David Cronenberg's "eXistenZ" |
"eXistenZ" Dimension Films. Director: David Cronenberg. Writer: David Cronenberg. Cast: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Willem Dafoe, Ian Holm, Don McKellar, Callum Keith Rennie, Sarah Polley & Christopher Eccleston. Canada/France/UK/USA 1999. The film we've all been waiting for? Cronenberg's first film since the controversial "Crash" and his first original story since the cult classic "Videodrome". Allegra Geller (Jason Leigh) is a world famous game designer, or maybe she isn't, Ted Pikul (Law) is her reluctant bodyguard, possibly, and eXistenZ is her exciting new VR game, or not as the case maybe. After a bungled assassination attempt on her, Allegra and Ted go on the run, or do they? On the way they encounter gas-station attendant Gas (Dafoe), bio-engineer Vinokur (Holm), mutant trout farmer Yevgeny Nourish (McKeller) and salesman Levi (Eccleston), all of whom may or may not be trying to help or hinder them, or not as the case maybe. From here on in things start to get a little complicated, well you get the picture, or do you? Yes this is one big pretentious mind-fuck of a movie, nowhere near as clever as it's writer-director thinks it is but twice as irritating. Jason Leigh turns in one of the greatest performances of her career, as the gorgeous Allegra, literally sparking with the otherwise bland Law, whose performance as Ted often seems a little to reminiscent of his star turn in the disappointing "Gattaca". Eccleston, Dafoe, Holm and McKellar make a series of increasingly implausible cameos with a series of equally implausible accents. It's been 16 years since "Videodrome" and Cronenberg has spent that time working alongside such great authors as J.G. Ballard and Billy Burroughs. You'd think some modicum of talent would have rubbed of, but instead Cronenberg seems happy enough to cover the same ground he covered in his seminal 1983 pic with little new or original to say. Instead he falls back on that great 90s excuse for crap writing and plays the post-modern irony card, this must stop! I know I'm probably the last person you'd expect to call time on a genre I've previously so heartily defended, but it has gone too far. Cronenberg was obviously desperate for a commercial hit following nearly two decades of popular flops, and this film will undoubtedly fill that desire, if nothing else. With built in cult appeal this film is destined for classic status, but it is far from deserving. One to avoid, instead why not see "The Matrix", "Dark City" or even "Videodrome". |