Knowing

You know those movies that have a brilliant theme but kind of a stupid screenplay? Well, this is one of them. Luckily, Proyas is such an expert that he brings absolutely everything to really important scenes. The disasters that happen are each more delicious than the last and are filmed in such a way that you won't know which one you liked better. Cage kind of pissed me off that he stole such a good movie from someone who isn’t going through a bad acting period (though he tried quite hard here) and I was wondering why not try to cast Kiefer Sutherland or Tom Hanks? Mainly, it would have been better to re-cast the screenwriters. However, at the end I was fully absorbed and I was just watching to see what the hell was going on. Atmospheric science fiction which brings one possible answer to the basic question: "Why?". (06/21/2009)

Proyas has mastered the craft perfectly, but this skill is absolutely useless when he has to deal with a completely trivial script that drags the plot through the morass of the cheapest clichés. Then the director himself becomes a problem, as two pivotal scenes (by the way, letting them get on the internet was a major mistake) seem to have come out of a completely different film. Then there are the horror sequences, which perfectly battle with the cheap remainder of the film, overstuffed with warped family relationships and long-winded scientific theories. It’s a film that’s perfect in its individual parts, but as a whole, it’s... disappointing. PS: (06/26/2009)

If Nicolas Cage has something to act in, he does it. In the case of Knowing, he was lucky to have both a decently atmospheric and chillingly escalating script and a director who really knows how to play with films. After a long time, Knowing is a Cage film (i.e., starring Cage) that I can recommend to just about anyone. Suspenseful from the beginning until the great final 25 minutes, with decent special effects and Marc Beltrami's music, which you will notice especially during the more dramatic scenes. Clean four stars, good job! (06/12/2010)

Thrilling atmosphere and visual effects. Proyas is one of the few directors who knows how to utilize the technical aspects of a film to the fullest, which means not only as a showcase of current technologies, but as a fully-fledged plot attribute. The solid beginning is unfortunately marred the quite clumsy ending – a blend of kitsch and pathos – and at times I even felt that the director didn't know where to go. In the last minutes, it was quite a mess. Knowing could have turned out much better. Cage is bearable after a long time, even in a non-action role. (01/02/2010)

Not counting Star Trek, Knowing is the best sci-fi film in a very long time (The Day The Earth Stood Still and I Am Legend are not even close). Proyas is a master of atmosphere and his splendid direction and eye-candy visuals made me fully immerse in the film and enjoy it in a way I hadn’t expected. I didn’t even care that I had a vague idea of the twist due to some spoiling moron. Actually, it’s not even that hard to guess quite early on, but it doesn’t matter much because the most important thing here is the atmosphere. My only quibbles are addressed at the not very good CGI, some annoying father-son conversations and the overall predictability (which, actually, is quite nonsense for a film that works with fate and predestination). Cage is more than bearable, he’s finally made a good film after a long time. For me, very satisfied 4 stars (though they could have left out the final field escapade…) (06/28/2009)