"The lights always look brighter across the river." After saying the wrong things, Adam (Hemsworth) an up-and-coming employee at a powerful corporation finds himself and his friends out of a job. After the owner Nicolas Wyatt (Oldman) recruits him to spy on rival Jock Goddard (Ford) to find out what his company is coming up with Adam finds himself stuck in the middle of a dangerous game. When he wants out he realizes that it's not just his life is threatened unless he completes his task. I was looking forward to watching this for two reasons. Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman, also Richard Dreyfuss is in this but in a lesser role. I cannot recall a movie they have been in that has been bad (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was bad but its still Indiana Jones so I can't hate it and I blame Lucas for that anyway). I did find out how to mess up a movie with those two legendary actors...add baby Thor (Liam Hemsworth). I'm not saying he was a bad actor in this because it wasn't terrible but when you have those two in a movie and you make baby Thor the main focus you have screwed up somewhere. I'd compare this to the movie Son Of No One in the way that you have Ray Liotta and Al Pacino and you make Channing Tatum the focus. Nothing personal against Hemsworth or Tatum but when you have such high caliber actors why waste them? As far as this movie goes the scenes with Oldman and Ford are amazing as expected, as far as the rest goes it was slow, a little boring and not exciting at all. With the plot being about the seedy underworld of the cellphone app industry though you don't have much to work with. Overall, a movie that could have been so much better but ended up being almost not worth seeing. It pains me to do this but I give it a C.
117 Reviews
Nothing to fuss about, too bad
JohnRayPeterson18 November 2013
If you watch this movie because it has Gary Oldman or Harrison Ford, you won't be alone, but you may be in for a disappointment, I'm sorry to say. Firstly they don't have much screen time and the time they do have seems to have been filmed in a hurry with little effort put into it by anyone.
The main character is that of Liam Hemsworth, who plays Adam Cassidy; the best he has going for him is that he a good looking guy. I didn't find the character very convincing, unlike the part of his dad played by Richard Dreyfuss, but his lines might as well have been written on a napkin. What a waste of talent by writer and director here.
What you might like are the fancy cars and great settings as well as the secondary roles of Kevin and Allison, played respectively by Lucas Till and Angela Sarafyan. It's all so sad that a plot, especially the ending, could have been so much more, I could see the possibilities I did not see on screen.
The main character is that of Liam Hemsworth, who plays Adam Cassidy; the best he has going for him is that he a good looking guy. I didn't find the character very convincing, unlike the part of his dad played by Richard Dreyfuss, but his lines might as well have been written on a napkin. What a waste of talent by writer and director here.
What you might like are the fancy cars and great settings as well as the secondary roles of Kevin and Allison, played respectively by Lucas Till and Angela Sarafyan. It's all so sad that a plot, especially the ending, could have been so much more, I could see the possibilities I did not see on screen.
Implausible, Cliché-Ridden Twaddle
RolyRoly19 August 2013
Thankfully, Gary Oldman can make almost any film bearable and his portrayal here of a ruthless, corrupt CEO is just about the only thing that this derivative movie has going for it. He manages to infuse a one-dimensional character with at least one more dimension.
The script is so full of hackneyed clichés that I felt like I was watching a Dan Brown novel. You have to assume that the writer's entire experience of the corporate world is based on a combination of Occupy Movement manifestos and Oliver Stone movies. Liam Hemsworth has evidently starred in something call the Hunger Games where, I have to assume, he was hired for his looks and not his acting chops.
August is usually the doldrums when it comes to movie releases and this dud simply proves the rule to which Blue Jasmine is the exception.
The script is so full of hackneyed clichés that I felt like I was watching a Dan Brown novel. You have to assume that the writer's entire experience of the corporate world is based on a combination of Occupy Movement manifestos and Oliver Stone movies. Liam Hemsworth has evidently starred in something call the Hunger Games where, I have to assume, he was hired for his looks and not his acting chops.
