''Painkiller Jane'' is a television film based on the comic book character of the same name. It was first broadcast on the

Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Launc ...

on 10 December 2005. The film stars

Emmanuelle Vaugier Emmanuelle Frederique Vaugier (, ; born June 23, 1976) is a Canadian film and television actress. Vaugier has had recurring roles as Detective Jessica Angell on '' CSI: NY'', Mia on ''Two and a Half Men'', Dr. Helen Bryce on '' Smallville'', F ...

as the titular heroine. The film differs significantly from the story of the comic book character. The movie was a backdoor pilot for a possible television series, which was eventually approved. The ''Painkiller Jane'' TV series appears to be a "

reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...

" of the TV-movie, discarding the film's backstory and starting anew.

Plot

Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

unit, known as the Painkiller Unit, is exposed to a biochemical weapon while on a mission in Sovetskaia,

Chechnya Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...

. While attempting to retreat, the entire unit is ambushed and executed by a group of armed men in protective

hazmat suit A hazmat suit (hazardous materials suit) is a piece of personal protective equipment that consists of an impermeable whole-body garment worn as protection against hazardous materials. Such suits are often combined with self-contained breathing ...

s. One member of the unit, Captain Jane Browning (

), not only survives the execution, but recovers from the

viral infection A viral disease (or viral infection) occurs when an organism's body is invaded by pathogenic viruses, and infectious virus particles (virions) attach to and enter susceptible cells. Structural Characteristics Basic structural characteristics, s ...

and develops an abnormally rapid healing factor, increased

dexterity Fine motor skill (or dexterity) is the coordination of small muscles in movement with the eyes, hands and fingers. The complex levels of manual dexterity that humans exhibit can be related to the nervous system. Fine motor skills aid in the growt ...

, speed, strength, enhanced senses, mental abilities, and a

photographic memory Eidetic memory ( ; more commonly called photographic memory or total recall) is the ability to recall an image from memory with high precision—at least for a brief period of time—after seeing it only onceThe terms ''eidetic memory'' and ''pho ...

. Jane is studied by a

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

, Dr. Graham Knight (

Tate Donovan Tate Buckley Donovan (born September 25, 1963) is an American actor, comedian and television director. He is known for portraying Tom Shayes in ''Damages'', Jimmy Cooper in ''The O.C.'', and the voice of the title character in the 1997 Disney ...

), though she refuses to cooperate with his attempt at examining her mental state. She is extensively tested by the military, and when her superior Colonel Ian Watts (

Richard Roundtree Richard Roundtree (born July 9, 1942) is an American actor. Roundtree is noted as being "the first black action hero" for his portrayal of private detective John Shaft in the 1971 film ''Shaft'', and its four sequels, released between 1972 and 2 ...

) has her transferred to

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

for more tests, Jane (fearing they'll never let go of her) escapes with professional thief, Nick Pierce (

Eric Dane Eric William Dane (born November 9, 1972) is an American actor. After multiple television roles in the 1990s and 2000s, which included his recurring role as Jason Dean in ''Charmed'', Dane was cast as Dr. Mark Sloan on the ABC medical drama te ...

). Taking shelter with Nick, Jane meets his companions and lives with them briefly. Before long though she leaves to find out more about what was done to her, tracking down Dr. Graham. Graham reveals himself to be Captain Lucas Insley. He claims to be investigating Watts, who has created the fake identity of Peter Erfan, the man who ostensibly created the virus she was exposed to. Jane meets with Watts in a public place for safety, hoping to expose what happened. Watts says that Insley is Erfan, and he created the virus which alters people's DNA to enhance them. Their meeting is interrupted when gunmen attack however, with Jane throwing herself in front of Watts to take a bullet meant for him. After this, she chases after them and runs into Insley. Insley admits that he is, in fact, Peter Erfan, and has a vial of liquid which he has extracted from Jane. Erfan refers to her as the new

