Cypher

Cypher was a movie I was looking forward to after I had read some comments here about it's story being like the works Philip K. Dick, an author whose paranoid tales I love to read.

As far as plot twists go Cypher never disappointed me, even though the last plot twist was a bit out there, it had a very cool ending that was very satisfying. The level of suspense was ok, this movie was not a nailbiter but it has really nice atmosphere at times with the opening music theme and the many shady operatives. A thinking man's movie as well, you need to pay attention throughout the movie or you will lose track. No problem in the DVD-age I would say. Overall it was acted very well. Jeremy Northam and Lucy Liu definitely deserve movies as good as this, although they don't seem to have found that many in their careers.

Visually the movie is stunning, it is filmed very tight and stylish, with a few well-dosed effects. This movie probably had a relatively modest budget but it looks awesome. Overall this was a very pleasant movie experience.

8 out of 10

Morgan Sullivan is a businessman who, rather than work for his father-in-law, takes a strange job working as a corporate spy for a company called Digicore. His assignments are simple and boring; attend a conference and use a covert device to transmit the speeches back to HQ. At one conference he meets a mysterious woman called Rita and flirts with her. On his flights and during his sleep he is bothered by vivid dreams and voices in his head; he thinks nothing of it but then his next meeting with Rita reveals something much more sinister than the basic assignments he thought he was getting and he soon finds himself in deep.

I had never heard of this film at all before watching it, nor did I even know anything about it whatsoever and I only ended up watching it because I had FilmFour free one weekend and this was one of the few films that they showed that was worth seeing. I'm glad I came to it with nothing because I found myself engaged from the start and the twisty plot was great fun even if the final five minutes could never have hoped to have delivered above and beyond what had come before. There are those that complain about the ending being "terrible" are perhaps being too harsh although I will acknowledge that it is a bit too tidy for its own good. The plot requires a lot of suspension of belief (and I mean a lot) but once you get into it it moves along really well and does keep you watching to see where it goes. It is helped by the way that it starts out in a "normal" world that many of us will relate to – boring business presentations and conferences that you wonder why you bothered. If you can keep up with it from here on then it is enjoyable even if logic and sense.

Visually the film really works even if the budget constraints are clear here and there. Director Natali injects a lot of style and imagination into it and also delivers a real sense of urgency and paranoia that helps the material work. The cast are a mixed bunch, although in this sort of film the characters tend not to be that well developed in all parts. Northam takes the lead role and does it well, making his character a drag little everyman but also convincingly changing him gradually across the film. Lucy Liu is not as good; she is a bit flat but fortunately she has limited screen time and was only what I'd call really bad one time. The support cast are all OK, delivering the required mix of the ordinary and the sinister to good effect even if they are all pretty straightforward.

Overall this is a nice little thriller in the style of things like Usual Suspects, Memento and the like. You do need to suspend belief and, if you can, it is enjoyably twisty and slick and is pretty exciting. Of course if you dislike the genre (the sort that has to keep moving for fear of getting caught by its own lack of logic) then you'll hate it but everyone else should at least get a fun 90 minutes from it.

The second feature from Vincenzo Natali (director of the cult film Cube, if you haven't seen it, go check it out) comes this tantalizing sci-fi with hints of film noir blended together to create a smart and puzzling piece of espionage, double-cross with numerous twists and turns.

Set in an alternative reality where a bored business man Morgan Sullivan (played with bookish awkwardness by Jermery Northam) decides to apply for a job at a global computer firm Digicorp. He successfully passes the rigorous test and learns he is to work as a spy to steal information from their rivals Sunways Systems. Morgan is given a new identity (Jack Thursby) where he attends these business conferences to retrieve and relay information back to Digicorp.

Morgan starts off thinking that this would be an adventure where he can re-invent himself as the man he'd like to be. When he spots a mysterious woman (Rita played by Lucy Lui), he tries his luck, only to be blown off. As he sent on further conferences he starts to experience extreme headaches where masses of images explode in his mind which he doesn't comprehend. When he spots Rita again in his hotel again he follows her to the rooftop where she explains to him that all is not what it seems at the conferences he is going to.... and that's when the fun starts. Here is the beginning of the many twist and turns involved in the film.

