Wolff rating: NOT BAD
Plot summary: A non-genetically-engineered man poses as one of the new elite in an attempt to be an astronaut.
Biased, pithy comments: I should say that this movie is beautifully shot---with only a few locations and a few nice color filters, we see a starkly different world. At the same time, I'm nearly incapable of watching ``serious'' science fiction movies without finding annoying things, although from the audience reaction around me, they seem only to bug me. The pacing and music are elegant and gentle, the acting mostly impeccable (Hawke bugs me, but I can never figure out why, and Vidal just isn't very good), and the SF metaphors chillingly accurate. At the same time, I was a little bored---there is nothing particularly visionary about the overall story; genetic engineered overclass stories are easy to find in SF literature, and frankly they are better-equipped to explore all of the implications. Still, a good film, a beautiful film, but not great SF.
Other Notes: The lame marketing tagline about ``no gene for the human spirit'' should be ignored.
How many times I have seen it: x1
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, Gore Vidal, Xander Berkley, Jude Law.
Directed by: Andrew Niccol