Interesting futuristic view of cryogenics and longevity

Rating: Null/10 (9 July 2003)

Apart from a few minutes of pure jealousy induced hatred when Tom Cruise was trying to blow away Cameron Diaz in favour of Penelope Cruz (what a choice!) I thought the film was really rather good.
I like scenes in films which make you question one version of reality against another and this film had them in abundance. The plot gets better on a second or third viewing - if you're as thick as I am and get confused easily. I just love the whole concept of cryogenics and the issues it raises and I thought this film brought many of those issues out in a fascinating way.
I don't normally find much interesting in Tom Cruise's usual action-packed hero/rich business kid roles but somehow I warmed to him this time. Perhaps it was seeing him get his face smashed in and having to cope with being plain ugly for a change that made him seem a bit more appealing. Then again, in the story his millions left him immortal and living in a dream world with Penelope Cruz for eternity. Not a bad future for anyone, except that for Cruise even that wasn't good enough! In films, as I suspect in real life, he always seems to get an obscene amount of 'the sweet' without ever having to take very much of 'the sour'. No, damn it, I hate him! ... But it was still a good film.
Algis Kuliukas