''Haven'' is a 2004

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

set in the Cayman Islands, a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

offshore financial centre An offshore financial centre (OFC) is defined as a "country or jurisdiction that provides financial services to nonresidents on a scale that is incommensurate with the size and the financing of its domestic economy." "Offshore" does not refer ...

. The film premiered at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

in 2004. It is written and directed by native Caymanian Frank E. Flowers and filmed entirely in the West Indian dependency. ''Haven'' is an ensemble film in which unconnected lives intersect and result in a violent chain of events that turns tranquility into chaos. It was released in limited theaters in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

on September 15, 2006. The film's tagline was "Can love survive the fall of paradise?"

Plot

A corrupt and greedy businessman, Carl Ridley (

Bill Paxton William Paxton (May 17, 1955 – February 25, 2017) was an American actor and filmmaker. He appeared in films such as '' Weird Science'' (1985), ''Aliens'' (1986), '' Near Dark'' (1987), '' Tombstone'' (1993), ''True Lies'' (1994), '' Apollo 1 ...

), is running from the government, with his 18-year-old daughter Pippa (

Agnes Bruckner Agnes Bruckner is an American actress and former model. She began acting in television in the late 1990s and has since appeared in several films, including '' The Woods'', '' Blue Car'', '' Murder by Numbers'', '' Blood and Chocolate'', ''The An ...

) in tow. Pippa is not happy to leave her friends and comfortable life in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

for the Cayman Islands. Arriving in the islands, Ridley is preoccupied. Banks are rapidly closing and he must find a clean place to store his stolen money. Meanwhile, Pippa finds native Caymanian Fritz (

Victor Rasuk Victor Rasuk (born January 15, 1984) is an American actor. Early life Rasuk was born in New York City, to Dominican parents. His mother worked as a seamstress, and his father at an auto shop. He has one brother, actor Silvestre Rasuk, with whom ...

) sleeping off a late night in her bed. He flees out the window, leaving his wallet behind. She later finds Fritz on the beach to return his wallet and befriends him, in spite of his ridiculous come-on attempts. Fritz is yearning to show her the island, including its wild parties. But he owes money to island gang leader Richie Ritch ( Raz Adoti), and when he peeks in on Pippa's father unwrapping a massive amount of cash that he had taped around his torso, Fritz begins scheming. Pippa is completely unaware that she's leading her father into even more trouble than he had in the United States. A parallel storyline involves Shy ( Orlando Bloom), a Cayman native. He is in love with Andrea ( Zoë Saldaña), the daughter of his boss, Mr. Sterling, a very influential person in the island. But for an unknown reason, Andrea's brother Hammer (

Anthony Mackie Anthony Dwane Mackie (born September 23, 1978) is an American actor. Mackie made his acting debut starring in the semi-biographical drama film '' 8 Mile'' (2002). He was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor for his pe ...

) despises Shy. To protect their secret affair, whenever Shy would visit Andrea at home his good friend Kimo (

Mpho Koaho Mpho Koaho () is a Canadian actor. He portrayed Anthony on the TNT science fiction series ''Falling Skies'' (2011–2015) and was also a series regular on the Teletoon action adventure ''MetaJets'' (2011) and the BBC America science fiction com ...

) would watch the house in case Andrea's father were to arrive. On Andrea's birthday Shy visits her house and has sex with her, but Kimo falls asleep and fails to warn Shy of Sterling's arrival. Shy escapes out the window, but not without being identified by Hammer. Later on, to avenge his sister's lost womanhood, Hammer attacks Shy with acid which leaves a permanent

scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other organs, and tissues of the body. Thus, scarring is a n ...

on Shy's face. Hammer is sent to jail for four months. Physically and emotionally scarred, Shy becomes a recluse. Andrea is emotionally broken and gives in to drugs and sex. Shy has his friend Patrick, the son of Mr. Allen (Ridley's lawyer), take him to Richie's birthday party to find Andrea. Finding her in the bathroom having sex with a stranger, he runs into the front yard and vomits. She runs after him but he pushes her away knowing that she is high. Hammer sees Shy and begins to beat him up with help from his friends. Shy finally breaks free and runs down the street as Hammer curses at him, telling him to stay away. Meanwhile, at the same party, Fritz gets pulled in to see Richie while Pippa talks to a few other white girls doing drugs. Upset after smoking some pot, she finds Fritz and demands that he take her home. Having just told Richie to go to her home to steal the cash, he instead takes her to Mr. Sterling's yacht. As they sit down inside, they find that the alarm has been set off; the police arrive shortly and arrest both of them. Pippa is taken to the police station, while Fritz is transported to a

laundromat A self-service laundry, coin laundry, laundromat, or coin wash is a facility where clothes are washed and dried without much personalized professional help. They are known in the United Kingdom as launderettes or laundrettes, and in the Unit ...

