Prototype

Very rarely does there come a movie which I consider to be completely without merit. I even granted Godzilla (1998) some points just for being a fun night out. But this movie... boring in a very special way. If you'd like a guaranteed cure for insomnia, feel free to check it out!

What wasn't magical about this movie? Futuristic sex combined with phenomenal special effects and massive amounts of cigarette smoking made this sci-fi thriller a hit!!! With the star power in this movie, I knew I was in for a treat. I mean, Brenda Swanson and Prototype...what a stellar line-up!! I became even more intrigued when I discovered that this was actually the third part of the Terminator trilogy. This became evident when access was granted about two thirds into the movie. Finally, I'd just like to say this movie was part man, part machine, and ALL KILLER!!!

I know where it all went wrong. The cover. Prototype's tape cover shows a fake-looking robot standing against the background of a virtual reality grid. Instead it should have been showing a couple of lovers with expressions of suffering on their faces and some kind of dramatic quote. The movie should not have been called "Prototype" but rather something like "Desert Roses". It would have attracted a different kind of audience and would have perhaps been much better received.

Even if the people watching this B-movie do not admit to having any expectations for it, they are subconsciously expecting to see indications of some genre. Yet they receive none because Prototype can't pick a genre. Well then, is it like one of those smart genre-transcending films? Well, no. Firstly, because it is not smart and secondly, because even those kind of movies are clearly about something and generally pick an emotional focal point out of each genre on which to base the storyline and Prototype doesn't really get its footing in any of the genres. However if we tried to pinpoint a genre, it would most definitely not be an action movie, but a drama. It is a poorly executed drama.

The story is about a problematic couple getting caught up in the leftovers of a vague futuristic conspiracy. The setting is an 80s post-apocalyptic world.

There are multiple aspects of the story that could have been much better developed. It is not that the movie does not have enough material, like some have suggested. It is that the makers did not do enough with the material at hand. There is a whole movie out there about nothing more than a guy who gets his hand stuck in a rock, and it managed to keep its audience interested. Prototype is just poorly executed. The few action scenes are laughable. The stuff in between the action scenes doesn't have enough expression, contains horrible camera decisions and is in desperate need of better dialogue.

Having said that, the movie is somewhat underrated as it does have an interesting style and the acting, which this movie heavily relies upon, is not that bad. Unfortunately its style is a slow one, and unless you have a lot of patience with pessimistic sci-fi dramas, you will not like this.

I wish someone redid this movie and gave it life rather than a zombie existence.

Remember him from the O. J. Simpson trial? One of his earliest films. This movie has some style to it. The lighting, the editing, the music all has some Miami Vice influences. Too bad the screen play, script, and the acting is so bad. If you are in the mood for an early 90's throwback, and there is absolutely nothing else to watch... well, you've been warned.

I bought this...I admit...

Why? How could I? Was I thinking that this would somehow be in some weird and insane way even somewhat relative to one of the BEST robot/action/science fiction movies ever - Terminator 1,2 and 3?

Well it had a cool wasteland location...that is the good points...oh and whoever polished the suit of the prototype did a decent job of wax and polish...they have a great and bright future in car detail.

That aside...everybody else's comments on how rightfully and ruthlessly horrible this is are justified.

It's not just boring, it's also stupid...which makes it a double whammy.

Total waste of time unless you haven't slept for several days like I do from time to time.

This was a cure for sleep deprivation.

I think that this was produced by Philip-Morris...it had to be. Almsot every scene consists of people smoking...and not just for a cool look...but for need.

The future is dreary, dry, desolate...and in the future I will need to smoke endlessly...it's a requirement...well, that and to walk around with an angry scowl on my face.

I don't think anybody smiles - even half cased. It's MANDATORY to be consistently angry AND smoke at the same time.

There you go...my comments on a truly original film.

Oh...was it a real inspiration? That I hopefully die before 2057, so that I don't have to spend all my money on smokes and bad haircuts.

Now, I have this piece of art in my film collection. Should I die now or wait till I buy another fantastic motion picture like this?