Hackers

Love the look, the lingo, the total misunderstanding of how computers work, the idealized view of hackers, the rollerblades, all of it. this is a super corny movie BUT for a slice of 90's nostalgia and corn, it works. If you were a teenager when it came out, you probably love it, and if you saw it then, you probably still do.

I'm working in IT for over 10 years now, and let's be clear: Hackers is a movie, .. there's nothing real about the "hacking" going on in the movie.

There's a few scenes that are horribly done (for today's standards) but all in all I loved the movie. The acting is OK, the soundtrack is great and it changes for the everlasting "chliché" of the IT Nerd.

It's a movie that could surprise you, especially with the amount of bad movies being released nowadays. It's funny to see Johnny Lee Miller and Angelina Jolie at the beginning of their careers as well.

If you're looking for light entertainment for one evening, ...

Well, here it is folks, I think it's been long enough since hackers came out (6 years+), so I am going to offer what I think will be the definitive commentary on the film "Hackers." Simply put, Hackers is the finest movie ever. The music, the costumes, the dialog... if you could put FUN in a box (not to mention Johnny Lee Miller and Angelina Jolie) the box would say "Hackers" on it. If this movie were a president, it would Hackraham Lincoln. If it were a gum, it would be Hackalicious... you get the picture.

Anyhow, the really important thing I have to say is this:

A.) Hackers is NOT a "B-movie"; the budget was large and the actors have major talent; it's a slick production, and it shows.

B.) Contrary to the belief of some cyber-dorks out there (who mainly get their jollies by pretending they know more than other people about computers) it doesn't matter if the computer interface is somewhat unrealistic. Obviously, there are some classic "movie" style computer screens (a la 1995's other horrible computer flick "The Net (of crap)"), but lest I seem like a broken record, I will repeat for the entertainmentally challenged THIS IS A MOVIE!

C.) Are you kidding me? This stuff is great! I can watch this movie forever (and believe me, I have) and NEVER EVER get tired of it. C'mon, this stuff is just classic, listen here to some dialogue:

(spoken with much gusto:) "Yeah, it's got a killer refresh rate."

"Risc is good."

"Never fear, I is here."

IT'S SO CLASSIC IT HURTS!

Bottom line, if you wanna be a nerd, go program something. If you want to be entertained, get this movie, NOW!

Obviously this movie is not an academy award winner. So it's going to score or not score points solely based on entertainment value.

Here's why I rate it a 7...

* The music - a great soundtrack, if you enjoy the era and genre ( Prodigy being one of the coolest bands featured) * The characters - They are all fun - especially Cereal Killer and the phone phreak guy * A pretty hot Angelina Jolie * The dialog - Some of it is pretty amusing, if you don't take the movie seriously * The overall presentation - I enjoy the signs of the time; grunge music posters, early virtual reality, etc; I enjoy the attempts at portraying what goes on inside of a computer even though it's totally wrong * I enjoy the attempt of the movie to be technical. Especially amusing is the discussion of Kate's laptop..."It has a killer refresh rate", lol; You kind of have to laugh at such things; They get some things right though. Like calling the compiler design book the Dragon book...it was named that when I was in college

Obviously weak is the portrayal of computers and hacking. As a computer professional, I can still live with it. Movies rarely get any of this stuff right, so you just put up with these things.

The plot is quite weak. But what do you expect? It suffices as a vehicle for the situations, dialog and music.

I happen to like this movie because it is just fun to watch. If I'm bored, I can easily become unbored by watching this movie. The soundtrack is awesome and it introduced me to electronic music. I never liked it until I saw "Hackers". I love the clothes and the visuals. I knew it wasn't accurate from the minute I saw it, but then again, it's not like it was posing itself as some movie that depicted the real life of cyberpunks. It's just fun little movie. Though some of the dialogue is a bit cheesed up, it is quotable.

I especially enjoyed the performance by Matthew Lillard. It made me look forward to seeing him in "Scream" later on. He is so funny. I enjoyed Angelina Jolie, though this is hardly one of her best performances.

The only person who really didn't belong in this movie was Lorraine Bracco. She just looked strange in her role. Other than that, this movie was a good movie and it shouldn't be bashed because it depicts people, technology, and life inaccurately. What movie ever does? I'm from Iowa and do you think movies depict Iowan's lives exactly the way they are? No. But I'm not out to fertilize the lawn with "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?".