Review of eXistenZ (1999) by Juan C — 23 Apr 2011

Long live the new flesh!

There is a lot to love in Cronenbergâ(TM)s wildly inventive eXistenZ. With some modification this could indeed be better than Videodrome and it was still cutting edge at the time using Videodrome as its blueprint. The concept of multiple levels of realities is handled with great flair in eXistenZ. The setup is simple and the way things begin to slowly unravel is intriguing. The added threat of assassination adds an extremely foreboding atmosphere to the film, meaning that no one can be trusted and extreme violence can strike at any moment.

Cronenberg has a lot of fun with this film. Even from the beginning where a somewhat profound titling sequence jarringly cuts to a blackboard is a delight. Then the lead character pass âThe Country Gas Stationâ?! I laughed at the same things I remembered laughing at years ago.

Cronenberg does not stop here though. His delight in all things orifice and flesh related takes complete hold. Jude Law plays a character scared of receiving a port akin to a female fearing vaginal penetration. This idea is further investigated with infections that can occur and lubrication that is required. Jude Law even licks his female leads port at one point in oddly erotic fashion. The fish factory setting also ties in well to this, as the odd mutated fish need to be gutted. It is quite the atmospheric setting and can even be explained as existing due to the negative aspects of some of the players. He also removes devices such as watches and cellphones to add an unreality to the setting and that works well. And of course there is the bone gun that fires teeth!

A lot of ideas are also explored, from the concept of pro-gamer and anti-gamer militias, to the way these world views manifest among the environment of the game. The convoluted motivation of all the characters, and multiple conspiracy tangents, can also be explained as how each character had their own goal in the game and why it becomes so confusing. The way it sews the seed of a game within a game is also intriguing as extra plugs are used within the game environment.

Then it has fun with these elements, like when Jennifer Jason Leigh acts like a non-existent character, using the games own rules, by repeating a line. It would appear that this is done simply to mess with the protagonist and ultimately the audience. However you could posit otherwise.

It is only the weak ending that really hinders this film. Up to that point it is a wild ride. The fatal flaw is to have the protagonists change characters completely without hesitation. Jude Law goes from being completely naive to all-knowing within an instant, and is not even likable in this transformation. All ability to feel empathy is lost solely to push the plot in a dull direction.

This all leads to a final statement where a character questions whether he is still in the game, which is far too obvious tact to take. If more care was made to suggest that Trancendece or eXistenZ was the base game, something far more worthy of critique would have occurred. Imagine those internet rage debates!

Nolanâ(TM)s Inception would borrow heavily from this film, but become more interested in its heist aspect, that the richness of the theme. Beyond the obvious layered approach of reality, there is the constant feeling of material and the environment by the designer of the game. The architect was born in eXistenZ.