Puncture is an independent feature film starring Chris Evans, directed by Adam Kassen and Mark Kassen. It was chosen as one of the spotlight films for the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, premiering on April 21, 2011 in New York City.
Cast
* Chris Evans as Mike Weiss
* Mark Kassen as Paul Danziger
* Marshall Bell as Jeffrey Dancort
* Michael Biehn as Red
* Vinessa Shaw as Vicky
* Jesse L. Martin as Daryl King
* Brett Cullen as Nathaniel Price
* Kate Burton as Senator O'Reilly
* Roxanna Hope as Sylvia
* Jennifer Blanc as Stephany
* Mark Lanier as Mark Lanier
Plot
Based on a true story, Mike Weiss (Chris Evans) is a young Houston lawyer and a drug addict. Paul Danziger (co-director Mark Kassen), is his longtime friend and straight-laced law partner. Their personal injury law firm is getting by, but things really get interesting when they decide to take on a case involving Vicky (Vinessa Shaw), a local ER nurse, who is pricked by a contaminated needle. As Weiss and Danziger dig deeper into the case, a health care and pharmaceutical conspiracy teeters on exposure and heavyweight attorneys move in on the defense. Out of their league but invested in their own gain, the mounting pressure of the case pushes the two underdog lawyers and their business to the breaking point.
Underlying Issues
The story is based on two young lawyers and a syringe manufacturer who had invented a safety syringe that he was unable to sell. The safety syringe manufacturer filed an antitrust lawsuit against the two largest hospital group purchasing organizations and a large syringe manufacturer claiming he was being shut out of the market. The case was settled before trial for $150 million dollars.
In addition the film brings to light several issues affecting American health care:
1. Accidental needle sticks cause thousands of US nurses to be infected by HIV, Hepatitis C and other infectious diseases every year.
2. Needle reuse in Africa and Asia directly cause 1.3 million deaths annually, 23 million hepatitis infections annually and 260,000 HIV/AIDS infections annually.
A passing reference in the movie also touches on whether AIDS in Africa is spread by sex or needle reuse. Research has found needle reuse, rather than sex, may have been the main cause of the rapid spread of AIDS in Africa. Fearing that if this comes to light Africans will refuse needle immunization and other important treatments, some health care professionals allege that the UN and WHO have moved to suppress this information.
Development
Paul Danziger drafted the first version of the script which was rewritten by Ela Thier. After filmmakers Mark and Adam Kassen agreed to take on the project they brought in Chris Lopata to rewrite. Filming began on February 10, 2010 in Houston, TX. The film was directed by Adam Kassen and Mark Kassen. Adam Kassen was quoted as saying "From the moment we heard about this story, we connected to what it says about the current state of our medical industry and the flawed hero that tries to fix it."The film was selected by the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival to serve as one of the spotlight premiere features in the program's lineup. Millennium Films acquired the distribution rights with the movie premiering in New York on September 11 and opening in selected cities September 23, 2011