Rating: D+
Dir: Kathryn Bigelow
Star: Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore
[22] With James Cameron lurking as writer and producer, it’s hard to tell to whom this film belongs, not least because there are two different stories crammed into it. Both take place in the same dystopian future, on the eve of the year 2000, and involve a device which records life experiences, but one is a serial-killer thriller and the other a political polemic about a murdered rapper. The two fail to meld, despite obvious efforts, and the overall effect is of flicking TV channels.
It’s an appropriate metaphor for a movie which wears its media-consciousness like a medal, burying any interesting ideas, about the street finding uses for technology, in a tidal wave of chases and pop-promo style. Fiennes is barely okay as the dodgy dealer still in love with wannabe rock star Lewis, who seems keen to show her breasts off. Like the film itself, these are something of a disappointment, but at least they’re a good deal less confusing and noisy.