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Starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, et al. There is a definitive lack of good ideas in Hollywood. Sequels, remakes, and movies based on crappy '60's sit-coms have made up a whopping 219% of the films released in the '90's. Films that allow their material to make full use of the creative possibilities in the cinematic medium, movies like the original Star Wars, Pleasantville, Run Lola Run, or Toy Story are, much to the chagrin of audiences, few and far between. What makes the aforementioned films stand out when compared to the majority of other major studio releases is the experimental nature of their plot lines or the way they create another, fully-functioning, alternate world for their characters in which to live. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow (Point Break) and conceived of by James Cameron, a man who has created more than his fair share of extraordinarily creative motion pictures, Strange Days is another film that can be added to that small, but ever so entertaining list.Set on the last two days of 1999, Bigelow takes us into the life of Lenny Nero (Ralph Fiennes), an ex-homicide cop who now spends his time dealing illegal 'playback' clips. Devised by the federal government to replace a hidden microphone, playback allows people to record their own experiences onto a mini disc-in much the same fashion as one would record a TV show. When the clips are played back, one can feel exactly what the person who originally recorded the material felt, be it sexual gratification, the thrill of an armed robbery, or the feeling of your face hitting the street after jumping off a roof. And while it should come as no surprise to you that this new technology has done more for the porn industry than anything else, Lenny personally favors those clips made while he was with his ex-girlfriend, Faith (Juliette Lewis). Effectively cut off from reality-Faith has since left Lenny and taken up with a music promoter-Lenny continues to relive the past, over and over each night, as he stays in the virtual, recorded existence that is more to his liking. However, when Lenny comes into possession of a very politically disturbing clip, it is up to him and his more grounded and stable friend Mace (Angela Bassett) to shed light on the situation, while also trying to figure out which New Year's party to attend. Bigelow's command of the sometimes graphic material at hand is quite sound. Shooting at several different locations on New Year's Eve in 1994 and numerous, uncut point-of-view scenes-scenes that allow you to, somewhat, experience the clips that the playback users are experiencing-Bigelow has deftly created an intoxicating and visceral film in Strange Days. Cameron's script loses a little steam as it progresses and is filled with a host of cliché characters and situations, but one cannot escape the singularly captivating nature of an idea of playback, the style and grace with which Bigelow created and shot this material, and the wondrous use of New Year's revelers to create an atmosphere that is unmatched in most other films of the decade. Dark, graphic and intriguing, Strange Days is a well-paced rush.
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