The Game
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Movie Reviews of The Game
Movie Review: The Game
Summary: 5 Stars
A movie that will keep you guessing to the very end!! This was a gift for my brother. Movie Review: The Game (1997)
Summary: 3 Stars
Director: David Fincher
Cast: Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, Deborah Kara Unger, James Rebhorn, Peter Donat, Carroll Baker, Anna Katarina, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Charles Martinet.
Running Time: 128 minutes
Rated R for language, and for some violence and sexuality.
Michael Douglas is on reliably good form as Nicholas Van Orton, a millionaire investment banker who lives in stately, joyless, isolated splendour in the mansion he inherited from his millionaire father. His father, Nicholas Van Orton Sr., died at 48 by hurling himself off the mansion's roof. Now having reached 48 himself, Nick, the man who has everything, is given an intriguing birthday gift by his rebellious younger brother Conrad (Sean Penn, sadly under-utilized here): an invitation to participate in a 'game' staged by the mysterious Consumer Recreation Services (CRS). Their games involve the individual participant in a seemingly real-life scenario which blurs the edges between fact and fantasy, and which is deliberately tailored to suit each participant's personality. Reluctantly Nick signs up, as much out of boredom as anything else. It seems that for CRS, Nick's highly charged but emotionally austere and control-freakish personality calls for a high octane adventure in which he risks losing all control of events, and will thus be forced to depend on others for his physical, if not his psychological, salvation. And so the game begins. Nick soon comes to doubt that he is playing any kind of game. Has he instead become the latest victim of a monumentally sophisticated scam? Or is it all a bad dream? Throughout this is all very gripping, and being a David Fincher ("Seven") film it has a dark atmospheric gloss which keeps you unpleasantly hooked; however, as the plot unfolds like a Chinese puzzle, the film gradually reveals itself to be pure surface. Despite Douglas essaying yet another hard-nosed anti-heroic establishment outsider with characteristic intensity, there is only an intermittent sense that Nick is in psychological rather than physical danger, even though this, underlined by the constant home-movie flashbacks to Van Orton Senior's demise, seems to be what's actually at stake. The lack of psychological menace in the film hinges on the fact that no other character in the film is properly developed, so no one really seems to carry any real threat. Perhaps the real threat to Nick is within himself, his own demons, which somehow the game is intended to help him exorcize. But it's questionable that this is what we actually see portrayed.
The film is boistered by superb performances, including Douglas' best since "Wall Street". Deborah Kara Unger impresses as Christine, the waitress (or is she a waitress?), while Sean Penn is quite good at playing the somewhat spoiled and mouthy little brother. The script has wickedly funny dialogue and gives the film a slight "black comedy" feel. As usual in a Fincher film, the cinematography is dark and forebodding and creates a noir atmosphere of sorts. Howard Shore's music is excellent: Instead of attacking us with bombastic chords, a sound as simple as a piano tinkling is used to make our hearts race. The plotting is ingenious and one plot twist after another is instigated until the film creates a spider-web of fear and paranoia that has us mind-boggled. The films themes of redemption and paranoia are followed through right to the end in an ending that some think is supremely contrived. Despite its pretentious packaging, the constant hints that we are watching a dark psychological thriller, a morality tale, 'The Game' turns out to be merely a well-executed action adventure that plays on the audience's paranoid fantasies, and it is to this end that Nicholas Van Orton seems ultimately to have been created by the film-makers.
Movie Review: an intriguing film, and definitely a nail-biter despite the implausibility
Summary: 4 Stars
Directed by David Fincher, 1997's "The Game" is a very cleverly constructed and engaging thriller, although the implausibility of the whole 'game' leaves one with such a "give me a break" taste in their mouth that it simply can't be hailed as a masterpiece.
Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is an incredibly wealthy investment banker who seems to be incredibly miserable, partly because of the daily grind of his work, and also because he's divorced and basically lives alone. His brother Conrad (Sean Penn) is seemingly aware of this, and in attempt to 'spice things up' for Nick, tells him about a suspicious company he should call named CRS, i.e. Consumer Recreation Services. Conrad tells his brother he's called them before and that they gave him a life changing experience in his own right. Nick ultimately gives in to temptation, not really knowing what he's getting into, and before he knows it, the 'game' begins.
On the positive side, the mostly dark cinematography of the movie is extremely fitting and effective, and with the construction of the script being as engagingly clever as it is, we don't get the first real inkling as to just how impossibly far-fetched it all is until about ? of the way into this 2+ hour film. And the movie's 'big climax' IS suspenseful and surprising, albeit ultimately outrageous, and the final scene amusingly provides one last macabre twist.
The film is also a tour-de-force for Michael Douglas, who appears in every single scene. It really is intriguing to watch a painstakingly maintained control freak have the proverbial rugs pulled out from under him at every turn, and Douglas is perfect for the role--intense, yet natural, and capturing the various emotions of his character masterfully. Deborah Kara Unger's performance is also memorable--Douglas and she have an excellent on-screen chemistry. Sean Penn, on the other hand, strikes me as being considerably miscast, but he doesn't have that much screen time anyway.
In the end, this is a better-than-average thriller. It's highly entertaining despite its extreme implausibility and the rather underwhelming & laughable ending.
Movie Review: Gordon Gecco gets hit by a truck
Summary: 5 Stars
I can't help but harken back to Michael Douglas's terriffic portrayal as a stock market financier in Wall Street. His character in The Game is strikingly similar to Gordon Gecco, except the dissimilarity of the Game's Orton is that instead of truly enjoying the merits of massive money monkey malarchy, he seems only interested in attaining more of it at the cost of no personal life whatsoever.
Douglas is again, his usual thriller great self. We see him at the true zenith of perfection in his attempts to discover the secrets of the corporation that set forth this intriguing but upsetting game which seems to be much more than the simplicity originally implied.
Oh sure, we expect something special in his brother's gift, but we certainly dont expect to be so far on the edge of our seat that we are getting cramps in our butts just trying to stay there.
What I truly loved about this movie is my own lack of ability to come to a true answer as to what was really going on. So often, it is within my and other's nature to try and be smart and figure out the intended ending, only to be found right and then slightly disappointed that the writer and director didn't go past our expectations. Not so with The Game. Game takes you so deep into this man's downward spiral while "playing" this deceptive game, figuring out it's true intent becomes second nature. By the end, your nerves are so shatterred from the journey, you feel like you've been right there with Van Orton experiencing every nuance of the events in reality yourself. Plus, the finale is truly magnificent, which I cannot spoil here. This movie is a true must for anyone who is a fan of movies that not only make you think, but defy the typical Hollywood thriller model.
Movie Review: One to play again and again
Summary: 5 Stars
This film has the power to reward endlessly. It is one to watch more and more, because as you do so, you enjoy it more and more. Much like the best games.At a superficial level, a psychological thriller, but as is usual with Fincher's films, it goes way beyond that. 'Alien 3' did much the same for me. At first viewing I was deeply underwhelmed. This was as in part due to James Cameron's phenonomenal 'Alien's', as it was to Fincher's unique cinematic style. His style again came to the fore in 'Panic Room', his film after 'The Game.'
However the cause for initial lack of love for the film, again probably is due to his previous masterpiece, 'Seven'. 'The Game' does take some getting into, but on repeated viewing has the capacity to reward viewers, not only with superlative acting perfomances, but a great script and a pace that is deliberately slow enough to make the viewer share Michael Douglas' sense of torment and unease at where his 'game' is all going. A must see, for those who enjoy an alternative, intelligent drama/thriller and want to ponder life's big questions.Well worth the investment.