where a local cop who knows him delivers a lecture and a beating for acting disobediently throughout his life. After his own beating, Shy obtains a gun and returns to the party to find Hammer. After firing the gun to clear out the party, he corners Hammer and explains what a mess Hammer has made of his own sister's life. He says that he will spare Hammer's life so that he can watch the trouble that he has caused in Andrea's life. Hammer replies that he would rather see Andrea become a

whore Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

than be with Shy. Enraged, Shy pulls the trigger. Shocked by what he has done, he apologizes and runs off. Over the next few hours, Andrea asks Patrick to take her to find Shy. He is disgusted with her and kicks her out of his car, but tells her that Shy is at the docks. When she finds him, she expresses her desire to be with him, regardless of others' feelings. When he confesses to killing her brother, however, she leaves him in disgust, forgetting her shoes in her hurry. When Allen and Ridley go to the police station the next morning, Ridley soon realizes that he has been betrayed and is taken into custody by the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

. When Allen goes home to retrieve the money that he believes he tricked Ridley into leaving in his safe, he discovers that the bag contains only sand and a conch shell. At her own condo, Pippa discovers the million dollars under her mattress. In the final scenes, Andrea prepares for Hammer's funeral with her father, Kimo comforts Shy's mother, and Shy sits on the dock where Andrea left him. He then gets into his boat, cuts the rope and motors away, throwing the gun into the water.

Cast

* Orlando Bloom as "Shy" * Zoë Saldaña as Andrea *

as Fritz *

as Carl Ridley *

Stephen Dillane Stephen John Dillane (; born 27 March 1957) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles as Leonard Woolf in the 2002 film '' The Hours'', Stannis Baratheon in ''Game of Thrones'', and Thomas Jefferson in the 2008 HBO miniseries ''John Ad ...

as Mr. Allen *

Razaaq Adoti Razaaq Adoti (born 27 June 1973) is a British actor, producer and screenwriter. Early life Adoti was born in Forest Gate, London of Nigerian descent (Nigerian British). He landed his first professional screen role on the British television sh ...

as Richie Rich *

as Pippa Ridley *

Joy Bryant Joy Bryant is an American actress, businesswoman and fashion model. She has appeared in numerous films and television since beginning her acting career in 2001. She has received two NAACP Image Award nominations, and one Screen Actors Guild Award ...

as Sheila * Bobby Cannavale as Lieutenant *

Robert Wisdom Robert Ray Wisdom (born September 14, 1953) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Howard "Bunny" Colvin in '' The Wire,'' Norman "Lechero" St. John in ''Prison Break'', and Harold Conway in the 2021 Hulu movie ''Vacation Friends''. ...

as Mr. Sterling *

Lee Ingleby Lee David Ingleby (born 28 January 1976) is an English film, television and stage actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective Sergeant/Detective Inspector John Bacchus in the BBC drama '' Inspector George Gently'', as Stan Shunpike in ...

as Patrick *

as "Hammer" *

Sarah Carter Sarah Sanguin Carter (born October 30, 1980) is a Canadian-American actress. She is known for her recurring role as Alicia Baker in the superhero series ''Smallville'' (2004–2005), Madeleine Poe in ''Shark'' (2006–2008), and main role as ...

as Chanel *

Ky-Mani Marley Ky-Mani Marley (born 26 February 1976) is a Jamaican singer and musician. His name is of East African origin, and means "Adventurous Traveler". He is the only child of Bob Marley with Anita Belnavis, a Jamaican table tennis champion. In 2001 ...

as John "The Baptist" *

Jake Weber Jake T. Weber (born 12 March 1963) is an English actor, known in film for his role as Michael in '' Dawn of the Dead'' and for his role as Drew in '' Meet Joe Black''. On television, he is best-known for playing Joe DuBois, the sleep-deprived ...

as Officer Powell *

as Kimo *

Santiago Cabrera Santiago Cabrera (; born 5 May 1978) is a Chilean-British actor who has worked mainly in the UK and United States. Cabrera is best known for his roles as the character Isaac Mendez in the television series '' Heroes'', Lancelot in the BBC dra ...

as Gene *

Rachel Miner Rachel Anne Miner is an American actress. She first came to prominence for her portrayal of Michelle Bauer on the television soap opera ''Guiding Light'' (1990–95). She made her film debut in Woody Allen's ''Alice'' (1990), and later earned cr ...

as Eva * Peter O'Meara as Officer Franklin *

Serena Scott Thomas Serena Harriet Scott Thomas (born 21 September 1961) is an English actress and documentary producer. Her television roles include Diana, Princess of Wales in '' Diana: Her True Story'' in 1993. Her film appearances include ''The World Is Not Eno ...

as Mrs. Allen

References

External links

* *{{Rotten Tomatoes, haven
Interview: Orlando Bloom & Zoe Saldana ''Haven''Watch Orlando Bloom and Frank E. Flowers at IndependentFilm.com
2004 films 2004 crime drama films American crime drama films American nonlinear narrative films Films set in the Cayman Islands Films shot in the Cayman Islands Films scored by Heitor Pereira 2006 drama films 2006 films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films