I don't get it

Rating: Null/10 (30 April 2001)

I really wanted to like this movie, but I just didn't. I'm a sci-fi fan, and I've heard all the praise this movie gets, from friends as well as critics. Seemed like a no-brainer to me. So I rented it. It took me three tries to get through the whole film without falling asleep. Because of that, my memory of it is a bit disjointed.
The first thing that jumped out at me was Keifer Sutherland's really bad accent in this film. He sounds like the archetypical mad scientist's lab assistant...a character you'd see on a Saturday morning cartoon, almost. Nobody else I've talked to seems to notice this though, which surprises me because it seems so blatant. I can remember a time (the days of Young Guns and The Lost Boys) when I thought Keifer was the best thing since sliced bread, but it's been a while since he's impressed me.
The pacing of the movie just seemed slow to me, for some reason. There were scenes I knew I should really like (like the confrontation on the fire escape), but for some reason they just didn't move me. The bald white guys looked interesting, but before long they just didn't grab me that much.
The finale of the film is very foggy in my memory, as I was fighting sleep during the whole thing. I remember some big blue-green energy blasts, but that's about it. I do remember enough to know what the "big secret" of the movie is, though.
To be honest, I can't really put my finger on why this movie didn't work for me. When I think of any individual scene, it seems like something I'd like. I keep telling myself that if I could just watch it and stay wide awake the whole time, I'd understand why so many people love it. However, after trying 3 times to watch this and only barely succeeding on the 3rd attempt, I'm left with not much desire to give it another go.
And no, I'm not narcoleptic. :)