MIMIC |
| CREDITS: Director: Guillermo del Toro. Cast: Mira Sorvino, Jeremy Northam, Charles
Dutton & F. Murray Abraham. USA 1998 INTRODUCTION: Director del Toro's confused sci-fi horror hits our screens failing to answer more questions than it actually asks. There is much less here than meets the eye. SYNOPSIS: A race of Judas bugs are created to wipe out the plague carrying cockroaches infesting New York's sewer system, but the bugs soon turn on the native New Yorkers apparently unable to differentiate between them and disease-infested parasites. So genetic muddling once again results in a race of giant bugs threatening the Earth, and only the muddlers, together with a motley ensemble of assorted mandible fodder, can stop them. REVIEW: Nothing particularly original here in this tale of big bugs living in the New-York underground system, but fortunately it has the requisite number of thrills and spills required to overcome this handicap and provide a rollicking good ride. Sometime girlfriend of Q.T., Sorvino, does a passable Ripley impersonation. Sometime great character actor Abraham does a pat Attenborough impersonation, complete with line "Evolution has a way of making things survive". Child actor Alexander Goodwin sometimes does a plausible Newt impersonation. Sometime Brit. Northam does a completely implausible New Yorker impersonation. Every one else does creditable impersonations of bug food.. Mexican director del Torro adds a few visually exciting touches, such as the traditional fall from the scaffolding ending with a splat of white paint instead of the more tradition red, and the bugs hideout adorned with a neon "Jesus Saves" sign, but all things considered this is very much a mainstream dumbing down of the flair he showed in "Cronos". What we have here is a clear-cut case of too many writers spoiling the Plot. Based on a two page short story by Donald A. Wollheim, and originally intended as a segment of an anthology, a plethora of screenwriting talent including Matthew Robbins, John Sayles and Matthew Greenberg all had a go at the script before handing it over to del Torro and all obviously had a different story in mind. The giant bugs, and yes they have evolved lungs in case any entomologists are reading, are woefully under utilised, the movie fails to provide the insight into the hive mentality that has been invoked to good effect in movies such as "Aliens", "Starship Troopers", "Star Trek: First Contact" and "Them!". The genetic horror played out in "Jurassic Park" and sequel is little more than backdrop. The plague aspects explored to great effect in "12 Monkeys" and "The Stand" are quickly dropped. Even the mimic aspects evident in movies such as "The Hidden" and "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" are never fully explored in this film. Though this last one is probably because the bugs disguise isn't entirely Convincing. How did these guys go un-noticed for so long even in a place as apparently infested with weirdoes as the New York underground system is? Result - a complete mess with a series of increasingly annoying plot holes saved by a truly talented director. Not exactly a masterpiece, but a competently executed sci-fi thriller. Mutt's Rating: *** |