Playing God

Smart, funny script with interesting original premise of the doctor forced to work for criminals. The movie wanders, though, as there's no real central plotline. Great dialogue, but maybe the subsidiary characters are more interesting than the main characters. Script is dramatic/comedic; movie is played down, but the choice to do so seems to have robbed the movie of much-needed juice. The stakes don't seem to be too high for any character. Direction is competent, but doesn't match the script. Hutton is scary, but doesn't have much to do except act scary. Duchovny is fine, but I think he was cast mostly for his X-Files fame at the time. He's not exactly the most charismatic lead actor.

Hollywood possesses the penchant for remaking old classic films, such as Gus Van Sant's re-working of Hitchcock's Psycho. Here's an idea: instead of remaking GOOD movies, why don't we remake bad ones, and try to improve them? In such a world, I would nominate "Playing God" for a treatment. The premise is interesting, and the script, although at times uneven, has moments of poetic lyricism and some nice touches. So . . . what happened? The finger must be pointed at the performances, which fail to capture the essence of the screenplay. David Duchovny is cast against type as a drug-addled ex-physician, and Timothy Hutton's portrayal of gangster Raymond Blossom borders on the plane of villainy and its cariacture. Duchovny, whose deadpan delivery and solemn glances work fine in the X-Files, must realize that the role he's playing here is NOT Fox Mulder, but a much more unsympathetic character. Grade: C

David Duchovney creates a role that he was to replicate somewhat in Californication - the troubled talent. And it is a role he plays well.

This thriller starts off at a good speed and carries you through to the end. Timothy Hutton plays a fine villain and Angelina Jolie pouts. The story of a disgraced doctor finding his way into a criminal world is well scripted. Drug addiction and a desire for the sultry Jolie mix a heady cocktail. Unfortunately towards the end the story gets a little weaker and the relationships between villains and the FBI is muddled and rushed as if it was created only to develop the final scene. But, that aside, a movie worth seeing.

Okay, truthfully, I saw the previews for this movie and thought to myself, what are the producers thinking? Hutton, Jolie, and DUCHOVNY? How could the monotoned actor possibly compete with Jolie's natural power on the screen? But surprisingly, the two had the kind of chemistry that showed intense caring without a kiss. Even David's humor matched up to Jolie's spark and fire. As for Hutton, he played the psycho very well, contrasting with David's calm delivery of life threatening situations. Overall, I was very impressed with the writing and character development. I gave it 8 stars.

I enjoyed this movie. Unlike like some of the pumped up, steroid trash that is passed off as action movies, Playing God is simple and realistic, with characters that are believable, action that is not over the top and enough twists and turns to keep you interested until the end.

Well directed, well acted and a good story.