Rating: 
Summary: the idea has potential but not in this film
Review: The premise of this film is rather interesting but unfortunately it was not executed very well. The visual effects look like they had a budget of $50 and the pods are sick looking. There are too many parts that are suppose to be serious that end up being funny. Forget this film and watch a truely great film called The Matrix.
Rating: 
Summary: Good idea, low budget, bad acting.
Review: David C. is good for finding out and melting together good concepts - biological games, man hunting, integrism - but the overall result is poor. eXistenZ definitely lacks depth and grandeur, it is no thrilling at all, and because acting is so lame (disappointing because the same actors prove they could be better) you feel no sympathy for the "heroes". Finally, the future described here has nothing to do with Matrix or Blade Runner ; it is perfectly standard by all means. The story could happen anywhere in our present (given the ridiculous and badly realized "Bio Pods"). It certainly helped to cut off costs but do not expect to find pictures of a thrilling too-near future. Plot, qualities and drawbacks remind me of Nirvana (C. Lambert). Rent it before buying.
Rating: 
Summary: matrix or eXistenZ? why choosing? like them BOTH!!
Review: a thinking person's 'matrix'? get a grip! matrix is a fantastic movie, probably the best of the yet unfinished year. it's clever and visually stunning. eXistenZ is also visually stunning, also clever - but it sometimes bores. it relly has its moments when you want to speed it up a little. I liked its complexity and how cronenberg plays with the several levels of 'reality'. my girlfriend thought it's disgusting (then again she didn't like matrix that much as well - and fell asleep during star wars *g*), I thought it's too pretentious. but it's good. it will be a dvd worth buying for sure, because it is one of those movies you like to re-watch. like 'matrix'. so please don't compare the two too much. they're currently doing the same on 'saving private ryan' and 'the thin red line'. it's dreadful. a final thought: liking a film or not has nothing to do with intelligence but just with taste! ok, eXistenZ needs more attention than the mummy, but that doesn't already make it better...
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely amazing!
Review: I enjoyed this movie so very much. The script was very intelligent and thought provoking, the cast was excellent (and mostly Canadian!), and the movie had an incredible atmosphere. Too bad it was lost in the shuffle, up against the likes of "The Matrix" and "The Mummy", but this movie was better than both. Incredible!
Rating:
Summary: Actually that's a NEGATIVE FIVE STARS
Review: This movie is absolutely horrid. All of the imagery and sound effects are disgusting, the acting is terrible, the plot is ridiculous. I REALLY wanted to leave the theatre but I just had to see what else they would do, that's how bad it was. It was sooo cheezy! Like when he yells out "eXistenZ....is paused!" my buddy and I burst out laughing. Please do not waste your money on this movie. If you're tempted to buy it and haven't seen it yet, go spend the $4 to rent it first--you'll be disappointed, I guarantee it.
Rating:
Summary: A movie with depth, not fluff!
Review: This movie is rich - lots of "clues" in the background so you have to pay attention! (I was too caught up the first time and missed things that became more apparent to me the second time I saw the movie.) Special effects are incredible (but I'm a big fan of Dennis Pawlik's work) --- and there's quite a bit of humor in the dialogue which lightens things up but still doesn't get in the way of the plot. I agree with the other person who labeled it as "a thinking person's Matrix". It's too bad the two came out at the same time, because eXistenZ didn't get the exposure it deserved! One problem is that there's no way to really encapsulate this movie in a sound bite. I think this hampered it in first-run: no trailer or ad really could do it justice. It DEFINITELY should be on your "rent" list, and then on your "buy" list.
Rating:
Summary: Mind - Bending Fun!
Review: With the exception of "The Dead Zone" this is the only other Cronenberg film I enjoyed, (and was able to stomach.) Believe it or not, seeing a guy getting his face blown in half by a gun firing human teeth and people porting into a game system that looks like a bizarre fleshy body part is rather tame for Cronenberg. Certainly a lot easier to watch than the flesh-eating puke in "The Fly" or drinking fluid out of a fleshy straw on a large bug's head in "Naked Lunch". One of the reasons I enjoyed this film was it reminded of the mind-bending plot twists of a really good Philip K. Dick story. By the film's end you have no idea what, if anything, is real and not just a game. Some reviewers found the performances very weak. But often, this is done deliberately: one character named D'arcy Nader is played so cartoonishly that the main character, played by Jennifer Jason Leigh, comments on how lousy his dialogue and accent were. Personally, I thought the two lead performances were very good. Leigh gives this picture her all playing a sexy game designer whose whole life revolves around this virtual world she has created. Jude Law is also very good, especially his humorous reactions to all the weird stuff that happens around him. This picture is particulalrly entertaining if you've ever played a role-playing computer and are familiar with the "game loop" that computer characters go into when you're not speaking to them. The movie also makes a very strong comment on how video games have de-sensitized us. In one scene Jennifer Jason Leigh shoots a character dead just because she didn't like him, but then she can't figure out if she killed him for real or just in the game. a brilliant comment about seperating fantasy and reality. This is a very well crafted, highly underrated movie. Possibly the most intriguing science-fiction film of the decade.
Rating:
Summary: Oh dear. Not really up to much.
Review: Well, for a start it's nothing like The Matrix. eXistenZ is in my opinion one of davids weakest movies. He's trying to do a flash virtual-reality, cyberspace, movie, but it just doesn't work. The acting is average at best, but you get the impression it's not the actors fault (read: bad script). The problem is this: The movie makes little sense, the plot jumps around all over the place, and there are gooey, bio, odd looking things all through it (which is of course one of cronenbergs trademarks). Very low budget stuff, and as one person said earlier, it's clear that cronenberg knows nothing about computers (ie. ever heard of backing up your precious data!! I really have no idea what he was actually trying to do with this one (oh and it has no real special effects, just lot's of 1970's gore and goo effects instead).There is better stuff out there by far. Try Brazil, or Dark City for much better sci-fi, or Mulholland Drive for more weirdness. High point of the movie: Jennifer Jason Leigh (she has great legs) Low point of the movie: the bio-pods are just sad......
Rating: 
Summary: Could have been better
Review: It's hard to rate this movie, especially without giving away any plot spoilers (which has to do with periods of bad acting). However it's a fun ride, yet it feels as though the whole "game world" wasn't as fully explored as it could have been. A few scenes, namely the "Chinese Waiter" one, are fantastic, while some are boring...like the car ride in the beginning. The plot itself is pretty easy to understand once you watch the movie twice, or just pay attention the first time. This is no Matrix, and it should hardly be compared to it (I'm not saying The Matrix is good or bad: the only thing these movies have in common is the ability to link up into a fictional world). I bought this as a blind buy and was slightly dissapointed...especially after watching Crash. Check out Equilibrium as well.
Rating:
Summary: well.............................
Review: Well though i think jude law is an incredible actor this probabally was not his best movie. He has been in quite a bit better movies and i absolutely thought he was awesome in "enemy at the gates". But with all that aside the movie contained a great number of twists and thrills in a science fiction world where you dont just play the video game you are in the video game. Interacting in a role playing enviroment with many twists and turns. The movie is definitely a movie that you must really get into to, to truly enjoy. Also know that when you are watching it, it is going to be very weird and rather thought provoking, but enjoyable.
| 
