Overall Rating Awesome: 2% Worth A Look: 8% Average: 26% Pretty Bad: 22% Total Crap: 42% 4 reviews, 26 user ratings

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Impostor

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by Brian McKay

"Do Yourself a favor and watch the original 40 minute version."

At it's core, Impostor is not an awful movie. It's not a terribly original film, either, but then, it is based on another Philip K. Dick story, which, if Hollywood is any indication, are all based around the same theme anyway - man's identity is stolen, man is not sure who or what he is, man must discover the truth and prove his innoncence, blah blah blah.

Originally slated as a 40 minute installment in a sci-fi trilogy film, Impostor should have been left that way. In fact, the original 40 minute film is on the DVD, and I suggest you watch that instead. Stripped of all it's extraneous characters and scenes and borrowed footage from other sci-fi films with bigger budgets, "Impostor" isn't a bad little tale. It's "Total Recall" without the action, or "Minority Report" without the excess of gadgetry and the tacked-on sappy ending.

The plot is that Earth is at war with the Alpha Centauri (yeah, we never get to see them, but who cares? The story isn't about aliens, it's about man's quest to reclaim his identity, remember?) Gary Sinise plays Spencer Olham, a brilliant military scientist who suddenly finds himself accused of being a Centauri impostor, a genetically engineered robot clone thingamajig with a nuclear detonator for a heart who is targeted to go off when he gets near the president or chancelor or whatever they call the leader of Earth in THE FUTURE. He finds himself strapped to a chair and interrogated by an over the top Vincent Donofrio as a security officer. Naturally, Olham escapes and begs his wife (Madeline Stowe, still not doing any respectable roles, but still looking damn good) to meet with him. She of course betrays him and tips the security officers, only to have a change of heart and go on the lam with her husband.

The ending, while not the most stunning twist in the history of film, is at least appropriately grim. Sinise and Stowe turn in competent performances, and even Donofrio's hamminess is bearable. Certainly they are hampered by some stilted dialouge, and either the adaptation wasn't very well-written, or Dick's original story wasn't all that great. I'm betting on the former. But at least it's no Battlefield Earth - although it does borrow footage from that film.

link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=5689&reviewer=258
originally posted: 07/28/02 15:28:13

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User Comments

6/21/04 Steve Newman This really is awful and lazy 1 stars

3/27/04 Eschenennock Manville Gary Sinise carries an otherwise overblown mess 4 stars

6/21/03 Jim Subtext on what it means to be human is drowned in a sea of ineptitude 2 stars

6/15/03 Jack Sommersby Slightly better than its rep. Entertaining, even though it lags in places. 3 stars

5/15/03 George Jung The worst kind of shit...you know, that sticky, can't wipe it off your ass shit. Oh well. 1 stars

4/10/03 Jack Bourbon This movie would've been great, had it been released in the year 1655, when it was made. 1 stars

1/28/03 Dani O. Blargh. Guh! Meh... 1 stars

10/09/02 spyguy2 It entertained me a hell of a lot more than Minority Report. I've seen worse. 3 stars

9/24/02 bullit17 What a waste of talents like Sinise and D'Onofrio 2 stars

8/30/02 JesseL This movie was SO bad it sucked its own ass! 1 stars

8/20/02 Billy Pimple I walked out two days after the end. I luv Kirk Douglas! 5 stars

2/20/02 Eschenennock Manville Gary Sinise carries an otherwise overblown mess 4 stars

2/15/02 Roy Smith If this movie had "by the Coen brothers" you all would love it. 3 stars

2/08/02 malcolm pretty slow mostly, nice ending though 3 stars

2/07/02 Vickie Have seen much worse. 3 stars

1/21/02 King Krack It fucking sucked, except for the very end. Fuck off Sinise 1 stars

1/12/02 Ed Miles Walked out after 10 minutes into the show 1 stars

1/11/02 Andrew Carden Totally Confusing, and Very Disappointing From Such A Praised Actor. 1 stars

1/10/02 Joe Bayes Kinda fun...but then again, I kinda like vintage SF 4 stars

1/09/02 Satanami69 ft, I farted right on her head. That was the highlight of this movie. 2 stars

1/09/02 Satanami69 This fat woman in front of me had to lean all the way back during the whole movie. As I le 2 stars

1/09/02 Dimes Obviously no one here ever read a P. K Dick novel or story. Very true to his style. 4 stars

1/08/02 Nyartholep What's the problem? don't expect too much, you'll have gun. 3 stars

1/07/02 Mr Math Sinise used to stand for quality... not any more. 2 stars

1/06/02 ^ZuLu^ Oh come on! Voice-operated-machines already existed in Blade Runner (Philip K. Dick!!!)! 3 stars

1/05/02 Banky Edwards .....barf...... 1 stars

IF YOU'VE SEEN THIS FILM, RATE IT!
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USA 04-Jan-2002 (PG-13) UK N/A Australia 13-Jun-2002

Directed by Gary Fleder Written by Caroline Case Ehren Kruger Mark Protosevich Cast Gary Sinise Madeleine Stowe Vincent D'Onofrio Mekhi Phifer Tony Shalhoub Jack Truman

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