Review of Mimic (1997) by Jonathan Y — 07 May 2007

I went into Mimic with lofty expectations and came out thoroughly shattered. And how could I not? Written and directed by Guillermo del Toro, with a cast loaded with seasoned character actors, it looks like the recipe for a modern horror classic.

Even the concept is strong: faced with a roach-borne plague that targets children, entomologist Susan Tyler (Sorvino) must do the impossible -- wipe-out Manhattan's cockroach population. Salvation comes in the genetically engineered Judus bug, designed to neutralize the roaches before dying off themselves.

Three years later, all is not going to plan. The real world is not a laboratory, and the Judus has not gone quietly off into that good night -- with an accelerated life cycle, its reproductive cycle too has been accelerated, and within three years it has evolved from small ally to beastly foe.

Sounds good, right? I certainly thought so, and in some ways, it delivers. This is del Toro we're talking about here, and the movie is about bugs -- the guy is gonna find a way to gross you out somehow.

Thinking back on the movie, I feel obligated to like it on potential alone, but the meddling hands of the Weinsteins guide this one into the shitter. For all the mood del Toro manages to evoke from his dark and claustrophobic sets, the atmosphere is often ruined by shitty jump-out false scares that Miramax ordered be put in the film.

The auto-pilot ending is another major flaw, but the less said on that the better.Now, I didn't know these Miramax stories prior to seeing the movie, nor did I know that del Toro has practically disowned the final product and what it devolved into (oh the irony!).

There is about half of a good movie here, and Sorvino is just smokin' hot, but it's just not enough. A rumoured Special Edition DVD re-release showcasing the director's original vision could straighten this out eventually.

Here's hoping.