Themes: Voyeurs, Technology Run Amok, Future Dystopias
Main Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Michael Wincott
Release Year: 1995
Country: US
Run Time: 145 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Set in Los Angeles two days before the end of 1999, Strange Days introduces us to Lenny Nero (Ralph Fiennes), an ex-cop turned sleazy hustler who hawks the newest underground thrill on the black market: a "squid," a headpiece that allows one to transmit digital recordings of other people's thoughts, feelings, and memories into their brain; as Lenny describes it, "this is real life, pure and uncut, straight from the cerebral cortex." Lenny deals "clips" (the software) as well as "squids" (the hardware) for this new and illegal entertainment system, and while sex and violence are the most popular themes, Lenny refuses to deal in "blackjack" -- slang for snuff clips. Lenny is nursing a broken heart after his girlfriend, punk singer Faith Justin (Juliette Lewis), left him, and he spends a lot of time with clips he recorded when they were together. Faith is now involved with Philo Grant (Michael Wincott), a music business tycoon who once managed Jeriko One (Glenn Plummer), a hip-hop musician and political activist whose murder has sent L.A. into a state of chaos. When a clip emerges that shows that Jeriko was killed by L.A. police officers, Lenny finds his life in danger, and he tries to escape possible death on both sides of the law with the help of his friend Mace Mason (Angela Bassett). Strange Days was written by James Cameron in collaboration with former film critic Jay Cocks; Kathryn Bigelow directed. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Film buffs will want to see this stylish futuristic thriller for the opening sequence alone. Utilizing a specially designed subjective camera, director Kathryn Bigelow takes the viewer from a car into a building, up the stairs, across the roof, and over the edge in a single, astounding take. Without a cut. The scene is pure filmmaking at its most exuberant and sets the stage for this absorbing tale of virtual reality and brainwashing in a dynamic, breathtaking manner. The rest of the film is similarly flamboyant, and the climactic chase scenes through the crowds at the millennial New Year's celebration are wonderfully exciting. Bigelow, whose skill as a visual stylist was already well-evidenced by the cult favorite Near Dark (1987) and the underrated Blue Steel (1990), has outdone herself here, and the results are spectacular. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
Vincent D'Onofrio - Burton Steckler; Stefan Arngrim - Skinner; Brigitte Bako - Iris; David Carrera - Duncan; Art Chudabala - Thai Restaurant Owner; Chris Douridas - Talk Radio Host; Richard Edson - Tick; William Fichtner - Dwayne Engleman; John Francis - Death; Todd Graff - Tex Arcana; Ted Haler - Tow Truck Driver; Kelly Hu - Anchor Woman; Nicky Katt - Joey Corto; Maurice Marshall - African Dancer; Royce Minor - Angry Black Kid; Malcolm Norrington - Replay; David Packer - Lane; Glenn Plummer - Jeriko One; Agustin Rodriguez - Eduardo; Paolo Tocha - Spaz Diaz; Ron Young - Nervous POV; James Acheson - Cop in Bathroom; Josef Sommer - Palmer Strickland; Joe Urla - Keith; Brandon Hammond - Zander; Ray Chang - Thai Restaurant Cook; Jim Ishida - Mr. Fumitsu; Nicole Hilbig - Stoned Girl's Lover
Credit
John Warnke - Art Director, Rick Pagano - Casting, Ira Shuman - Co-producer, Ellen Mirojnick - Costume Designer, Steve Danton - First Assistant Director, Kathryn Bigelow - Director, Howard E. Smith - Editor, Lawrence Kasanoff - Executive Producer, Rae Sanchini - Executive Producer, Graeme Revell - Composer (Music Score), Gary Rydstrom - Musical Direction/Supervision, Jeff Wexler - Musical Direction/Supervision, Graeme Revell - Songwriter, Lilly Kilvert - Production Designer, Matthew Leonetti - Cinematographer, James Cameron - Producer, Steven Charles Jaffe - Producer, Kara Lindstrom - Set Designer, Digital Domain - Special Effects, David Ronne - Sound/Sound Designer, Doug Coleman - Stunts, James Cameron - Screenwriter, Philip Pfeiffer - Screenwriter, Donald Myers - Special Effects Foreman
