Don't Say a Word

When Jessie Conrad, the daughter of psychiatrist Dr. Nathan Conrad, is abducted, the kidnapper delivers a chilling demand: the doctor must reach out to a traumatized patient who holds a crucial secret, a six digit code no one else can reveal. As the clock ticks, Nathan must navigate hospital politics and his own doubts to coax information from Elisabeth Burrows, a young woman living with PTSD who carries memories that could unlock the mystery. The pursuit shifts through sterile clinics, dim corridors, and uneasy loyalties, turning a routine medical case into a high stakes game. Nathan faces ethical traps, personal guilt, and a desperate struggle to protect his family without compromising his oath. The urgency remains high throughout the ordeal.

Directed by Gary Fleder, the thriller uses an original screenplay by Anthony Peckham, Patrick Smith Kelly and Andrew Klavan. Released in 2001, it blends cat and mouse dynamics with a clinical setting that highlights ethical gray areas in mental health.

Box office worldwide totaled $100,020,092 against a $50 million budget, highlighting solid profitability for a mid range thriller and confirming its broad appeal in international markets upon release during summer and holiday seasons, and its international release built audience anticipation.

Critical response was mixed to positive, with praise for the performances of Douglas, Bean and Murphy and for the tight suspense, though some reviewers found the plot devices conventional. The film examines medical ethics under pressure, the price of coercion, and how trauma shapes memory and loyalty and human resilience.

While not a lasting icon, the film sits among early 2000s medical thrillers that use private clinics as pressure chambers. It helped spotlight Michael Douglas and Sean Bean in a high tension, urban chase that mixes brain games with urgent danger. Its tone stays taut even when moral questions linger.