Zenith

This is the sort of analogies, the new metaphors, the "world has already ended, and we're just catching up with it" William Gibson-esque view of things we need to sort things out. If you haven't heard Nine Inch Nails' "Year Zero" and have never picked up "Adbusters," you might be surprised that people have been directing cultural impulses to address the situation (set(s)) we find ourselves in -- but then, you might be awed by the "complexity" of Marvel and think that vague passing references to overpopulation and toxic overfill qualify as addressing the capitalistic addition we've all been raised in. Forget that.

I just re-watched this film. Now almost a decade old, Zenith became a cult underground thing for people in the know back then and subsequently inspired more mainstream films and series that followed its themes, most obviously Mr.Robot. While these projects took some of the ideas and the look and style of Zenith, they toned them down and made them "safe" for mass consumption. Zenith was way ahead of its time and still is. While conspiracy memes and the one percent narrative have become common place by now, the film still leaves you with a lot to process and think about.

An exciting stand-up triple that falls frustrating short of a home run. Wonderfully original and thought-provoking story covering the dystopian topics of power structures without rule-of-law, genetic manipulation on a mass scale, mind chemical crutches, and the erosion of scholasticism. Acting, sets, and cinematography all done well, which is impressive given the film's 12 dollar and 50 cents budget. Unfortunately, many story elements get tossed in without backdrop or development (how did everyone get genetically altered as soon as 2044, especially in a world lacking the organizational framework of governments?). It feels like the too-condensed movie version of a epic-length cerebral sci-fi book series, like Herbert's Dune or Card's Ender, but sadly, no such luck. Nevertheless, Zenith is brain candy worth chewing on over and over.

There is so much to unpack in this film. I saw it a decade ago and followed some of its meta-narratives online when it came out. I saw it again now. It's bewildering to think how much the context is the same but also different from ten years ago - from Anonymous to conspiracy theories to the pharmaceutical references and everything else- reality is truly stranger than fiction. I'll leave it at that, so as not to spoil the fun of discovering this unique film. Zenith is even more timely now than when it was initially released. Lots of comparisons to dystopian films and books have been made, but I would say James Graham Ballard is the most apt one. This film is a wild ride for free souls and open minds. If you take it literally and think that it doesn't make sense that people would take medication to feel pain, or that Jack's inner monologue is not a tongue-in-cheek literary reference, or trust his father to tell you the truth about that famous psychological experiment and consider the ending to be a cop out, you are missing the point. It's like saying why doesn't Godot show up in Waiting for Godot. Duh.

I can't emphasize this enough: I regret watching this movie. We've all wasted time on worthless movies, but I honestly wish I could "unsee" Zenith. It's unnecessarily vulgar and completely worthless. Zenith is well done in the way that a birthday cake made of rocks and muffin mix can be well done. The cinematography is okay but nothing special. Acting was okay, bordering on bad. The Story is completely weak. It's not profound, and this isn't because I didn't "Get it". I know exactly what the movie is trying to do, but it just wasn't good. The concept it tries to deliver is actually really basic. It's nothing new. And they didn't even deliver it well. The movies description is accurate. People looking for pain because they want to feel ANYTHING other than happiness. I think this movie is something like a demonstration of such yearnings. The content is weak and useless, but it does deliver plenty of "Shocking" things... for the sake of being shocking. There are SEVERAL graphic dirty sex scenes that just make you feel uneasy and dirty. There's even a vulgar sex/rape scene between a Father and his Daughter. The kinds of things that burn into your mind and you can't "unsee" them. I'm not picky about the "F bomb". I really don't mind it as long as it's not used in a vulgar sexual way. In Zenith, they used it quite a bit like that. The movie has plenty of violence, but nothing worse than many movies you may have already seen. They push the envelope pretty badly when it comes to the sex, but not all that much with the violence. Plenty of brutal beatings, gunshots etc. A mild scene of a forced abortion. Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of violence, but I've seen much worse.

I continued watching this because I hoped that it had a worthwhile story. I trudged through the awful sex and porn crossing my fingers that it wouldn't have any more and the story would get better. Just more unsettling sex and a weak story.

I would say don't bother, but it's worse than that. Don't watch this, you may regret it. But seriously. Don't watch it out of curiosity now. You should be curious about it like you should be curious about what it feels like to lick a hot stove.