Zenith

In the year 2044, people are genetically engineered to be happy all the time. However, this only brings them paradoxical numbness.

The main character Jack deals pain pills to give people feelings of pain. He uncovers his father's video tapes about the Zenith conspiracy. He has a fling with a whorish yet sympathetic woman. He explores the film's theme as narrator.

This indie film was really weird. Zenith says it's Anonymous but it's apparently by Vladan Nikolic.

I read the plot wiki beforehand and actually watching Zenith was still a bit of a puzzle. It might be one of those movies you'd have to see more than once to fully get it.

There is an interesting premise to the plot where language is being forgotten, and it's rare to know certain words.

Zenith is interesting for its "transmedia" experimentalism. It has a weird promotional website, Stop Zenith. The main character has a fictional blog.

The official website is at ZENITH.

Zenith was billed as: "A retro-futuristic steam-punk thriller." It's ironic because steampunk is becoming such a stamp on anything science fiction these days. But this might be more like dystopian biopunk.

Zenith is a weird film, but it is suspenseful because of the thriller tone. It creates a mystery. It only falls short on fulfilling my hopes that it would come together sensibly in the end. In conclusion, the film's abstraction overshadows its plot, and the extra media is exceedingly bizarre.

Gattaca

Gattaca is a science fiction thriller starring Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, and Jude Law. It's about a future world where genes can be manipulated to create a God-child. But the protagonist Vincent is an In-Valid. This means he has some serious, life-threatening genetic defects. He is overshadowed by his younger brother, who has perfect genes. However Vincent sets himself up to use a paralyzed but Valid man named Jerome Morrow's DNA to make himself pass for a Valid and follow his dream of going up into space.

This is an enjoyable, fascinating movie with an interesting premise and vivid characters. It also seems philosophical. The movie explores various relationships, ambitions, and limitations. It's both dark and hopeful.

It got me thinking and I thought it was really well told and directed, and that includes the cinematography. I don't always notice it but I did notice the way the camera was used.

Gattaca is certainly an unrecognized film for being such a great, intellectual biopunk story.