Computer scientist Hannon Fuller (Armin Mueller-Stahl) finds something extremely important. Knowing that he's marked for assassination, he leaves a message in the virtual reality world he's designed, hoping it will be found by colleague Douglas Hall (Craig Bierko). Hall is a suspect in Fuller's murder and indeed finds a bloody shirt in his house, with no recollection of what he did the night before. Hall plunges headlong into Fuller's world (a re-creation of l937 Los Angeles) to try to unravel the slaying and is soon knee-deep in confusion and trouble. What this film lacks in character depth and plot cohesiveness it makes up for in special effects and high concept. Fans of films like Blade Runner, Dark City, eXistenZ, and even the game Sim City should find this appealing. Of course, there's the question of letting the computers do all the heavy lifting in films while the humans walk through the plot (an all-too-familiar scenario in 1999), but the re-creation of 30s Los Angeles is certainly something to see, pallid script and acting or not. The Thirteenth Floor is a stylish modern-day noir that raises questions about technology vs. reality, all the while wrapped up in a murder-mystery story line. --Jerry Renshaw
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Reality check Whilst visiting a virtual world he has helped design(a perfect recreation of 1930's Los Angeles), computer programmer Hannon Fuller(Armin Mueller-Stahl) leaves a message in the virtual world for his friend Douglas Scott(Craig Bierko) to discover. He then returns to the real world and is brutally murdered. Scott awakes the next morning with bloodstained clothes in his bin, and no recollection of what he did the night before. With the police suspecting him of murder, and too many questions unanswered, Scott... more info
An under-rated classic Having read the other reviews, there's only a few things I want to comment on here. Firstly, that one reviewer talks about the 'time-shift' concepts shows that he never really got in to and understood the film. This is *not* a film about time travel or time 'shifting' but about reality. I can't believe that it's too complicated to give that impression so I can only assume that the reviewer wasn't giving the film their full attention - which is what the film needs. Second, Craig Bierko is not my... more info
Below Average This film is rather like an episode of the Twilight Zone spun out into a movie. Of course some short stories can make the leap to a full blown movie but this story didn't make it probably because the screen play is so bad. I bought this DVD based on other peoples reviews and I was disappointed with what is ultimately a B movie verging on bargain-basement-quality. You might be better off purchasing a second hand copy of a Sci Fi classic so as to avoid disappointment. Sorry but this movie just isn't... more info
A Great Final Twist! Great thriller, which will keep you guessing until the last frame. The last twist makes you question what reality is. It made me ponder whether we really are at the top of the food chain or whether we simply serve as food for hyperdimensional beings? An interesting question which Gurdjieff, Carlos Castaneda and the Sufis amongst others have alluded to. For exploring this question I can recommend the book by Laura Knight-Jadczyk "The Secret History of the World and How to Get Out Alive" for starters.... more info
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