Digital Man

I've seen Digital man almost a decade ago when it came to video. My dad rented me this movie to watch over the weekend since he was leaving with my mom. I loved it so much that I've watched it five or six times in 48 hours !!!

My memories of this movie are quite vague. I can't really remember the quality of the acting and script. But I definitely remember how scary Mathias Hues was as the killer robot. A team is sent in a small community somewhere out in the desert to terminate him but soon find out some of them are robots themselves. Woon and Jackson are two bad*ss soldiers who can't match Digital Man.

I think I'll buy this movie in the near future since I can't find it at the video store anymore. I think fans of Terminator and Robocop would love this movie. It's the traditional "Shoot the bastard !!!" kind of flick with lots of action and sci-fi. I rate it 7/10. See it if you get the chance.

On September the 10th 2001 I was recovering from a 24 hour virus whilst on holiday in Dubai. I spent the day in the hotel room and when not sleeping I solely watched CNN. I remember there being a news item about the assassination of a Northern Alliance leader by the Taliban in Afghanistan (could there be trouble brewing?). The next day I felt a lot better and planned to go out. My holiday companion wasn't very interested in watching a news channel so switched it over to watch a crappy sci-fi action movie instead. So, to reiterate - 24 hour news channel on all day September 10th, news channel switched off September 11th and crappy movie put on instead. Everyone remembers what they were doing when the Twin Towers were attacked in 2001 - I was watching Digital Man on account of my holiday friend. As it turned out we discovered the news when we were picked up by another friend to visit one of the city attractions - the Emirates Twin Towers, which at that very moment had ascended to the second highest twin towers in the world. It was a very weird day. So, yes, despite having CNN on ALL DAY the day before, I missed the biggest news event of my life in order to watch a pathetic cyborg-on-the-loose sci-fi/action toss-fest. As I watched it last night for the second time I did actually wonder if maybe something of historical importance was happening again. Nothing happened.

This was my second Philip J. Roth picture in three days, after A.P.E.X., which was also his previous film to this one. Digital Man does some things better and some things worse, mostly it's just stolidly competent. The story boils down to the old saw of a crack military team attempting to take down a renegade robot, although there's context and a spot of complication wrapped around the basic events. Nothing too sophisticated but it at least provides a mild interest to sustain things, which comes in handy once the umpteenth round of gunfire and explosions get tiresome. Set on the outskirts of a desert town there's a feel of arid isolation here that works well as a backdrop and contrasts with the larger than life, bumptious characters, the setting and the more humorous than average writing as well as faint flashes of emotional connection or suspense are the biggest advantages here. Well, fans of explosions and ludicrous guns will be pleased by the frequent pyrotechnics and comically huge weaponry on display. The acting just about conveys the appropriate sense of battle hardened veterans, the anonymous likes of Ken Olandt, Kristen Dalton and Sherman Augustus fill their roles with a kind of solid bad-assery, though the main plaudits go to Don Swayze as a daft redneck and Adam Baldwin as a military bigwig. Swayze is fitfully amusing in his utterly clichéd role, while Baldwin has the right sort of brusque authority to convince. The titular digital man is played by Matthias Hues, he has nothing to do other than walk around slowly and look tough, this he does in fine fashion, being a pretty imposing sized guy. Oh, and there are little cameos for the quirky Clint Howard and scenery chewing favourite Susan Tyrell (Night Warning). All in all nothing to write home about performance wise but everyone is suitably committed. Like A.P.E.X. the one black character is an obnoxious caricature which is a bit sad, but I don't tend to look for sensitivity in these sorts of junk flicks anyhow. Broadly speaking this is worth watching if you go for this sort of low grade sci fi action, I suspect I would have liked it more had I seen it a decade or so back when I first caught sight of the video box in a local rental place but despite its problems I was still glad to finally see it. Occasionally decent in both action and effects, with amusing old school cheap cgi and one or two brief but neat robotic effects, there's just about enough to go on even though its never any great shakes. Worth a watch if nothing else is on and you like the genre

I've watched 'Metalstorm: The destruction of Jared-Syn.' I've watched 'Eliminators.' I've even watched 'Cyborg 3.' With all this prior experience, and more where that came from, did I have any expectation that 'Digital Man' would be particularly good? Oh my no; perish the thought. There are some noteworthy names in the cast, yes, for better and for worse; even the imagery found online for marketing purposes, however, casts immediate doubts about the potential. This is to say nothing about the mid-90s computer-generated visuals that greet us underneath the opening credits, wholly bereft of detail or texture; the appearance of Ed Lauter and Paul Gleason on the screen in the next moments, reassuring viewers that yes, there are honest-to-goodness Stars in this flick; and the unreserved forthrightness of even the first touches of plot. I'll say this for filmmaker Phillip J. Roth, he made no bones about the type of thing he was making, and in turn, even sights unseen we viewers shouldn't have any illusions, either.

The unflinching directness of the writing continues to be a foremost element of these ninety-odd minutes, not to mention blunt tactlessness. The dialogue is pretty terrible, characters are fairly bland, and the scene writing is at best empty and characterized by tropes. It may be overly charitable to say the story is baseline serviceable, and one way or another some facets are particularly weak. Make no mistake, all such qualities are absolutely echoed in Roth's direction, and whether one wishes to blame the direction, the writing, or the producers, other facets similarly suffer in some capacity. This arguably applies even to the cinematography, Jim Goodwin's uninspired score, and the manner in which the very obvious CGI is subsequently employed. The actors? Well, I suppose they're doing what they can with the hand they've been dealt; some are more successful than others, including Chase Masterson and Don Swayze - the comedic relief, of all things - and in my opinion Amanda Wyss, who isn't even listed in the film's credits. In fairness, it's an action picture above all else, and the least that can be said is that the stunts and practical effects are pretty swell. It's too bad that there's no meaningful energy or vitality in the proceedings, and no true sense of stakes or thrills. Some would-be action just comes across as hollow and pointlessly overcharged for its own sake.

I suppose the sets are pretty nice, and the costume design, and even the lighting. There's nothing original in the fundamental visuals, but they look decent enough, and the designs of aspects realized through digital wizardry bore possibilities. The filming locations are lovely. For the most part I think all involved did their part, or at least the best they could, and the responsibility for the movie's failings can handily be chalked up to the writing, direction, and/or producers Talaat Captan and Marion Oberauner. I don't think 'Digital Man' is utterly rotten; I've seen the bottom of the barrel, and this isn't it. Why, there are some scattered moments that are actually really fun and well done. The action is wholly unable to evoke the intended excitement, however; the best ideas in the writing are given treatment that is all too meager, and too much of the screenplay was very poorly considered in the first place. In its dull mediocrity the title quite makes one think of a 90s predecessor to The Asylum, and in all earnestness the Band family have churned out some fare that was more solid and entertaining.

What it really comes down to is that there's just no real reason to ever check this feature out. Even if you're a big fan of someone involved, there's just not enough value here for it to earn our viewership. There are worse ways to spend your time, certainly, and I guess if you're looking for something uninvolved to turn on and leave playing in the background this will fit the bill. Any greater hopes for 'Digital Man' will unequivocally be met with disappointment, though, so if you do come across it, just be well aware that this is low-grade action fare for an extra lazy day, and that's about it. And maybe even that is being too kind.

Digital Man is a very entertaining movie, with good acting, excellent photography and outstanding F/X. It does suffer from a mediocre script however. A very good, overall effort from a bunch of actors who fall into the category of "where have I seen them before?" A rating of 8 out of 10 was given.