August is usually the doldrums when it comes to movie releases and this dud simply proves the rule to which Blue Jasmine is the exception.
A shame it's not better
TdSmth511 January 2014
Cassidy and his friends work for Wyatt mobile and are pitching a new idea to the boss. He doesn't care for it and Cassidy gets arrogant. They're fired but for some reason he still has an active expense account credit card and they party that night. He also meets the pretty Emma.
The next day, Wyatt wants to meet with Cassidy. He will get him a job with his childhood competitor Goddard so that he can steal Goddard's next big idea. He's got a behavioral specialist on board and sets Cassidy up with the good life and trains him. Cassidy gets the job and Goddard is impressed with his idea. And as it turns out Emma also works for Goddard. Everything is going fine until Wyatt's people become more pushy and want him to steal the future device from Goddard's corporate vault. Of course he's caught and with that Goddard wants to buy Wyatt's company or put him in jail, but Cassidy has some plans of his own.
Paranoia has a lot going for a it- a decent budget, impressive cast, an OK story, good visuals. It even starts with some important discussion about how America has completely ceased being the country of opportunity it once was. The direction is poor and the script could have used some work. The movie's title is wrong or if they intended to highlight the moment of Cassidy's paranoia they failed. As a whole, emotionally, this movie is pretty flat. There should be a far greater sense of dread and danger. Perhaps it's because they went with a PG-13 rating. As an R-rated movie this could have been better. I get the sense that they aimed for a mature teen audience looking for a serious movie. And perhaps it would work for that crowd- not sure. Paranoia had a lot of potential. I wanted to like this movie as the cast does a good job, except for Oldman's and Davidtz's obnoxious British accent. But the director did his best and succeeded at frustrating the audience and not giving us as good a movie as it should have been.
The next day, Wyatt wants to meet with Cassidy. He will get him a job with his childhood competitor Goddard so that he can steal Goddard's next big idea. He's got a behavioral specialist on board and sets Cassidy up with the good life and trains him. Cassidy gets the job and Goddard is impressed with his idea. And as it turns out Emma also works for Goddard. Everything is going fine until Wyatt's people become more pushy and want him to steal the future device from Goddard's corporate vault. Of course he's caught and with that Goddard wants to buy Wyatt's company or put him in jail, but Cassidy has some plans of his own.
Paranoia has a lot going for a it- a decent budget, impressive cast, an OK story, good visuals. It even starts with some important discussion about how America has completely ceased being the country of opportunity it once was. The direction is poor and the script could have used some work. The movie's title is wrong or if they intended to highlight the moment of Cassidy's paranoia they failed. As a whole, emotionally, this movie is pretty flat. There should be a far greater sense of dread and danger. Perhaps it's because they went with a PG-13 rating. As an R-rated movie this could have been better. I get the sense that they aimed for a mature teen audience looking for a serious movie. And perhaps it would work for that crowd- not sure. Paranoia had a lot of potential. I wanted to like this movie as the cast does a good job, except for Oldman's and Davidtz's obnoxious British accent. But the director did his best and succeeded at frustrating the audience and not giving us as good a movie as it should have been.
This was good, I don't get why so many bag it.
portsea16 July 2022
It's not the fastest paced film, but the acting is amazingly good. Liam is believable and excellent in the role. Heard, well, no doubt in my mind she is an excellent actress, and plans her role with perfect amount of allure and I can't help but think she is just being herself... oldman is an amazing actor as of course is for and they both play the parts well. I really can't work out why people don't like it...
Story was good, and not as predictable as one might think.
Definitely worth watching.
Story was good, and not as predictable as one might think.
Definitely worth watching.
