14/09/2007
UNKNOWN
DVD
RELEASED 20th AUGUST
Right. Bit of a complicated one this. Just bear with me… After a violent struggle five men wake up in a remote warehouse with no recollection of who they are and how they know each other. A vat of radioactive waste has been spilled in the fight causing them to pass out and lose their memories. One is tied up, one has had his head kicked in, and another has been handcuffed to a pipe. A mysterious caller phones to inform the others that he has collected the ransom money and he’s on his way to ‘take care of’ the hostages. Problem is no-one knows who they are. Yep. That old chestnut.
So, I guess my main thought here is that Hollywood producers seem to have a slightly idealistic faith in the transformative powers of radioactive goo. Having been exposed to a massive dose of poisonous chemicals, the only side effect anyone suffers is short-term memory loss for exactly 82 minutes of suspenseful narrative. Aside from that they’re basically fine. Having done GCSE chemistry (A*: thanks) I can tell you that contact with radioactive material gives you neither memory loss, superhuman powers or makes you The Joker. In reality you just get cancer and then slowly die. Sorry to put a downer on things.
That aside, this is actually a really well acted and cleverly structured film. The cast is incredibly strong and includes Joe Pantoliano – Ralphie from The Sopranos – who, I think, is my favourite actor in the world. One thing that weirded me out slightly was the casting of Jim Caviezel – Jesus in ‘The Passion Of The Christ’ - in the main role. He’s very good and everything but it’s just a little bit weird seeing Jesus of Nazareth the son of God and master of the Universe shooting some guy in the face. |
