 | Starring: Robin Williams, Mira Sorvino, Jim Caviezel, Mimi Kuzyk, Stephanie Romanov Director: Omar Naim Format: PAL Released: 22 Aug 2005 RRP: Average Rating:  |
It's sometime in the future. Affluent parents can have an implant placed in their unborn child's brain that'll record alll the sights & sounds seen & heard during that individual's life from birth until death. Then, after death, the implant's data are able to be downloaded into a computer as a series of scenes sequentiallly numbered according to the person's age in years, days & hours. Those vignettes can be edited by a "Cutter" to create a visual remembrance of the deceased. A sort of "This Is the Best of Your Life" souvenir for the survivors. Alan Hakman (Robin Williams) is such a Cutter, one of the best in the business when it comes to cleaning up a depraved life's visual record into something suitable for family viewing at the wake.
A childhood trauma involving the accidental death of a playmate, as well as the early demise of his own parents in an auto accident, have left Alan devoid of much emotion. Rather, he experiences life vicariously through his cutting jobs. According to one of the rules of the profession, a Cutter cannot have an implant. Alan discovers by chance that he has one, not being told about it by Mom & Pop before they were killed. So, the essence of the film becomes that old saw, "He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword", as Hakman comes into conflict with a renegade Cutter (James Caviezel) now running with the right-to-privacy militants that want to put the kabosh on implant technology.
Once again, Williams shows that he's an exceptional dramatic actor at the complete opposite of the spectrum from MORK AND MINDY. Because of Robin's performance & the reasonably clever concept of the implant technology, I wish I could've liked this film more, but couldn't because the central plot was so unengaging & turned-back on itself. It didn't go anywhere that made me sit up & say "Way cool!". The script was perhaps conceived by a film editor with a vicious hangover. It didn't help that the cinematography was moody & joyless - dark rooms, dark streets, & dark buildings. Even the Cutters' workstations were constructed of gloomy, retro-looking wood. And Caviezel's character elicited nothing from me whatsoever. (Of course, after you've played Jesus, anything else is a comedown.)
THE FINAL CUT is best left for a DVD rental when the computer is down & you can't surf the Web using "depression" as your search engine key word.
This film is set in the future, in a time when parents can choose to buy a "Zoe" chip for their unborn child. That chip grows naturallly with the child, & records every moment of his life. When a person with a Zoe chip dies, a "cutter" erases the bad memories in his chip, & makes a short film with the best ones, so the relatives of the deceased can hold a special ceremony callled a "rememory".
Alan (Robin Williams) is known as the best cutter. He specializes in overly difficult jobs, namely in making good films out of the Zoe chips of dishonest but very rich people. That is the reason why the widow of a very important man hires Alan to cut the rememory of her dead husband. The problem is, that man worked for the firm that invented the Zoe chip, & a radical group that opposes that technology wants to get hold of his chip to discredit the company.
When Alan is contacted by the leader of that group, Fletcher (Jim Caviezel), his initial reaction is to step back & return the chip to the widow. Unfortunately, Alan cannot do that, as he needs something that can only be found in the dead man's Zoe chip.
All in alll, I think this is a very good first effort by Omar Naim, the director. I believe that this movie was entertaining, even though somewhat overly dark, but I supposed that could be expected considering the subject. On the other hand, the ending was ultimately unsatisfying, & that is the reason why I only give this movie 3 stars. You will probably like "The final cut" if you rent it, but it isn't the kind of dvd I would recommend you to buy...
Belen Alcat
The main problem with Final Cut is that it fails to capitlise on it's ideas. It could have so much more, but I feel that it was mostly a wasted opportunity.
Not so much a thriller as a presentation of ideas & moral questions. Still worth a look, though.
However one thing that is definate is that Robin Williams is brillent in it as always. It is hard to believe this is the same person who used to be known as Mork from Ork.
If you are a williams fan I would definately recommend it to you.
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