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Sneak previews are the best. I have had the good fortune
of acquainting myself with several persons in the theatre
business, thus allowing me catch previews of films before their
actual release time. I am very grateful for this
opportunity, for I realize many people have not been given this
chance. "Simone" was another one of my sneak
previews, and it was one of the more enjoyable movie watching
experiences I have had, as such. My first sneak preview
was "Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas" and
"Simone" was my latest--to quote Fatboy Slim,
"You've come a long way, baby."
"Simone" tells the story of Viktor Taransky, a movie
producer whose star (played by Winona Ryder) unexpectedly drops
out of his project, leaving him in one hell of a bind. So,
what does he do? He decides to pull a big one over on the
public by creating a computer generated actress named Simone.
It turns out the computer generated actress has her
advantages--she is always flawless and he never has to wory
about her complaining. Alas, Simone eventually starts to
take on a life of her own, and Pacino has to confront some of
his own issues in the process. Jason Schwartzmann co-stars
as Pacino's assistant and Catherine Keener is his ex-wife.
Newcomer Rachel Roberts is Simone.
This film was written and directed by Andrew Niccol, the
brilliant screenwriter of "Gattaca" and "The
Truman Show". This film is very similar to "The
Truman Show", though it is pretty much the exact opposite.
"The Truman Show" was about a real person pretending
to be fake, while "Simone" is about a fake person
pretending to be real. The Ed Harris character from
"The Truman Show" is essentially the Al Pacino
character from "Simone", turning these two films in a
nice couple, or 2-disc DVD set.
I
liked how this film really took time to develop Pacino's
character, while also taking time to develop Simone's character.
You may be thinking--how can we grow to care about something we
know is not real? We go through the same emotions Pacino
goes through. He knows she is artificial and he knows his
charade can't go on forever, but he loves Simone nonetheless and
must really go through levels upon levels of torment trying to
decide the best tactical approach.
Was this film better than "The Truman Show"?
Yes. Director Andrew Niccol has created a marvelous film,
filled with fantastic performances, a wonderful notion, and some
truly obliterating camera shots, which add this kind of eerie,
yet beautiful feeling to the picture. "Simone"
really makes you think--could Hollywood really pull something
like that off? Is Julia Roberts really real? No
wonder Mary Steenburgen always looks so damn young--she's a
cyborg--but is Ted Danson?
Al
Pacino delivers another tour de force as Taransky, showing why
he is one of the most gifted actors to ever emerge from
Hollywood, also displaying his broad range for comedy, as well
as sweet, romantic drama. Jason Schwartzmann, as always,
is delightful as Pacino's assistant, and Jay Mohr even pops up
in a small role. "Simone" is a wonderful new
film from Niccol's, who has already established himself as a
champion screenwriter. Now, he has shown us what he can do
behind the camera. Hats off to "Simone"--one of
the best pictures of the year.
-- Billy
Ray
( 4 out of 4 pops )
Talk
about this film with other Popkorn Junkies |
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Other Junkie's
opinions.....
James ( 3 1/2
out of 4 pops )
The best way to describe this film is that it's the opposite of
"The Truman
Show", which is a film in which everybody is pulling a
fast one on the main character; that his whole world isn't real.
In "Simone", or SIMulation ONE as it really means, the
joke is played by one
person on everybody else. Now this isn't a coincidence,
both films were written by the same guy...Andrew Niccol,
who also directed Simone (not "The Truman Show") and
"Gattaca", the
movie that brought Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke together.
Simone is a great film, and everybody should see it, but
I am puzzled why Jim Carrey didn't get to play Viktor Taranksy...he
would have been perfect. Al Pacino sucks. He acts the
SAME way in all his films. Don't believe me? Watch them again
(I know, that sounds like a penalty) and try and tell me that
he doesn't have the same scream in each one. I dare you. His
"signature scream" is in all of them. He sucks. But
"Simone" is
sooo good that it overshadows this overactor, and is one Al Pacino
film that I actually want to see again.
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