In December 1999, Los Angeles has become a nightmare with heightened police tensions and civil unrest, stemming largely from the brutal murder of Jeriko One (Glenn Plummer), a hip-hop artist strongly critical of the LAPD's pervasive brutality. In the last days of the millennium, former police detective turned street hustler Lenny Nero (Ralph Fiennes) deals in 'SQUID' recordings: experiences recorded directly from the cerebral cortex which when played back through a MiniDisc-like device allow a user to experience all recorded sensory inputs as if actually doing it themselves. Despite his charming and suave veneer, Lenny is a deeply unhappy man who constantly yearns for his ex-girlfriend Faith (Juliette Lewis), repeatedly reliving their happier times through his own SQUID recordings of her, while relying on his bodyguard friend Lornette "Mace" Mason (Angela Bassett) for emotional support. Lenny is also friends with Max (Tom Sizemore), a former police officer injured in the line of duty who now works as a private investigator.
While dealing erotic SQUID recordings, Lenny receives a "black jack" (snuff) disc portraying the excruciating rape and murder of Iris (Brigitte Bako), a prostitute he is acquainted with and who met with him hours before her death. Deeply troubled by both the tape and warnings Iris had made about Faith's safety (the two having been friends), and convinced that the killer will strike again, Lenny immediately overreacts using his paranoia as an excuse to try to get Faith away from her new boyfriend, music industry mogul Philo Gant (Michael Wincott).
Over time Lenny receives more snuff tapes, clearly made by the same person as the original recording, and he and Mace eventually discover that the case is tied to a cover-up of the murder of Jeriko One by LAPD officers sick of the trouble his message is causing. As they are hunted by the two police officers (Vincent D'Onofrio and William Fichtner) that committed the murder and constantly repelled by Philo's goons, Lenny and Mace find themselves in a race to uncover the full truth before the murderer catches up with them, and before civil war descends on Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Lenny and Mace's relationship begins to deepen and intensify as he finds out the truth about Faith, while trying to protect her.
Strange Days was given a limited release on October 6, 1995 in only one theater and grossed $31,062 on its opening weekend. It was given a wide release on October 13, 1995 in 1,691 and grossed $3.6 million on its opening weekend. The film went on to make $7.9 million in North America.[2]
Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars and wrote, "The movie is a technical tour de force ... The pacing is relentless, and the editing, by Howard Smith, creates an urgency and desperation".[3] In her review for The New York Times, Janet Maslin praised the performances of Ralph Fiennes and Angela Bassett: "Mr. Fiennes gleefully captures Lenny's sleaziness while also showing there is something about this schlockmeister that is worth saving, despite much evidence to the contrary. As for Ms. Bassett, she looks great and radiates inner strength even without the bone-crunching physical feats to which she is often assigned".[4]Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "B-" rating and Owen Gleiberman wrote, "Strange Days has a dazzling atmosphere of grunge futurism, but beneath its dark satire of audiovisual decadence lurks a naggingly conventional underworld thriller".[5]Rolling Stone magazine's Peter Travers wrote, "In a film of striking performances, Bassett's is the standout -- she is fierce, funny and heart rending".[6] In his review for the San Francisco Chronicle, Edward Guthmann wrote, "Strange Days wants to say something about faith and redemption -- about the importance of maintaining one's humanity in a darkened world. That's a worthy intent, but Bigelow is so enamored of high-tech thrills, and so mesmerized by the violence she seeks to condemn, that her efforts at 11th-hour moralizing seem limp and halfhearted".[7] In his review for the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan wrote, "No matter how much thought may have gone into Strange Days, terribly little has come out the other end".[8]
