Thirteenth Floor
In 1999, a little movie came out called The Matrix that many say changed the face of science fiction AND action movies forever. It certainly tapped into the technological aspects of the era in which it was made, showing us a reality where computer simulations were now so realistic that it was impossible to distinguish them from the real thing. A reality where nothing was truly real as we went about our boring little lives without the knowledge that we were all just apathetic cogs in a much larger program. And of course, a reality where any kind of action sequences bordered on the ridiculously ludicrous featuring the wanton killing of unknowing human bystanders, a form of martial arts that involved intricate wire techniques in order to give off the illusion of superhuman fighting skills, and impossible stunts that really did give away the unrealistic nature of everything, plus it had Laurence Fishburne playing a kind of prophet role for a rather unironic Messiah Figure as played by Keanu Reeves. While many proclaimed it to be the epic Star Wars type classic of their generation, others saw it as an overblown spectacle whose only really great part was in its main villain even as any of the philosophical human elements were lost in characters fighting over answering the phone or debating about whether or not to swallow a magical pill. Funny thing is, there was another movie that also came out the very same year to much less fanfare, but yet also involved virtually created other worlds. Many derided it as a ripoff attempt when really it had gone into production first and was actually based on a 1964 science fiction story that had first suggested the dramatic implications of so called alternate worlds (and even had obviously inspired The Wachowski Brothers in writing The Matrix). A lesser budgeted picture with a more modest yet still talented cast, it eschewed the all out action scenes to instead use elements of thriller, film noir, and detective stories, but at its heart was a much more potent message about the value of human life (something which Matrix brazenly threw to the wind) whether they be real lives or part of a computer simulation as well as the ethics and morals of being a âgodâ in such a world which you could enter anytime you pleased whether it be to enjoy sexual fantasies with women (or girls) that you could never have in real life or maybe just using it in order to unleash your inner serial killer by blithely going in and brutally butchering and murdering everything you see to your heartâs content since nobody in your world is ever going to miss a computer simulation (a scarily real concept considering the popularity of Grand Theft Auto and other similar video games). The filmâs unconventional star is Craig Bierko (best known as the loudmouthed asshole âPortugese photographerâ Lacerda in Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas) who does a credible job here as the head of a software company whose founder (Armin Mueller-Stahl) has just been found literally hacked to death in the streets. Their company has managed to create the worldâs first fully self sustaining virtual world where within the walls of a gigantic server, entire lives are being lived out as they have completely no idea of the fact that they are computer simulations in a fake virtual reality with the irony being that it turns out that they really are better off not knowing. While an LA cop (Dennis Haysbert) investigates the bossâ murder (and increasingly sees Bierko as an obvious suspect), Bierko himself travels into the virtual world of 1937 that they created (and where the old man would travel often in order to live out a secret life) and enters the body of his âcounterpartâ there (sort of like in Quantum Leap) to see what he can find out and what he learns is that when fictional virtual characters find out that they are living in a simulated world, it threatens the balance of the entire world and its reality in general, leading to the need to eliminate anyone who might actually do so. Naturally, the social and metaphorical aspects of this story are quite endless, as well as the questions as to right and wrong when it comes to entering these worlds and using and manipulating these people to satisfy oneâs own appetites, so much so that when a bartender in virtual 1937 (Vincent DâOnofrio) discovers the truth, he becomes so consumed with finding out how the whole operation works that he resorts to kidnapping and violence even while DâOnofrio in the outside world also plays one of the projectâs head programmers. Eventually a beautiful and mysterious girl (Gretchen Mol) comes into the picture, claiming to be the bossâ long lost daughter and looking to take over the company so that she may shut it down, but really her interest appears to somehow be more into Bierko himself as she seems to think sheâs seen him somewhere before and yet is still drawn to him (with Bierko feeling the same way) which brings the entire issue of dĂ©jĂ vu to the forefront (a big plot element in Matrix) with the idea being of both that and things that you remember from your dreams being possible indicators of virtual alternate lives. It also begs the question that IF you can think for yourself and make decisions that nobody would either ever expect nor compel you to make, then perhaps THAT is what makes you truly a human being, even if your DNA or your personality was actually programmed by a (much smarter) human being as opposed to any kind of actual Higher Power especially if that much smarter human programmer had deliberately designed you to be the type of person that they could actually fall in love with. Itâs a certainly a credit to little known director Josef Rusnak that he could craft such a complicated story with such daunting philosophical and theological implications while still making it easy to follow and understand for the layman watching. Action sequences might not be so highly on display yet for those following along with the wonder, shock and awe that the characters feel at discovering just what their world is really all about (and thankfully also done without the use of fancy gimmicks), the overall experience when one is allowed to drink it all in (and we are) is pretty mindblowing, as weâre even told that while the 1937 world contains some faded colors (as it would be in an old movie), weâre actually reassured that that is the way itâs supposed to be and that the denizens within have just not noticed it being a problem! Likewise, when another major character realizes that his world isnât real and that he and others are being manipulated like pawns, he asks the downloaded user to âleave us alone down hereâ from now on so that he may go back to his normal life all while trying to deny and forget the unspeakable truth that he has been made privy to. And with the twist of another major character being downloaded into by somebody who is âevilâ (thus making him evil as well), it successfully sets up the last twenty minutes of the film for an ending that we can easily see coming, but itâs an ending that we actually WANT to see and thus we hang in there until we can do so. Yes, this movie is more low key than Matrix (some might even find it trite or boring), but itâs a more fascinating insight on the human perspective of things as well as a wake up call to our real life government conspiracy theorists who just canât seem to stand the fact that with all of the horrendous truths in our world that we cannot and could never control, perhaps itâs best for them to do what you love best and just enjoy life since maybe we are better off not knowing anywayâŠ
9/10