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

, as something in her body altered the virus and then the virus changed her. This is why she survived but the rest of her unit did not. While they are talking, an assassin starts to move in on Jane, who shoots him. However, Erfan has already been able to recreate the modified virus, and has given it to the assassin. As he is talking with her, the assassin gets up, rips a power box off the wall, and hits Jane on the head with it. She wakes up in a

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

being transported away by Insley, who plans to use her for development of his project. Jane escapes from the

handcuffs Handcuffs are Physical restraint, restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a Link chain, chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm whi ...

he placed her in though. A struggle ensues in which the helicopter is disabled, with Jane then jumping from it with Insley below her, using him as a cushion. He is later believed to be dead. The final scene sees a group of Asian men walk into a

laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicia ...

and meet with Peter Erfan however. He holds a vial of green fluid, the genetic material for the enhancement virus in a solution. The implication is that Erfan took the solution himself, allowing him to survive an impact with a river after apparently having fallen, and will soon be creating an army of superhumans for the unnamed Asian business partner.

Cast

as Captain Jane Elizabeth Browning **

Paula Brancati Paula Brancati (born June 6, 1989) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her work on Canadian television, including roles on '' Being Erica'', ''Slasher'', ''Dark Oracle'', and most notably for playing Jane Vaughn on '' Degrassi: The Next Gen ...

as Young Jane Browning *

as Nick Pierce *

as Colonel Ian Watts, Jane's Supervising Officer * Nels Lennarson as Agent Thorpe *

Richard Harmon Richard Scott Harmon is a Canadian actor. His roles on television include John Murphy in The CW's ''The 100'', Jasper Ames in '' The Killing'' and Julian Randol on ''Continuum''. Harmon received critical praise for his role in the movie ''If I H ...

as "Squeak" * Walker Howard as "Blue" *

as Dr. Graham Knight / Captain Lucas Insley / Peter Erfan *

Venus Terzo Venus Terzo is a Canadian actress who played Detective Angela Kosmo in ''Da Vinci's Inquest'' and its spinoff, '' Da Vinci's City Hall''. She was nominated in 2002 for the Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dr ...

as Carla Browning, Jane's Sister ** Elicia Mackenzie as Young Carla Browning *

Callum Keith Rennie Callum Keith Rennie (born 14 September 1960) is a British-born Canadian actor who started his career in Canadian film and television projects, where his portrayal of Stanley Raymond Kowalski on the television series '' Due South'' was his firs ...

as Secretary of Defense Donnie Mitchell *

Martin Cummins Martin Cummins (born November 28, 1969) is a Canadian actor known for his role as Ames White in '' Dark Angel'' and as Nick Boyle in '' Poltergeist: The Legacy''. Life and career Cummins went to Seaquam Secondary School in the town of North De ...

as Sergeant Flynn *

Aleks Paunovic Aleks Paunovic (born June 29, 1969) is a Canadian actor. Paunovic is from Winnipeg, Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's ...

as Sergeant Frizelle * Zoran Vukelic as Mr. Grey (Zoran) * Sean Akira as Taiwanese Businessman

Reboot

In an interview with Moviepilot, Palmiotti is in progressing on a new film. As of November 2016,

Jessica Chastain Jessica Michelle Chastain (born March 24, 1977) is an American actress and producer. Known for primarily starring in films with feminist themes, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. ''Time'' ...

has reportedly signed on to star as Jane Vasko in the big screen with Lotus Entertainment's Lenny Beckerman producing along with Solipsist Films' Stephen L’Heureux and Chastain through her Freckle Films banner. Bill Johnson, Jim Seibel, Ara Keshishian and Palmiotti will exec produce the film. Christine Boylan was signed to write the script.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Painkiller Jane (Film) 2005 films 2005 television films 2000s superhero films American superhero films Superheroine films Films scored by Brian Tyler Films set in Russia Films based on American comics Films shot in Vancouver Live-action films based on comics Painkiller Jane Syfy original films Universal Pictures films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Television films as pilots 2000s English-language films 2000s American films