S1m0ne (2002)

This wasn't a bad comedy starring a famous actor who is known more for his dramatic roles: Al Pacino.

For a one-joke storyline, I thought the film was pretty good, and certainly better than the critics would have you believe. The story moved well, only getting a little preposterous in the final 15-25 minutes, although the whole film is a tongue-and-cheek look at Hollywood fame.

It's a nice-looking DVD and Rachel Roberts falls in that category, too, as the beautiful computer-generated new movie star who isn't what people think.

This turned out to be an "okay" but not one that people raved about or added to their collections. Maybe it was the weak ending.

Fmovies: What attracts most people to cinema is of course the famous actors. Every film is different from others depending on the director or the producers. This film tells the story of an actress who is appreciated and loved world-wide. There's only one problem; she isn't real. S1m0ne is about a down-on-his-luck film director, Viktor Taranski (played by Al Pacino) whose career sinks into a slump when his spoiled lead actress Nicola Anders (played brilliantly by Winona Ryder) walks off the set and leaves Viktor with an unfinished film and his loss of self-respect. However, when computer genius Hank shows up, he presents Viktor with a computer program, before he dies of a tumor, that will change his life forever: It's called Simulation One. Just a few strokes on the key board and an overnight sensation is born: S1m0ne.

The movie was bashed both critically and financially, but I don't know why. Taking the critics's side, I'll admit, the writing and aspect of the film is weak and of course slightly unrealistic, but that's exactly what a film is. On-screen performances are what's most important to everyone and that's what the digital character S1m0ne is. Everyone instantly loves her and in turn, Viktor gains the fame he always wanted with his films Sunrise, Sunset and Eternity Forever. He still however, cannot admit to the world the fraud he has committed. Later on, his beautiful computer-generated leading lady gets the better of him. Ultimately, he tries to crash her career and reputation, but the world loves her even more.

On a personal note, I like this film mainly because of Al Pacino and the comical cosmic feeling you get from a science-fiction movie. It's nice to see Pacino in a simple role for a change, instead of the complex and sometimes rough characters he often plays, such as police detectives and men of power and/or authority. One of the small-time extra sides to this pleasant film is Pacino's look (as he's always looked younger for his age) and Evan Rachel Wood's (who plays Viktor's teenage daughter Lainey) last appearance before her rise-to-fame Academy Award nominated film Thirteen. S1m0ne is nothing special, but it stays simple and cute. It's fun to watch and very tempting.

S1m0ne (SIMONE) is a creative little piece of filmmaking from the young New Zealand writer director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca, The Truman Show, Lord of War, The Host, Dali & I:The Surreal Story). While this may not register in the 'best films of the decade' category, it certainly challenges both our thinking and our imagination and creates a sense of wonder at just how far we have come with computer generation.

Has-been movie director/producer Viktor Taransky (Al Pacino, shining) faces disaster when his star Nicola Anders (Winona Ryder) deserts his latest desperate need for a hit film and comes up with the alternative - create a superstar by using a digital synthespian, a creature who via computer codes is destined to do anything the creator decides. And voila! Simone (or rather S1m0ne - Sim-One, the technology used to creature such ventures.) Viktor is saved as Simone (Rachel Roberts) becomes the superstar of Viktor's dreams - winning awards, and Viktor's heart - only requiring that he ultimately tell the public of his sham, a deed he attempts to avoid through means that place him in big trouble. The story is fantasy, but in Niccol's hands the fantasy becomes possibility and makes us question just how far advanced have we become...perhaps too far.

The strong supporting cast includes, along with Winona Ryder, Catherine Keener, Benjamin Salisbury, Jay Mohr, Evan Rachel Woods, and of course the digitally altered Rachel Roberts. The test of a good comedy is whether it can incorporate tragedy and still entertain. This film succeeds.

Grady Harp

S1m0ne fmovies. Very good satire on the cult of celebrity, in which the whole world falls all over itself in praise of a non-existent actress. The movie also deals, to a much lesser extent, with the conflict between wanting to create a perfect artistic vision and wanting to create art that is in the world. It's not the most pointed or savage of satires, but it is quite a funny one. Some people here have criticized it for being predictable, which really misses the point of satire. Satire is based to a great extent on the frightening predictability of people, and it must follow a logical train of escalating events or what's the point. The biggest failing in the movie is near the end where it jumps track from a logical train of events to a dumb plot device, which while not a fatal error is lazy and takes away from the overall effect of the film.

