Rating: 
Summary: an intense, interesting film
Review: Wow! What a movie! This has got to be one of the most underrated movies of the past decade. I cannot begin to comprehend how anybody could hate this movie and give it a two or less star rating! It's unbelievable! This movie truly is a treat. Haunting, exciting, intense, thought-provoking, just a wonderful film. The story is extremely interesting, Barry Levinson did a great direction job, the score is truly haunting and fits the mysterious atmosphere of the film perfectly, and the actors are for the most part terrific.I will admit the movie isn't perfect. It has one mistake in particular that is annoying but most people won't notice it unless they are searching for it. The story also has holes in it, but I think they were put there to make you think and to let you lead to your own conclusion about the mysterious things that take place. This is truly a great movie and massively underrated. Watch out for some of the most intense and unbelievable plot twists and scenes of recent film. Two parts in particular are magnificent and unforgettible! A definte must-see! Just sit back, relax, and absorb yourself into the plot.
Rating: 
Summary: Forget the film - read the book
Review: When I first read the book some years ago, I was blown away by it. A superb piece of Science fiction writing. I was therefor a little worried, when I first heard it was going to be made into a film. I was even more worried when Dustin Hoffman was cast in the lead. As it turned out, these fears were well justified. A terrible film conversion of a superb book, which just never gets going. The casting dosen't help and what could have been something special with the right cast and director is a truely forgettable film. Do yourself a favour, forget the film and buy the book.
Rating:
Summary: The Worse Sci-Fi I've Seen in Years
Review: Can I give it half of a star instead? I've always loved Sci-Fi movies. Just bought a DVD player and borrowed a friend's copy of The Matrix. Wow! I wanted more of that! Went to a movie rental and got this one. Boy, am I disappointed. The most (or the only) interesting part was the opening sequence. Then it went straight downhill. I was so bored after 20 minutes into the movie that I really wanted to fast forward it. The script was so bad I don't understnad why the stars bothered to do this film in the first place. I thought I couldn't go wrong with the all-star cast. Boy I was so wrong! Could have spent the renting money on the Abyss (will be available soon). Now, THAT's a movie. Even Stargate is better than this! Great, an alien intellegence who speaks English and goes by the name Jerry. I couldn't believe I finished watching it. I will return the DVD by midnight today so I can get $1 off for my next rental. What a waste!
Rating:
Summary: What a Waste!
Review: Great Science-Fiction movies have always amazed me with their creativity, tenacity, and bold philosophical messages, they create their own conceivable worlds that actually draw skeptical viewers into their stories. However, Barry Levinson's Sphere is a far cry from a great or even a good ScFi movie. Sphere is an incompleted science fiction epic that has excessively hammy performances from it's leads (Dustin Hoffman, Sharon Stone, Samuel L. Jackson), an intolerably complex screenplay that makes the movie way way too talky, and a lack of a cohesive narrative that might have tightened this long winded movie down a bit. Also Levinson doesn't seem to know where he's going with this movie. The film's premise and opening sequence are very engaging and compelling, but once this movie gets under water it goes downhill from there. What really disappoints me is that this film had distinct possibilities that under the right circumstances Sphere might have been another Robocop or Brazil. Yet, commercial hollywood wanted this film out as soon as possible to make profit, and thus ruined any of its chances to recoup its budget or make a profit. What a shame! The DVD edition of this movie is fantastic however.
Rating: 
Summary: If you've seen the trailer, you've seen the movie.
Review: While much of the movie was technically proficient in many ways, the problem was that no one really cared. The actors seemed intent on hamming up as much as they could, especially in the sequences where they were required to 'blue screen' it. Hoffman pointing at what appears to be a 30 foot pulsating ball and says "look!" as if the other people can't see. (of course they can't as it's just a blue screen, but we, the audience shouldn't have to figure this out. Essentially ALL and I do mean ALL of the plot points and twists are covered with the trailer. If you've seen the trailer then basically that's the entire movie. The only exception being the end, where the cast, muchlike the audience wishes that they forget all that's happened and lose their memories. No such luck for those who have seen this movie though.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not enough
Review: In spite of such as great actors like Dustin Hoffman, Samuel L. Jackson and Sharon Stone it is not a great movie, it is good, trying to play with some arguments like time (present past, future), astrophisics and several more aspects. The Director failed to adapt the Michale Crichton's book to the movie, he left out several action aspects which maybe helped a lot. I recommend it, but don't expect a very spectacular film. Is has very good sound a very good quality in images.
Rating:
Summary: Will scare the balls of ya'
Review: This Micheal Crichton movie was so scary i almost peed my pants. The special effects were the bomb. It leaves you wondering how it will end and whats going on. Whatever you do do not drink alot of fluids before watching this movie at night.
Rating: 
Summary: It was OK
Review: This movie was ok.I read the book because I am a very big Michael Crichton Fan, but I got to say the movie stinked,If they had more action it would be better. The only thing good about this movie was Samuel L. Jackson. So if u want to see it I warn u it is not all good
Rating:
Summary: Another Michael Crichton book gets chewed up.
Review: What went wrong? All the signs were so good! Dustin Hoffman! Sharon Stone! Sam Jackson! Barry Levinson! There's no WAY you could have convinced me this film could go wrong. It has. The plot, and the premise, is beautiful - a new twist on a familiar idea. Great work on the psychotalk section, and some clever intimidation tactics by the director, make you interested, yet you slip away from the film after it reverts to basic action/horror. Don't get me wrong, this film is reasonable. A good night in, certainly, and it will make you think. For a while, at least. But somehow, it's just too emotionless. The dialogue, the acting, the resolution - too clinical. It feels like the actors are in shock the whole time, and you can't identify. (Tellingly, on the audio commentary, Dustin Hoffman tells you why the film flopped. He's pretty savage.) I've docked a star for building up expectations and letting them down, Mr. Levinson. Will "Andromeda Strain" be the only decent Crichton film adaptation? Shame on you, sir, for such a criminal waste of talent.
Rating:
Summary: Going in for the kill
Review: They killed Sphere. They took the book's Lemmish metaphysics and slowly destroyed them. They ate away at the constant suspense. They bombarded the premise. They annihilated a masterpiece. What appears to have happened is that the someone tried to make Sphere the book into a slasher movie, a la Scream. The book gnaws at the reader's mind while he tries to comprehend what exactly is it that the alien Sphere does, while the characters are killed one by one by their minds' creations. In the film, what sems to happen is the characters trying to find out how to get rid of the Sphere. Every second I expected them to pull guns and begin a shootout, or perhaps calling 911, or something equally absurd. However good is the quality of the acting (not very), however good are the effects (too little of them to combat the film's other flaws), however good are the sets (oblivious - I constantly felt like the characters were sitting in a submerged tub some 5 feet below the surface), the producer's interpretation of the book outright nukes the quality.
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