FILM · 1995
Strange Days
39 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (39)
- #001
Juliette Lewis performed all the vocals herself for her character Faith's club performance in the film.
- #002
Director Kathryn Bigelow discovered that no existing camera system could achieve the shots needed for the point-of-view sequences, so Lightstorm Entertainment's research department — the company of writer/producer James Cameron, then Bigelow's husband — spent an entire year designing and building a custom camera for the production. The 35 mm camera weighed only 8 pounds and fit literally in the palm of a hand, and it featured interchangeable lenses, remotely tracked focus and video assist (necessary because the camera had no viewfinder). The camera was then mounted on a SteadiCam-style portable rig, giving it stability and mobility similar to the human eye.
- #003
The party scene was a genuine frenzy; it was introduced by Philip Blaine and was called "Millennium," and among the live performers were Aphex Twin, Lady Miss Kier and Doc Martin.
- #004
James Cameron did extensive editing work, particularly on the final action scenes, but could not be credited because he was not in the editors' guild. He joined before shooting Titanic (1997), on which he appears in the credits as editor.
- #005
James Cameron first conceived the story in 1986 but shelved it due to commitments to other projects. He revived the idea after helping his ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow rewrite Point Break (1991). Cameron delivered what he called a 'scriptment,' a hybrid between a screenplay and a story treatment, but had to leave due to other commitments. The screenplay was completed by Jay Cocks, who was chiefly responsible for the dialogue.
- #006
The music Juliette Lewis sings in the film was written and performed by PJ Harvey.
- #007
Lenny Nero's 1997 Mercedes-Benz S500 was a prototype loaned to the production by the manufacturer.
- #008
Cinematographer Matthew F. Leonetti estimates that 50 to 60 percent of the film was shot with a Steadicam or some form of moving camera.
- #009
The film's opening sequence was shot in four separate locations because no adjacent venue could be found. The gaps between shots were concealed by rapidly panning the camera. Because of the scene's speed, the sound crew could not effectively record any of the actual sounds on set. All the sound and dialogue in the sequence had to be dubbed in during post-production.
- #010
According to cinematographer Matthew F. Leonetti, the vast majority of the film was shot at night — more precisely, 77 nights of an 80-day shooting schedule.
- #011
Because so many 360-degree POV shots were used, lights had to be either hung overhead or cleverly concealed so that the roaming cameras would not pick them up.
- #012
The film's title comes from The Doors' album "Strange Days," and a cover version of the album's title track is played in the film by the band Prong, with Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek appearing on it.
- #013
In the scene where Lenny uses the SQUID to watch a clip of his past with Faith, Faith throws a blue towel at him and says, "Dry me." This is a reference to Blade Runner (1982), in which Zhora throws a towel at Deckard and says the same line.
- #014
The point-of-view action scenes, in which the audience sees everything from one of the characters' perspectives, required more than a year of preparation, planning and careful rehearsal before shooting.
- #015
The cartridges used for the "clips" are Sony MiniDiscs, and the "SQUID" disc recorders are aftermarket Sony MiniDisc players, a new technology introduced to the public in 1994. The discs were designed to be recordable and re-recordable, but sales of the technology were weak because of its high list price, and the line was abandoned by the company.
- #016
In the United Kingdom, the film aired on BBC Two on 29 December 1999, the day on which the film's events begin.
- #017
During the difficult shoot, a total of four different camera systems were used, including various lighting systems developed by Matthew F. Leonetti's Hollywood-based Leonetti Company.
- #018
The band playing at the Millennium party at the end of the film is Testament, from San Francisco, one of the earliest bands of the thrash metal movement, alongside others such as Exodus, Megadeth, Slayer and Metallica.
- #019
The band playing in the street toward the end is Skunk Anansie, performing a medley of two songs from the soundtrack, "Selling Jesus" and "Feed."
- #020
The character of LAPD Chief Strickland was likely inspired by real-life LAPD Chief Daryl Gates, who became notorious for his mishandling of the 1991 beating of Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots that followed the acquittal of the officers who beat King (an incident captured on video by a bystander) by an all-white jury. Much of the film draws its themes from these two events.
