eXistenZ
2/4
Starring: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Ian Holm, Willem Dafoe, Callum Keith Rennie, Christopher Eccelston
Rated R for Strong Sci-Fi Violence and Gore, and for Language
Science fiction has long pondered the line that separates fantasy from reality, and in that sense, "eXistenZ" doesn't do anything new. But the presentation is different because it uses video games as a platform for this question. That the movie was written and directed by David Cronenberg should tell you that this will be a highly strange and unusual tale.
Allegra Geller (Leigh) is a brilliant game designer showing her new game called "eXistenZ" to a focus group. However. this anticipated event (which, considering Allegra's status as the premiere game designer, is surprisingly small) goes awry when an assassin attempts to kill Allegra. Now she and a dorky marketing trainee named Ted Pikul (Law) go on the run. The question is not only who is trying to kill Allegra, but was the game destroyed in the shooting? To answer that question, she and Ted will have to play the game.
"eXistenZ" feels like it was rushed through production. The acting is unpolished, shot selection is stale, and so on. At least the special effects are good, if on the gruesome side. Those with weak stomachs will want to give this one a pass. But it's obvious that this movie didn't get the TLC it needed to really work.
Of the cast, only Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jude Law have more than token screen time. Leigh, who is never afraid to back down from a challenge or controversy, is in fine form, bringing life to an underwritten role. Jude Law, on the other hand, is awful. The British actor is so wooden that it's hard to believe that this is the same guy who would become a household name after his breakthrough performance in "The Talented Mr. Ripley." A movie that was released just nine months after this one. The supporting cast is as talented as it is diverse, but no one appears for more than a handful of scenes.
David Cronenberg clearly has a lot of ideas in this movie. I also liked his eye and ear for details regarding how surreal it would be to be stuck in a video game. But as they come across in the film, they're half formed or Cronenberg just doesn't know what to do with them. For example, players plug in an umbilical cord-like thing into a hole in their back and massage a wriggling pile of flesh to play the game. The sexual metaphor is hardly subtle, but it's a metaphor for what exactly? Either Cronenberg isn't able to communicate this to the audience or he just doesn't know, but the result is the same.
The problem with the film is that it's just not entertaining. The story is too thin and slow-moving to engage and there's no one and nothing to care about here. It's another case of having a cool idea, but botching it in the execution.
Starring: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Ian Holm, Willem Dafoe, Callum Keith Rennie, Christopher Eccelston
Rated R for Strong Sci-Fi Violence and Gore, and for Language
Science fiction has long pondered the line that separates fantasy from reality, and in that sense, "eXistenZ" doesn't do anything new. But the presentation is different because it uses video games as a platform for this question. That the movie was written and directed by David Cronenberg should tell you that this will be a highly strange and unusual tale.
Allegra Geller (Leigh) is a brilliant game designer showing her new game called "eXistenZ" to a focus group. However. this anticipated event (which, considering Allegra's status as the premiere game designer, is surprisingly small) goes awry when an assassin attempts to kill Allegra. Now she and a dorky marketing trainee named Ted Pikul (Law) go on the run. The question is not only who is trying to kill Allegra, but was the game destroyed in the shooting? To answer that question, she and Ted will have to play the game.
"eXistenZ" feels like it was rushed through production. The acting is unpolished, shot selection is stale, and so on. At least the special effects are good, if on the gruesome side. Those with weak stomachs will want to give this one a pass. But it's obvious that this movie didn't get the TLC it needed to really work.
Of the cast, only Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jude Law have more than token screen time. Leigh, who is never afraid to back down from a challenge or controversy, is in fine form, bringing life to an underwritten role. Jude Law, on the other hand, is awful. The British actor is so wooden that it's hard to believe that this is the same guy who would become a household name after his breakthrough performance in "The Talented Mr. Ripley." A movie that was released just nine months after this one. The supporting cast is as talented as it is diverse, but no one appears for more than a handful of scenes.
David Cronenberg clearly has a lot of ideas in this movie. I also liked his eye and ear for details regarding how surreal it would be to be stuck in a video game. But as they come across in the film, they're half formed or Cronenberg just doesn't know what to do with them. For example, players plug in an umbilical cord-like thing into a hole in their back and massage a wriggling pile of flesh to play the game. The sexual metaphor is hardly subtle, but it's a metaphor for what exactly? Either Cronenberg isn't able to communicate this to the audience or he just doesn't know, but the result is the same.
The problem with the film is that it's just not entertaining. The story is too thin and slow-moving to engage and there's no one and nothing to care about here. It's another case of having a cool idea, but botching it in the execution.
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