Some actors can choose 'em. Some can't. Tom Cruise, Michael Douglas, Jodie Foster, George Clooney. They have a tendancy to pick quality projects pretty much consistantly. Then there's A-listers like Bruce Willis that not only does studio and indie movies, but only picks a quality project every now and again. For every Die Hard, Pulp Fiction and Sin City, there's a handful of others that are lackluster, simply adequete or under-whelming. Yeah, you know...Bandits, Hart's War, Perfect Stranger, The Story Of Us, Mercury Rising...you understand?
Jonathan Mostow's Surrogates is, unfortunately one of those 'others', although it is at the top end of that group. It's a solid, unspectacular studio science fiction thriller that does exactly what it says on the tin. It blends sci-fi concepts you'll recognise from Logan's Run, The Matrix as well as I Robot (james Cromwell effectively playing the same role in Surrogates too)....and it does it well. There's nothing really to complain about...it has action, suspense and Mostow hasn't skimped on action or effects. The script, while short at 88 minutes, is well structured, if a little familiar. ....but there's little in Surrogates to get excited* about either.
Still, Bruce delivers an agreeable and emotionally subdued performance and the cast, including Ving Rhames, Radha Mitchell and Jack Noseworthy add class.
* Rosamund (Die Another Day) Pike must get special mention as Brucies wife. If a Pikey surrogate goes on sale in my lifetime...that honey is mine. Hear me now.
1 comment:
Yeah, it was quite good. Decently made with some good ideas and cool FX. Problem is that it felt as if they'd just nicked ideas from lots of far better films and stuff (Terminator, Matrix, I, Robot etc.)and cobbled them together. The story worked ok in itself but it felt over familiar and lacking in any real smarts. It's a good job that the central surrogate concept is interesting and that Brucie is cool. Jonathan Mostow's (T3, Breakdown)direction is old fashioned (in a good way)and assured and the cast are all fine - especially Brucie and the insanely lovely Rosamund Pike. Surrogates is also slightly hampered by its lack of budget and scale. A big idea played on a small canvas. It is obviously shot for 90% on the usual overly familiar studio backlots. You'll recognize the small street sets from any number of other films and tv progs - although they do some decent digital expansion in a few shots.
So, not a bad movie at all. Just not an especially good one. Solid and never boring. Three stars out of five.
And to prove my point about nicking stuff from other films and stuff - check out the poster on your blog. Isn't that just a blatant copy of the Sarah Connor Chronicles posters?
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