Question reality. You can go there even though it doesn't exist.
The Thirteenth Floor was right up my alley. If any movie, or book for that matter, involves people discovering that there world is not real, I LOVE IT! While 13F wasn’t as mind-trippy as The Matrix, it does provide a difeent scope of reality to struggle with.
Hannon Fuller, a computer scientist, is the head of a major breakthrough in computer engineering. Over the course of six years, he has developed a computer simulated world, circa 1937, where all of the digital inhabitants have minds of their own, and can interact with each other. This world is so complex that these characters embody everybody aspect of a “normal” human being, except the fleshy container. Fuller discovers something very important, but finds out that someone is after him to conceal the truth. He leaves a message for Douglas Hall, a co-worker, in the simulation to keep it safe, but before he can tell Hall in person, he is murdered. Hall wakes up the following morning and finds a bloody shirt, a detective on his trail, and as an added curse, he can’t remember what he did the night before. To find out what happened to Fuller, and retrieve the important message, Hall enters the simulated world. It is from here on, that your mind takes a very special trip. In order to enter the simulated world, a person’s conciousness is downloaded from their head and uploaded into a sprite in the simulation. This lets the user interact with everything as if it were real, or a living dream. Hall discovers that the message he is after, holds much more gravity than he thought, involving, not only the simulation, but his own world.
This is a grade A example of a movie to watch late at night, when your eyes have trouble staying open. The simulated world, is beautifully recreated, with authentique clothes, cars, and lingo, resulting in a very appealing atmosphere, even though it is presented in black and white. After Hall exits the simulation, he even tells his friend Whitney that the colouration is a little off, but that the sprites don’t seem to notice. If you are not a fan of black and white, the transition between real, and virtual will certainly make up for it. As soon as the download is complete, the user is sent through a blue electric wormhole, which is very easy on the eyes.
One of the great aspects of this film, is it’s complexity in “what-if” scenarios. Wouldn’t somebody in the simulation notice a change in character? What would the sprites behave like after they had just been uploaded into? This movie swings for the fences, and is able to cover all the bases. The characters in the simulation are apparently based on a reflection of the user’s character. This leads to a lot of fun, as we see one face, with many personalities. The actors in this movie, do an excellent job, in keeping each identity separate from the others. You can tell when it’s Grierson, and when it’s Fuller, just by looking and listening to them. Craig Bierko, who plays Hall, does an excellent job, and is supported by an excellent cast of unknown actors. Gretchen Mol and Dennis Haysbert are terrific as Jane Fuller and Detective Mcbain, but the real disappointment is Vincent D’Onofrio. Now I don’t really have a problem with Vincent, I mean, I couldn’t have picked a better person to play Private Pyle in Full Metal Jacket, but unless he’s playing some sadistic evil guy, he tends to suck. So when D’Onofrio plays Ashton, he’s amazing, but when he plays Whitney, I can’t stand his over-the-top, “I’m a stoner who likes computers” portrayal. When Hall exits the simulation the first time, I can’t stand the little mannerisms that he does when Hall tells him how real it is.
Overall, The Thirteenth Floor is a great movie. It’s a shame that it came out 2 months after The Matrix, or else it might have actually gotten the exposure that it deserves. It was well cast, nicely shot, by Josef Rusnak, and has enough philosophical substance to appeal to those who are looking for more than a movie. 13F was based on “The Circular Ruins” by Jorge Luis Borges, and “Simulacron-3" by Daniel F. Galouye. The movie even starts with the famous Descartes quote, “I think therefore I am.” I encourage everyone to see this film, especially those who enjoyed The Matrix.
“I think this film is good, therefore it is.”