Paranoia

PARANOIA

Director : Robert Luketic

Year : 2014

Genre : Thriller

Rating : *

Based on the 2004 novel of the same, 'Paranoia' is the latest film from Australian director Robert Luketic whose previous work includes the fun but silly '21', the entertaining but irritating 'Legally Blonde' and the atrocious, soul destroying 'The Ugly Truth'. Starring Liam Hemsworth and Amber Heard as well as a number of cinematic legends including Gary Oldman, Harrison Ford and even Richard Dreyfuss, 'Paranoia' tells the story of a young man who is forced to infiltrate a rival company when he is blackmailed by a powerful tycoon of a successful mobile phone manufacturer. While it's cast may be impressive and Luketic may be a director of some repute, a dreary screenplay and a total lack of any sense of danger or the titular paranoia make the film an unbearably boring cliched drag that has only made a name for itself thanks to it's appalling box office numbers and vitriolic critical response, an astonishing feat for a film that stars some of the most talented and reliable actors working in the movies and the eye of a director who has made some engaging pictures in the past.

After failing to impress his boss at an important high profile pitch, young inventor and whizzkid Adam Cassidy (Hemsworth) decides to kiss goodbye to his job by spending all of the money that is on his company credit card on a wild night out with his fellow workmates. However, it is not long before his ex - manager (Oldman) finds out and Cassidy is soon interrogated by the unpredictable and dangerous billionaire about the overspending of his hard earned cash. But instead of being prosecuted or even beaten up for his insolence, Cassidy is given an ultimatum; to infiltrate the company of his boss' old rival Jock (Ford) and discover the secrets behind his next big invention, an invention that Oldman claims to have been stolen from him by his enemy. Seduced by potential power and wealth, it is not too long before Adam becomes entangled in a web of lies, deceit and even murder as he discovers the lengths that the two billionaires will go to destroy each others glittering reputations.

It is ironic that a film entitled 'Paranoia' could be so dull and lacking in any sense of threat or danger whatsoever. Sure it looks nice and the neon lighting used throughout lends the movie a nice, futuristic aesthetic but the aforementioned screenplay has little to no development and the dialogue is so hackeyed and generic that any atmosphere of impending risk is immediately dissolved as soon as a character opens their mouth. Despite the welcome prescence of Oldman, Dreyfuss and Ford, the acting is unbelievably wooden and the characters as whole are uninteresting, self centred and at times boring to and the point of unwatchable. Clearly trying to echo the success of his much more recognisable and generally more talented brother Chris, Liam Hemsworth continues his escapades into populist cinema but a lack of experience and a total absence of screen prescence turns his protagonist into a highly conventional archetype that has little personality, little likability and zero investability. Amber Heard serves as the necessary love interest and while she may be nice to look, her character provides no plot development and only is there to be the good looking face on the poster. As an ensemble, the cast have no chemistry whatsoever and the apparant hatred between Oldman and Ford is barely explored which begs the question, what or who are we meant to root for? Or more importantly, do I even care?

Making back just a third of it's $35m budget, 'Paranoia' has already gained the unwanted title of a box office bomb and on it's US release, critical reception was far from positive. Rotten Tomatoes has given it a 5% rating and IMDB, the worlds most popular movie review site has 'Paranoia' down at a measly 5.6 out of 10. Believe the ratings, it is an astonishingly boring film that is only saved by it's sumptuous cinematography and Junkie XL's electronic soundtrack.

As Mr. Anchovy says in 'Monty Pythons Flying Circus' during the Vocational Guidance Counselor sketch -

''It's dull, dull, dull, my God it's dull! It's so desperately dull and tedious and stuffy and boring and desperately dull!''