The 13th Floor - R2 DVD Movie Review

Since I can remember, that I have been interested in too many things. In some cases, as I get older and older, I have been finding answers to some of the many questions that naturally arise from such curiosity... (un)Fortunately a new answer always debuts some new questions :) and (my) ignorance becomes more and more obvious.

One of the most passionate subjects I try to understand since my very early days, is the mystery of life itself. Even before knowing how to read && write, that I devote some regular time to reflections on the origin and nature of our world. My first writings are precisely about my consolidated thoughts on the origin of our Planet and... about she-elephants... which was something quite unusual for my primary teacher.

Surprisingly, my immature ideas proofed very acceptable, throughout time. More recently, I started studying the subject of "Artificial Life", on a Computer Science context. What I have learned and my own thoughts on it, already motivated some hot healthy discussions with friends and family.

Basically, I believe that we (humans) are in no position to be 100% certain of not being mere objects, with a certain autonomy, in something else's universe. Do not read "God" where I write "something"; do not think that I am having a religious attitude (I have no religious beliefs), and please do not assume that I am plain nuts. Let me put it this way: in the 10th century, did chinese know about people living in the Amazon jungle @ Brazil? No - they were convinced they were alone. Today, do we know about life outside Earth? No, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Some people (like myself) believe in it; others don't... But stop, lets re-focus... The NEW problem I am trying to write about, is not on being alone on smaller and / or larger scale universes, but about AUTONOMY on the universe.

Reread: "...we (humans) are in no position to be 100% certain of not being mere objects, with a certain autonomy, in something else's universe...". And it is true. If you don't believe me, try prove me wrong - you won't make it, though you can prove that I can't prove me right.

If you go visit my Gil page - an artificial life creature that lives in Cyberlife's Creatures (the PC game) world - and then install it on your game, you'll easily accept that Gil doesn't know he is being played, and that he has enough autonomy to evolve *alone* on "his" world. Now, change context and think about yourself: what makes you better than Gil? Nothing: you have limited autonomy, on "your" world, and you don't believe that you are being played. In some cases you don't even accept to start thinking about the idea!

Pretty radical and original, right? WRONG! As I found out yesterday, there is a blockbuster movie on the subject - it is "The 13th Floor", produced by "Stargate"-famous Roland Emmerich.

Though super seller "Matrix" already had some touching points with the "we're being played" subject (in "Matrix" humans are electric batteries, that fuel a totally different civilization), "The 13th floor" is very directly linked to the above idea of us being no more than personages in someone else's game (literally).

The similarities with "Matrix" happen all the way down to the release date, with "The 13h floor" debuting just two months later, but - again - cease when going the way up: in a broader, higher, perspective, "Matrix" climbs more, while Emmerich's production, gets glued to the more concrete, less general "simulation games".

On a more ground-to-ground approach, here is what "The 13th floor" (T13F) is all about...

T13F is a love and murder story, set in 1937, today and 2024... though you'll only understand it fully, by the end of the movie.

It goes like this: a Computer Scientist, named Fuller (Armin Mueller-Stahl), gets murdered; his best friend and partner Doublas Hall (Craig Biergo) becomes a suspect of the deed; then Fuller's daughter (Gretchen Mol) steps in to help him understanding what's going on... And what's going on, is a computer simulation of a 1937 town, where today's users can enter and control the simulated inhabitants, living something that feels e-x-a-c-t-l-y like the real thing. It is the real thing, but one bubble down :).

The movie remembers me "Blade Runner", because of its dark ambiance; some of the special effects (SFX) are a bit like the ones in Emmerich's "Stargate". However, T13F is quite unique. In fact, it is very original, with unusual actors and actresses, a very solid script, which is easier to understand than Matrix's and less dependent on SFX.

I can't write more about what really happens as the police investigation goes on, because the "noir element" would be lost.

All I can add is that T13F is absolutely mandatory on any good DVD collection. Sound and picture quality are superb, the entertainment is there, and there is a "relax" factor too, meaning that you won't get stressed with overacting situations, script incoherences and so on.

The 13th Floor (USA; 1999; rated R)

Director: Joseph Rusnak.

Producers: Roland Emmerich, Ute Emmerich, Marco Weber.

Cast: Craig Bierko, Gretchen Mol, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Vincent D'Onofrio, Dennis Haysbert

Music: Harald Kloser. Cinematography: Wedigo von Schultzendorff.

Writers: Joseph Rusnak & Ravel Centeno-Rodriguez, based on the novel Simulacron 3, by Daniel F. Galouye.