MARCO BRAMBILLA
Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBB.5.
USA, 1993. Warner Bros., Silver Pictures. Story by Peter M. Lenkov, Robert Reneau, Screenplay by Daniel Waters, Robert Reneau, Peter M. Lenkov. Cinematography by Alex Thomson. Produced by Michael Levy, Joel Silver. Music by Elliot Goldenthal. Production Design by David L. Snyder. Costume Design by Bob Ringwood. Film Editing by Stuart Baird.
Great action and a healthy sense of imagination highlight this somewhat silly action film. When a psychotic killer (Wesley Snipes) from the twentieth century is thawed out of cryogenic prison for his parole some decades into the future, he is unleashed upon a society where violence seems to have vanished and a peaceful attitude reigns supreme. It isn’t until the cops realize that Snipes failed his intense rehabilitation programming (apparently he didn’t take to knitting) that a police officer (Sylvester Stallone) who previously dealt with the killer is thawed out from his cell, having been put in there for a crime he didn’t commit. Now, of course, the fish out of water jokes begin as Stallone is introduced to a new partner (Sandra Bullock) and forced to chase after this evil madman in a totally alien country from the one he once knew. Excellent production design, some wry jokes (all the restaurants of the future are now Taco Bell) and interesting characters make this movie a major cut above similar fare like Timecop and The One.
