The Ref

Name: The Ref
Director: Ted Demme
Released: 1994-07-07

1994 film by Ted Demme

FilmfilmQ1360651

Also known as Ref

Released: July 7, 1994
1
Sources
1.zelluloid.de/filme/index.php3?id=1878Retrieved 2017-11-25
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, 1994
Director: Ted Demme
2
Sources
1.imdb.com/title/tt0110955/Retrieved 2016-04-08
2.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=41749.htmlRetrieved 2016-04-08
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Screenwriter: Richard LaGravenese
Producer: Don Simpson
, Jerry Bruckheimer
Cast: Denis Leary
1
Sources
1.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=41749.htmlRetrieved 2016-04-08
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, Judy Davis
1
Sources
1.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=41749.htmlRetrieved 2016-04-08
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, Kevin Spacey
1
Sources
1.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=41749.htmlRetrieved 2016-04-08
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, BD Wong
+10 more
Runtime: 97 min
Genre: comedy film
1
Sources
1.imdb.com/title/tt0110955/Retrieved 2016-04-08
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, drama film
, Christmas film
+1 more
Country of origin: United States

Overview

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · Read full article · Text CC BY-SA 4.0

The Ref is a 1994 American black comedy film directed by Ted Demme, written by Richard LaGravenese and Marie Weiss, and starring Denis Leary, Judy Davis, and Kevin Spacey. The plot centers on a burglar who, while evading capture from the police, is forced to take a bickering, dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve. The burglar finds himself having to act as a de facto marriage counselor, or "referee", between the squabbling husband and wife, a situation that becomes more complicated when the husband's relatives drop by for Christmas dinner.

Overview

All data

111 statements · 17% with external sources · numbers in brackets are citations

Main subject: dysfunctional family
Narrative location: Connecticut
Film editor: Jeffrey Wolf
Title: The Ref
FSK film rating: FSK 6
Filming location: Ontario
Color: color
Medierådet rating: For ages 12 and up
1
Sources
1.Stated in Danish Film Database
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Distribution format: video on demand
Set during recurring event: Christmas and holiday season
Review score: 72%(October 7, 2021) review score by: Rotten Tomatoes · number of reviews/ratings: 54 critic review
1
Sources
1.Stated in Rotten Tomatoes“The Ref”Retrieved 2021-10-07
View statement on Wikidata ↗
6.4/10(October 7, 2021) review score by: Rotten Tomatoes
1
Sources
1.Stated in Rotten Tomatoes“The Ref”Retrieved 2021-10-07
View statement on Wikidata ↗
Assessment: Bechdel test assessment outcome: passes
1
Sources
1.Stated in Bechdel Test Movie ListRetrieved 2024-03-06
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Kijkwijzer rating: 6 content descriptor: Violence
1
Sources
1.kijkwijzer.nl/films/the-ref/Retrieved 2025-07-11
View statement on Wikidata ↗

On other databases

62 identifiers linking The Ref across the web's reference databases

Data quality

111

statements

17%

externally sourced

Source last edited September 22, 2026. AIDB refreshes this page daily.

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AIDB. (2026). The Ref (Q1360651). Retrieved from https://aidb.si/e/the-ref-Q1360651