But mainly it's just funny. Consistently so from beginning to end. And also notable as about the only good performance I've seen from Winona Ryder since Mermaids.

Director and writer Andrew Nicol has only a few scripts and movies in his record, but all are memorable. He wrote and directed 'Gattaca', wrote 'The Truman Show' script, and here he is again both writing and directing with 'S1m0ne'. It is seldom that one director chooses his films in such a focused manner, and in his case it certainly pays back.

'S1m0ne' is another story about Hollywood, but a really original one. Since the film was released the first completely virtual film became reality, and some of the best movies of 2002 combine real actors and fantastic computer generated characters. Is this a threat to the big star system? This is the main theme of the movie. The second, and maybe even more important is the cult for icons, the morbid fascination of the public with the life of celebrities. The two themes play well together, combined with the excellent portrait that Al Pacino creates for his Faustian director.

I liked the movie. It has enough interesting material to keep the interest. The weaker points are the length - yet another film which would have benefit if it was 10-15 minutes shorter - and the final which is too conventional relative to the originality of the rest of the script.

8/10 on my personal scale - go and see or rent it, you will not be disappointed.

By Greg Ursic

Many people bemoan the loss of the Hollywood mystique, when contract actors were essentially owned by the studios and lived glamorous, carefully tailored lives, and were surrounded by an air of mystery. The public however is just as much to blame for this - our insatiable need to know everything - how much the stars earn, who they're dating, what they're addicted to ... - has left them then without any semblance of privacy. It's amazing that today's superstars don't immolate under the spotlight's glare. While the days of discovering the next screen legend in ice cream parlours may be over, they may soon be created over a banana split...

For Viktor Taransky bad things do indeed come in threes, in his case, movies: a former Oscar nominated director, his last three films have been box office dogs. His comeback attempt is apparently dashed when the star ("A supermodel with a SAG card") of his latest film walks out on him citing creative differences. Replacing her seems impossible - as an agent eloquently notes "[For my client] having no credits is better than having a Taransky credit." He also learns that rock bottom can always be adjusted when the studio chief - who also happens to be his ex-wife - lets him know that he's being fired. Distraught and demoralized, Viktor's salvation appears in the guise a seemingly deranged genius who offers him the ultimate software for the director who can't find a star - who says you can't make em like you used to?

For those accustomed to Al Pacino's typical cast of characters -serious, dark and brooding, with an intensity level that never drops below 10, Viktor Taranksy is a refreshing change. As the real (read: flesh and blood) star of the film, Viktor is a man with a quandary - a director with integrity and vision, who actually sees beyond the box office, he must perpetrate a hoax, to get his film made and salvage his career. Pacino is appropriately low key and morose- even when Viktor should be bathing in the glow of success there is a palpable manic undercurrent and sense of foreboding. The supporting cast is a mixed blessing.

Catherine Keener, who plays Elaine, Viktor's ex-wife (her second role as a Hollywood executive in as many months), has suprisingly little presence in the film - her dialogue is light and her character is relatively inconsequential. I can only assume that this was done so as not to detract from the other adult female lead (see below). Evan Rachel Wood, delivers a solid performance as the daughter, supplying maturity and offering sage advice to her self-involved immature parents. Of course the real star is Simone.

As a synthespian, (or as the designer of S1MøNE software notes "The pc term is "vactor") Simone is happy with every script she receives, never complains about her perks and will never age - a director's dream. Though sultry and seductive, she projects a soothing screen presence, and you feel the symbiosis between her and Viktor. It wasn't until the credits started rolling that I realized Simone really was a computer generated image (this is confirmed by both the press kit and everything I've been able to find on the internet) and is a composite of Hollywood leading ladies from the past (drawn from the "Legends Library").

Although marketed as a comedy, "Simone" highlights the growing impact of technology on how we perceive reality. While moviegoers have come to expect special