- #021
Marvel published a comic book adaptation written by D. G. Chichester and drawn by Mike McKone.
- #022
The band playing in the club is Season to Risk from Kansas City.
- #023
Judging by the birth and death years given in the news report about his murder, Jeriko One is a member of the "27 Club," a group of entertainers who died at the age of 27. Other members of this club include Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison. The latter was the lead singer of The Doors, whose second album was "Strange Days."
- #024
About 25 minutes in, when Lenny (Ralph Fiennes) meets the lawyer Keith (Joe Urla), a martini-like drink appears on the table, but in the glass there are 3 cocktail onions instead of olives. This is called a Gibson and is likely a nod to William Gibson, known as the godfather of cyberpunk, who coined the term 'cyberspace' in his 1984 novel Neuromancer. The SQUID technology in the film closely resembles the SimStim described in Neuromancer.
- #025
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Denzel Washington, Michael Keaton, Tom Cruise, Jeff Bridges, Mel Gibson, Bruce Willis, Andy Garcia, Nicolas Cage, Patrick Swayze, John Travolta, Sean Penn, Bill Paxton, Dennis Quaid and Kurt Russell were considered for the role of Lenny Nero.
- #026
After seeing a screening of Pulp Fiction (1994), Kathryn Bigelow wanted to cast John Travolta in the lead role of this film.
- #027
Writer James Cameron came up with the story idea on April 29, 1992, following the Rodney King verdict. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), which Cameron directed, was shot across the street from where two scenes in that film were filmed. See this film's shooting locations and other information.
- #028
Filmmaker's trademark: in the first fight scene between Lenny, Mace and Philo's crew, there is a fluorescent light fixture hanging by a cable, spinning and casting light all over the room; this is a visual gift seen in many films by James Cameron, who wrote, produced and (uncredited) edited this film (and who was also briefly married to director Kathryn Bigelow before this film's production).
- #029
Andy Garcia was initially considered for the male lead role.
- #030
Composer Graeme Revell later reused the piece "2K/New Year's Kiss," which plays under the finale of Red Planet (2000) as "Alone." It is a completely new recording without the solo violin, voice and drum part, but the composition is almost entirely the same, even played in the same key.
- #031
This is one of two films in which Juliette Lewis's character fights with Tom Sizemore, the other being Natural Born Killers (1994).
- #032
In the flashback to when Mace meets Lenny, his car is a Merkur XR4Ti, a short-lived Ford sports/luxury import brand produced by the company's European division.
- #033
The car Jeriko pulls over in is a UAZ-469. It is an off-road military light utility vehicle produced by UAZ since 1971. It was used by the Soviet and other Warsaw Pact armed forces as well as paramilitary units in Eastern Bloc countries. It also saw widespread service in state institutions in the Soviet Union that needed a rugged and durable off-road vehicle. Standard military versions included seating for seven personnel.
- #034
Tom Sizemore and William Fichtner appeared in Heat (1995), which was released just a few months after this film. They later appeared together again in Black Hawk Down (2001).
- #035
Michael Wincott (Philo Gant) had previously appeared in The Doors (1991). The Doors' 1967 second album "Strange Days" gives this film its name, and a cover of the title track performed by Prong together with Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek is on the soundtrack and is the first song heard in the film.
- #036
Early in the film, while Lenny's television is on, one of the predictions made about the new millennium is that Muammar Gaddafi will win the Nobel Peace Prize. Ironically, Gaddafi was captured and killed after the 2011 Libyan uprising, largely because he was seen as a brutal tyrant and dictator. In another turn, HyperNormalization (2016) shows how his people were repeatedly manipulated.
- #037
This is one of two films starring Angela Bassett released in 1995 that end on New Year's Day, followed by Waiting to Exhale (1995).
- #038
In the opening sequence after Nero removes his headset, Tick's pet lizard is a collared lizard, which can be found in California.
- #039
The film takes place between December 29, 1999 and January 1, 2000.
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