Instinct (1999 film)

Instinct is a 1999 American psychological thriller film directed by Jon Turteltaub and starring Anthony Hopkins, Cuba Gooding Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Maura Tierney. The film is loosely based on the 1992 non-fiction book Ishmael by Daniel Quinn.

The plot revolves around Dr. Ethan Powell (Hopkins), an anthropologist who has been living in the Rwandan jungle, studying gorillas. After several murders in the jungle, attributed to Powell, he is captured and imprisoned in a mental institution. Dr. Theo Caulder (Gooding Jr.), a young psychiatrist, is tasked with evaluating Powell and understanding his motives.

As Caulder delves deeper into Powell's story, he begins to question his own assumptions about civilization and the nature of humanity. Powell's behavior and philosophical views challenge Caulder's perspective on freedom, captivity, and the destructive impact of human civilization on the natural world. The film explores themes of primal instinct versus societal conditioning, environmentalism, mental illness, and the inherent violence within human nature. The narrative centers on the growing understanding and eventual connection between the two doctors, and Caulder's own journey of self-discovery.