
    • Writers
      • Andreas Grünberg
      • Dennis Berry
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews10

    3.9420
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    8andymaranam

    Good movie.

    A striking resemblance to poison ivy or more so the hand that rock's the cradle. Which in itself is a good mantle to be held. A good movie of sickness and seduction with the usual plays although it does it well.
    1General187

    thumbs down

    This movie is so bad, I knew how it ends right after this little girl killed the first person. Very bad acting very bad plot very bad movie

    do yourself a favour and DON'T watch it 1/10
    2Victor Field

    Without Rosanna Arquette this movie would have been 1/10.

    A truly, truly dire Canadian-German co-production, the ever-wonderful Rosanna Arquette plays an actress whose teenage daughter redefines the term "problem child" - a few uears prior to the "action" the child murdered her father, and mum took the fall for the offspring. Now she's moved up to the Northwest US to start over, but her child still has a problem in that she's devoted to her mother. So devoted in fact that she kills anyone who might be seen as a threat to their bond.

    Unfortunately Mandy Schaeffer (as the daughter) murders more than people - she delivers such a terrible performance that she also wipes out the movie, though the incoherent script, useless direction and appalling music (check out the saxophone the first time she displays her bikini-clad bod) don't help any; we're supposed to find her sexy and scary, but she fails on both counts. Almost completely unalluring and not even bad enough to be amusing (not to mention the fact that Arquette and Schaeffer don't really convince as mother and daughter), all condolences to Miss Arquette and Jurgen Prochnow, both of whom are worthy of far more than this, and both of whom (particularly Rosanna) are the only sane reasons for anyone to sit through this farrago.

    One of the production companies is called Quality International Films - not since the three-hour "Love, Lies And Murder" (from Two Short Productions) has there been such a "You must be joking" credit.
    4JamieWJackson

    nooooo, please...

    This can't be Mandy Schaffer's last film. Somebody, do something! :-(

    Argh.

    What little life this one might have had, the directing finished off. Don't blame the cast; they did OK. Even the winemaker's younger brother was pretty well done, and he didn't even get into the movie until halfway through. And please, please put Mandy in some more movies! She's too beautiful to bury her career at such a young age. Ya' breakin' my haht, heah....

    Two specific criticisms, in case anyone cares (apparently nobody liked this movie very much). First, the way Traci kept popping up at just the right melodramatic moment, in order to see whatever she was supposed to see, and never got seen in return, was very annoying. Hollywood: please stop giving villains perfect timing luck which runs out exactly when the climax arrives. It's dumb. Write better scripts so you won't have to use that lame plot device any more. If your script isn't good enough to stand up without that, then don't produce it.

    Second, Carmen wouldn't have fallen for that fake injury trick that Traci pulled. She already had Traci fingered. More bad writing/directing there.

    I could trash this movie further but mercy forbids it. Actually I didn't hate it as much as the others seem to have. It just didn't have much of a reason for being made, unless it was purely a vehicle to show off the lovely Mandy. Oh, and to whoever didn't think she was sexy... the character wasn't very well written, but how can you say she wasn't sexy?!? One or the other of us needs glasses, and I don't think it's me.

    MORE MANDY. (Not to be confused with "Moore, Mandy" -- although I'd like to see her again too. ;-)

    P.S. Did I mention I hope Mandy makes me more movies? <:-D
    p1phillips

    Stop me if you've heard this one before...

    Here we have another psycho-girl-on-the-rampage movie, this time portrayed by Mandy Schaffer. She is a seventeen-year-old who is fixated on her mother (Rosanna Arquette) and is never happy when a man comes between them. This time the man (Thomas Kretschman) is the brother of Arquette's business partner (Jurgen Prochnow, in a nice change from his usual creepy bad guy roles). Of course, Schaffer is soon bumping off anybody who gets suspicious or just plain gets in her way. There really is nothing new here, but Arquette is watchable in just about anything, and there's nothing wrong with the occasional cheap thrill, of which this movie provides plenty.

    Best Emmys Moments

    Best Emmys Moments
    Discover nominees and winners, red carpet looks, and more from the Emmys!

    More like this

    Trading Favors
    5.1
    Trading Favors
    Diary of a Sex Addict
    3.4
    Diary of a Sex Addict
    The Wrong Man
    5.9
    The Wrong Man
    Rush of Fear
    4.4
    Rush of Fear
    Poison
    4.6
    Poison
    Too Much Flesh
    5.1
    Too Much Flesh
    Sweet Temptation
    6.4
    Sweet Temptation
    I Am a Sex Addict
    6.0
    I Am a Sex Addict
    Flirtatious
    4.7
    Flirtatious
    Black Rainbow
    6.0
    Black Rainbow
    Deceiver
    6.4
    Deceiver
    Magdalene
    5.4
    Magdalene

    Related interests

    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      When the vehicle goes off the pier and into the water, two white objects can be seen in the sky. At approximately 1 hour and 3 minutes in. Leading some to speculate that two UFOs had been caught on film.
    • Quotes

      Carl Krieger: She's very attached to her mother.

      Mary Collins: I think it goes beyond attachment. More like a fixation, really.

    • Soundtracks
      See Me Smile
      Composed by Peter Lutwyche, Jane Tilley, Melissa McCabe (SOCAN)

      Courtesy of Perfume Tree

      Performed by Perfume Tree

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 4, 2000 (Germany)
    • Countries of origin
      • Canada
      • Germany
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Tease
    • Filming locations
      • Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    • Production companies
      • Quality Films
      • Quality Films
      • BLT Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 33m(93 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby SR

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.