Knowing

~ Knowing is Everything ~

Knowing has been a film I have been waiting to see for quite a while. I missed it when it was released at the cinema and this week I finally managed to receive it from my Lovefilm list. I really like world disaster films and love 'The day after tomorrow'. Even though this looked liked the same sort of thing it was intriguing to see how it was different to other films of the same topic. The science fiction film was released to the UK this year and is now finally on DVD. I was interested to see what the graphics would be like and what happens. I had not seen a lot about this film before watching it, only an advert a few weeks before which looked pretty good. Another reason I really wanted to see the film is because the main role was starred by Nicholas Cage. I am a big fan of his and love all of his films.

After sitting down for a quiet night in with a new film, I was very interested in this and hoping I would not be disappointed. The cover is pretty simple but looks effective. A picture of the earth in fire gives a clue that it is a world disaster film. The dark colours give it a sinister feel and I liked the fact that it didn't really give much else away. I have heard of the director and he is known for dark, eerie films which gave a good impression for this.

~ INFO ~

Director- Alex Proyas

Alex is a well known director who has directed over 100 music videos. He went into directing TV and films in the 1980's starting with the film Neon. He is known for his sinister sci-fi films and has won many awards for his work. He has a high standard of work and I had great hopes for this film. Other films he has directed include- 'The Crow' 1994, 'Dark City' 1998 and 'I, Robot' 2004.

Writers- Ryne Douglas Pearson and Juliet Snowden

Release- 25 Match 2009 (UK)

Runtime- 121 Mins

Certificate- 15

Distributed- Summit Entertainment

~

A schoolboy opens a time capsule from 1959 at school which reveals some unusual numbers written. His father, who is a professor of astrophysics, becomes weary when his son complains of hearing voices in his head. After looking at these numbers he researches what they could mean and comes to the conclusion that they have something to do with every world disaster that has happened in the last fifty years. When John witnesses the next accident he is determined that he can do something to stop the remaining events. Can he stop the next disasters is the question, while his son becomes more and more affected by the voices in his head.

~ CAST and CHARACTERS ~

Nicolas Cage- Professor John Koestler

John is an alcoholic and a widower. He finds it hard to live without his wife and struggles to raise his son. He lives in a big house in the woods and is over worked. He spends no time with his son which means they do not get on all the time. He seems to be finding life unbearable and is a weak minded person when cracks show he is not right. His character changes through the film as he becomes stronger and more level headed. He knows he has to be there for his son and becomes more of a father. John is a likeable character and you do feel for him a lot in the movie. He is the character you connect with most and you follow everything he discovers the same time as he does.

Nicolas Cage has to be one of my favourite actors. I love his characters and he plays every emotion to the highest standard. This film is no different. His acting is always top notch and he delivers a brilliant performance. All of his roles are believable and he fits them very well. Other films of his include- 'Con Air' 1997, 'Face Off' 1997 and 'Next' 2007.

Rose Byrne- Diana Wayland

Diana is the daughter of the troubled girl Lucinda who put the time capsule in the hole in 1959. He knows her mother had secrets and when she dies she found it hard to come to terms that she was gifted not mental. She meets John has he wants to know more about her mother and at first she dismisses him. She is a protective mother and lives a quiet life with her daughter. She does not like to be in the spotlight and will do anything for her daughter. I quiet liked the character but thought she was a bit odd to start with. I didn't feel very interested in her but the actress did fit the role well.

Rose is an Australian actress and I have heard of her before but couldn't picture her from other films. She has a very recognisable face and plays her roles well. After researching her name I remembered her from all sorts of films. She has appeared in many famous films including- 'Troy' 2004, '28 Weeks Later' 2007 and 'Star Wars Episode II' 2002.

Chandler Canterbury - Caleb Koestler- John's son and a major character in the story.

Lara Robinson - Lucinda Embry / Abby Wayland

Nadia Townsend - Grace Koestler

Ben Mendelsohn - Professor Phil Beckman

Alan Hopgood - Reverend Koestler

~ OPINIONS ~

The story sounds like any other disaster film but his has a slight difference to it. When the story develops it becomes something like a sci-fi series, its mysterious, and creates an amazing creepy atmosphere. The tension when finding out about the world's end is eerie and is very consistent in keeping the mystery of what will happen next. The film is not anything new but offers a different prospective and a collection of events which could be believable. I really liked how everything came together. You see John working out this theory and you can believe it. You find out everything at the same time as him which I liked as you follow his journey to the answers. I really liked the mystery at the start where nothing is explained. You have many questions in your head and nothing is revealed. It looks like a horror film to start with and then other genres come into play. I was fixed on the first half of the film and couldn't look away.

Some of the plot does seem a little rushed and several parts missing. It seems to be jumpy and looks have if there have been parts cut which could have mad it flow easier. The scene where his son tells John that he is not a kid anymore seems cut down too much. It was random and didn't really fit in what was going on. He looks too young to understand that his dad is going mental. I didn't really take much notice of when John meets Diana; I think this could have been done better. You wouldn't just approach someone in a museum and pretend to talk about your kids, I thought that was creepy I'd walk off if anyone did that to me. Even though there are some faults the narrative is simple enough to understand and does develop quite well. I was disappointed in the ending though, and this could have been a lot better. It had no affect on me and I thought it was quite stupid.

Knowing feels like a film where it had really good ideas behind it and then it was rushed to be made. It makes you think that it was not thought out entirely, which is surprising, coming from a well is known director. Even though it is quite a long film it needed more for it to be smooth running. Even with the great set up it seems to lack in interest at the end. It makes mistakes and I think that even though it had great actors and a good director the script let them down.

FILMING

The best thing about this film I thought was the special effects and filming. There were some brilliant shots and the disasters were filmed very well. My favourite scene has to be where John witnesses a plane crash right in front of him. The way it was filmed was just brilliant. The plane just misses John and blows up in a field nearby. There are fire balls, explosions and you actually see people burning to death. Bodies were realistic as they are surrounded by flames and when the engine blows you see it crash down o n top of running people. It was quite surprising but amazing. It was a very strong scene and had excellent sound. This scene was properly what made it worth while to watch. All of the disaster scenes were well staged and create an amazing tension. It is a stylish film and is filmed well.

The haunting scenes were also ok. Some parts were pretty creepy and the aliens were pretty realistic. The voices in the head were good and reminded me of films such as The Ring. You feel venerable for the kids as you think danger surrounds them. There are a few parts that make you feel a bit weird. For example strange men enter the house and stand over the kid's bed, starring at him. That is freaky and you sit there hoping the kid is not hurt. Even though the creepy men are seen as dangerous, the children do not seem to be that worried when approached by them.

~ OVERALL ~

I quite liked the film and will therefore recommend that it is worth a watch. I would not buy it on DVD but really like the filming and the strong start to the story. Maybe just watch the first half. It is gory in parts and brilliant to watch but some of it is a bit boring and it lacks creativity at the end. It starts really well and you will find yourself caught up in suspension. The acting was good but I think Nicolas is let down by the script. He tries his best to make it what it is but I think it could have been done better. I would rent it out from the shop as I cannot say that everyone will like it. It received mixed reception and many said it was rubbish. It is defiantly one of Nicolas Cage's worst films done.

Starts off really well, but gets a bit far fetched towards the end.

'Knowing' is good if you like sci-fi films