I don't usually get into the IMDB message boards much, but think that I need to say for the record that Penn is downright wretched in this film. Granted, he plays a small, mostly meaningless role, but the forced Russian accent? Really, really bad Sean... you should have skipped it.
shareI think his accent was Italian.
shareI am not a film snob, and I am very ignorant when it comes to film critique. I will agree that there was some excellent cinematography and imagery in this film. The music was also moving. Unfortunatley, in movies there has to be some "hook" in the first 10 minutes. This "hook" didn't happen until 40 minutes into the show, when we discovered the clones. There were a few teasers however it is as if the film didn't want you to know what in the hell it was about even a half hour into it. This show can't claim to be high-artsy enough to be exempt from this. Other futuristic romance films such as "Code 451" with Tim Robbins or "Gattica" were so much more entertaining and paced (I know I am sounding simple demanding these things), not to mention they fully leveraged their sci-fi aspect. In this show we only go snippets of dead people on the pavement and Africa freezing. There was no follow-up, explanation, or closure as to why these things happened. This could have been a gem, this is a classic example of someone spending their money to get a film made yet not having a clue as what generates box office return.
shareI found the 'hook' was far closer to the beginning, when one of the clones (apparently the crazy one?) said John's name and then disappeared, leaving you with that "What the f*@&@?" factor that always makes you watch a movie.
And that is the explanation, I think.
"It's all about love."
That's really all there is to it. You don't try to understand it. It's a piece of art. It's all about love.
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That's hilarious!
Where did you buy those clothes? The toilet store??
He was the narrator of the film - watch it again and you'll understand.
In 2007 JASON VOORHEES is back and in August 2007 AVP2 comes!
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OK, I'll admit that Sean has picked better scripts and turned in better performances but I think "Downright wretched" is a little harsh. No matter what he's given to do, Sean Penn is never wretched. He is more watchable than 2/3 of the actors in this business, even in a less than stellar film like this one.
shareI think this movie would have been just fine without Sean P.'s character and without Sean P.
Frankly, even his character's narration is unnecessary.
And, I did watch it more than once.
Otherwise: As opposed to some other posters, I do like this movie on some levels. I liked the cinematography (especially the arena skating scene, all those white limos, and the snow/freezing scenes), the Lynch-esque evil folks, the relationship between 'John' and 'Elena', and the story was interesting (although, try as I might, I couldn't quite find a place for 'the flying Ugandans', other than as some extra random, surreal weirdness, which is okay but the movie already had plenty of that going on).
"I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than..a rude remark or a vulgar action" Blanche DuBois