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Existenz

Threat advisory: Elevated - Significant risk of entertaining activities

Movie propaganda

The name of the game is eXistenZ - a system based on technology so advanced that it borders on biology. It's a quantum leap ahead of anything ever imagined possible.

The top executives from Antenna Research are all on hand for the testing of their new game but what sends a buzz of excitement through the audience is the presence of the brains behind eXistenZ, the adored gaming goddess herself, Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh), hip, hyper-aware, sexily alluring and utterly dedicated to her invention.

The air is crackling with anticipation in the small community hall where dozens of gaming devotees are gathered to experience this ultimate adventure - one that will forever shatter the line that separates wild and unpredictable fantasy from reality.

The moment finally arrives, and the eager players plug in for the ride of their lives, rocking and swaying, lost in the dreamy world of the eagerly awaited innovation. Suddenly, they're jarred from their fantasy world by an anti-eXistenZialist protester wielding a strange weapon - an organic fusion of gristle and bone, capable of shooting its ammunition of human teeth at fatal velocity. Shouting "Death to eXistenZ! Death to the demoness Allegra Geller!"

In the pandemonium that ensues, Allegra is whisked away by Ted Pikul (Jude Law), a low-ranking Antenna Research employee who's serving as a security guard for the event. A chase follows, with the unlikely duo of Allegra and Pikul seeking shelter in a world where nothing is as it seems, and where the villains of the game become real. A world where the hunters pursue our heroes right into eXistenZ, the game Allegra has invented.

Target demographic movie keyword propaganda

  • Thriller science fiction gaming computer fantasy murder protest hunt villain conspiracy corporation

Persons of interest

  • Jennifer Jason Leigh .... Allegra Geller
  • Jude Law .... Ted Pikul
  • Ian Holm .... Kiri Vinokur
  • Willem Dafoe .... Gas
  • Don McKellar .... Yevgeny Nourish
  • Callum Keith Rennie .... Hugo Carlaw
  • Sarah Polley .... Merle
  • Robert A Silverman .... D'Arcy Nader
  • Oscar Hsu .... Chinese Waiter
  • Kris Lemche .... Noel Dichter
  • James Kirchner .... Landry
  • Gerry Quigley .... Trout Farm Worker
  • David Cronenberg .... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Theatrical report

Total recall for the 90s.

For those who don't recall this Arnie bash fest, based on the book We can remember it for you wholesale, it's about a man who buys the memories of a spy adventure holiday but then has problems differentiating between reality and the holiday as characters from life begin popping in.

Existenz is the Nintendo Generation upgrade.

Is it worth seeing? Sure it is: there's lots of action, gaming, humour, betrayals, double crosses, secret agents, twists, sexual tension, etc., etc. Jennifer Jason Leigh is suitably weird and geeky while Jude Law is remarkably downplayed from his (to date) aggressive prominence. I was somewhat surprised to see Willem Dafoe and Ian Holm playing bit roles in a low-grade popcorn flick but maybe they needed a new foam cover for the jacuzzi. The roles would've been better if performed by unknowns (like the rest of the supporting cast) because you know that those characters are important because they are being played by famous actors. The only Hollywood film to go against this cliché was Executive decision, which killed off Steven Segal's character in the first half hour. I was impressed by that.

What else? Well, there are so many twists that the writers forgot which direction they were facing, leaving both the characters and the audience feeling dizzy. Also, the scary, mind-bending ending was so obvious that it can't even be called a twist, but this is B-grade popcorn filmmaking, so minor things like plot inconsistencies are pretty much irrelevant.

Fun for the youngsters in the exciting lead up to Easter.

Media intelligence (DVD)

  • Features:
    • Picture disc
    • Talent profiles
    • Trailers: Theatrical
  • Languages: English, Spanish
  • Picture: Widescreen 16:9 enhanced
  • Subtitles: English, Spanish, Czech, Hungarian, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian

Security censorship classification

M (Medium level violence, low level coarse language)

Surveillance time

93 minutes (1:33 hours)

Not for public release in Australia before date

DVD rental: 8 March 2000

Cinema surveillance images

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