Ennemi d'État

I remember when this came out and how much it freaked people out. Could we really be living in such a surveillance state? Could the government really be monitoring us whenever they want?

Well, over 20 years later and... Yeah, that's probably all true and then some. Still, this was a fun movie with a compelling enough story, solid acting and a surprisingly deep cast of comedians playing serious computer nerds.

Biggest downside to me was the tech itself. Movies of this nature can't help themselves from reaching into the nonsense handbag and pulling out things like the "zoom and enhance" cliché or the ability to tell exactly where someone is at all times with pinpoint accuracy among others.

Dated though it may be, this was still a pretty enjoyable watch. I'd say it's worth checking out if you have it streaming somewhere.

Jon Voight, Will Smith, and Gene Hackman are the three stars who make this movie interesting. Voight is a rogue NSA operative and Smith quite accidentally gets on his trail without even realizing it. Hackman provides the key to exposing the crooks and facilitating a reasonable ending. Watching this movie makes you wonder how much of the surveillance depicted can really be done today by our governments. Although the movie has its share of violence, and an ending out of Reservoir Dogs, it also is sprinkled with some good humor. If you like action and espionage, then you'll like this movie. The DVD picture and soundtrack are both excellent. I give the movie overall 8 of 10.

Why? Well for starters there is the best chase sequence since The French Connection. Then there is Will Smith as an actor - not just a star, though later in the movie he is admittedly overshadowed by veteran Gene Hackman.

There are two layers to this movie: On the surface is a pacy thriller with edge-of-the-seat chases but underneath lies a telling commentary on government surveillance. It is one of those truth-in-fiction stories which makes its point about government intrusion into privacy dramatically and effectively.

There are references to the classic, The Conversation: The surveilled couple talking in the park, and the Hackman character's premises are an obvious recreation of his workshop in the earlier movie. If you haven't yet seen The Conversation - see it before you see this one - you will understand the Hackman character a lot better (besides, it is a superb movie in its own right).

Oh, and Jon Voight is terrific as the bad guy...

Hi - really latetotheshow once again As for my review title . . . I edited it and my rating from a 5 to a 7 after watching special features - an action I often take once I view them and get more insight into the impetus behind the movie.

I also find that anything Jerry Bruckmeyer is behind is often top notch.

Of course, Gene Hackman could make any movie worth a high rating - and I still think there are a lot of unrealistic extremes that make this borderline comedy. And maybe they should've made this a more obvious dark comedy.

Some reviewer on here said it was 'informative & educational' . . . Good grief.

I think there are more informative & educational sources out there than a entertainment piece. That's the only thing that worries me about movies. So many people use movies for school rather than ENTERTAINMENT.

However, this subject matter is something we all think about when we zoom in on our own home in maps . . .

There's several good suspenseful moments, and again Hackman was the draw for me. I really liked how he portrayed being both very helpful while also couldn't care less about Robert at first, in one a particular fast-paced scene.

He played paranoia very realistically. Also played a highly intelligent nerd really well too. Seemed a really different character from the tough guys he usually plays.

Now I really want to see him in The Conversation, which is allegedly the prequel to his Brill character here.

Anyway, this movie provides a lot of food for thought . . .

Enemy of the State was released in 1998, only 3 years before the Nein Eleven false flag that excused the launching of the most intrusive surveillance apparatus the world has ever known.

And just like the Congressdoosh in the movie, everybody except for RonP aul said it would only be used on dirty furriners to protect the Good Ol' USofA.

But as Edwards Nowden and later Julia Nassange revealed a decade later, America's alphabet agencies soon turned the surveillance against Americans themselves.

Fast-forward to 2021, where it turns out the movie plays more like a documentary than a political thriller. The good guys are now the bad guys. Politicians are hopelessly compromised. The sp00ks are in charge. All our moves are on camera somewhere. Everything we write - including our movie reviews - is logged. There is no privacy.

Somewhere in the bowels of Hollywood there is probably a script in development about the disingtegration of the Western World, probably disguised as a Fall of the Roman Empire Netflix series, featuring barbarian hordes and starving serfs. Twenty years from now it will all come depressingly true.

Enjoy the film !