Set in monochromatic colours, where there is light there is shadow and the whole film seems to be set in a neo film noir colouring of greys and whites. There is a distinct style that the film tries to go for and mostly achieves. A world, which is not dissimilar to our own, is bought to life by the high contrast and sharp detail by cinematographer Derek Rogers giving the whole feel a cold, calculated and cool precision look.

The performances by Jeremy Northam provides the main focus as we see his transformation from a bland everyday businessman into a paranoid agent who allegiances is divided and is unsure of who to trust and who to follow. By the end of the film he becomes a completely different person and is a measured piece of acting by Northam. Lucy Lui also plays the role of the femme fatale very well and isn't playing her usual spoilt brat routine (which is normally very unbearable for me). All other supporting cast do a decent enough job but it's not really a film to really rave on about the acting side of things.

The most impressive thing about this, is learning that the film was initial financed by family and friends on their credit cards and was only pick up later on by a major distributor and with a larger budget (even then it's only $7.5 million) to work on, it looks amazing. Shot in very little time, it's a puzzler that isn't too hard to work out (though you will need a little concentration to follow it) but to fully appreciate it, I would suggest you don't view the trailer, otherwise a lot of the key plot points maybe ruined and the surprises and twists will be foreseen. All in all it's very stylist sci-fi thriller with plenty to give the brain a workout.

There was a stylish approach to this film on the part of director Vincenzo Natali with interesting camera angles and effective close-ups. It was also refreshing to see Jeremy Northam and Lucy Liu given leading roles and expanding their range as performers. This film also included one of the most imaginative "escape" scenes in recent years. The efforts of the director and the actors combined in an effective thriller.

Although the plotting of the film was convoluted, the story progressed very clearly as the layers of corporate greed and skullduggery were revealed.

In 1949, George Orwell suggested in his famous novel "1984" that the future would be ruled by the totalitarian State, which would control minds and diminish human liberty. It was interesting that in this intriguing futuristic film, it was not the State, but rather the corporate world that controlled and devalued the human worker.

Vincenzo Natali's feature debut 'Cube' was in my opinion the best science fiction movie of the 1990s. By "science fiction" I'm not meaning Star Wars style space opera aimed at 13 year olds, but mind expanding storytelling in the tradition of Philip K. Dick, Robert Silverberg and William Gibson. Or movies like 'Bladerunner', 'Brazil', 'Dark City' and 'eXistenZ', and yes (just in case you think I'm a mindless Lucas basher) 'THX 1138', a movie which Natali incidentally cited as an inspiration for 'Cube'. It's been a long wait but 'Cypher' is certainly worth it. This is a very stylized and cerebral film which Natali describes as being "Kafka meets James Bond", and he's not joking. There have been a few Philip K. Dick adaptations in the last few years but they always seem to lose the quirkiness and intelligence of his work and degenerate into big expensive action movies. 'Cypher' isn't actually based on a PKD story but in many ways it's the closest thing to his fiction yet seen on a movie screen. Apart from the two leads the cast is made up of Canadian character actors, which gives it a freshness missing from many contemporary Hollywood productions. 'Cube' co-star and long time Natali friend David Hewlett has a memorable role as the creepy Vergil Dunn, keeper of The Vault. He gives one of the best performances in the movie. Incidentally, also keep an eye out for a brief cameo by Valerie Buhagier, star of Bruce McDonald's cult favourites 'Roadkill' and 'Highway 61' in one of the conference scenes. The main stars are unusual picks. Brit actor Jeremy Northam has appeared in a few big American movies but is still pretty much unknown to most audiences. He uses this to his advantage and gives a terrific performance. I honestly can't imagine anyone else doing this difficult role any better. Lucy Liu plays the femme fatale part to perfection. Maybe she's just trying to get indie cred by appearing in 'Cypher', but who cares when she gives a good performance in a great movie. Plus she looks damn fine! 'Cube' has already become a cult favourite, and there's no doubt in my mind that 'Cypher' will do the same. I think audiences will be discovering both movies for years to come. Vincenzo Natali is shaping up to be one of the most exciting genre directors currently working and I'm really looking forward to what he comes up with next!