Great movie if you're into shallow plot lines
symphonic12317 August 2013
This movie is not gripping {Inception}. This movie will not keep you guessing {Now You See Me}. This movie is not Oldman/Ford material and why they took the job is beyond me. If you are 25 or younger it's a great date movie (because there's time to make out as the film drags in several spots). It doesn't twist and turn and the revelations are minimal and far from making the audience gasp. Four out of ten stars may be generous. Good-looking stars and block-busting legends does not a good movie make; much less a great movie. Though I would like to get hold of that ring-tone. Character development was sloppy and dialog was quite pedantic.
Flawed, Brainless but Entertaining
claudio_carvalho19 November 2017
"Paranoia" is one of those films that are flawed, brainless but entertaining. The story of the ambitious twenty-seven year old Adam Cassidy with debts in the hospital for the expensive treatment of his father that in a couple of days becomes an important executive of a corporation competitor of the company that he was fired is totally absurd. He uses US$ 16,000 in the corporation card to party and what would he expect? Therefore, the tight spot that he is in is caused by a ridiculous situation. The coincidence of having one night stand with Emma Jennings is another unbelievable part of the screenplay. The unethical Adam Cassidy should have been in prison for a long period, since his lack of character and manipulation are disgusting. Emma returning to him is also incredible for an intelligent woman that was used. But forgetting these ridiculous situations, the viewer can enjoy the beauty of Amber Heard; the always great Gary Oldman and Richard Dreyfuss; see Josh "Sawyer" Holloway once again; and a good cast with Harrison Ford, Embeth Davidtz, Julian McMahon and Liam Hemsworth. Shutdown your brain and you may have a good time. My vote is seven.
Title (Brazil): "Conexão Perigosa" ("Dangerous Connection")
Title (Brazil): "Conexão Perigosa" ("Dangerous Connection")
Big cast wasted in a nothing story
Leofwine_draca2 May 2016
PARANOIA is one of those corporate suspense thrillers about rival businesses, spying, and the like. All of these films seem to owe a debt to WALL STREET in the depiction of fresh-faced newcomers going under the wings of seasoned and cynical professionals.
Sadly, there isn't much to get excited about in PARANOIA, a distinctly average type film. The writing is of bog-standard quality and the most interesting thing about it is the sheer number of familiar faces playing in support: Embeth Davidtz, Julian McMahon, Josh Holloway, even Richard Dreyfuss in a minor put pivotal role. Sadly they have little to do in a storyline that feels devoid of suspense and is really very ordinary.
One of the the film's biggest flaws is in the central casting of the inexperienced Liam Hemsworth. Hemsworth fails to bring any charisma to his part and in fact feels wooden throughout, and certainly out of his depth compared to the seasoned pros surrounding him. On the other hand, there's a nice turn from Gary Oldman who successfully manages to capture some of that fire he had in the 1990s. Harrison Ford looks incredibly old but is pretty good in a cast-against-type role.
Sadly, there isn't much to get excited about in PARANOIA, a distinctly average type film. The writing is of bog-standard quality and the most interesting thing about it is the sheer number of familiar faces playing in support: Embeth Davidtz, Julian McMahon, Josh Holloway, even Richard Dreyfuss in a minor put pivotal role. Sadly they have little to do in a storyline that feels devoid of suspense and is really very ordinary.
One of the the film's biggest flaws is in the central casting of the inexperienced Liam Hemsworth. Hemsworth fails to bring any charisma to his part and in fact feels wooden throughout, and certainly out of his depth compared to the seasoned pros surrounding him. On the other hand, there's a nice turn from Gary Oldman who successfully manages to capture some of that fire he had in the 1990s. Harrison Ford looks incredibly old but is pretty good in a cast-against-type role.
Out to Lunch
blanche-218 October 2023
In spite of a terrific cast that includes Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman, hello, Paranoia doesn't have much to offer.
Excruciating dialogue is only the tip of the iceberg of this film's dunderheadedness, but it's the sin that keeps on giving throughout the way too many 108 painful minutes it takes to get through it. When the words aren't just corny, clichéd and labored, they're so ludicrously expositional it's embarrassing. Essentially a film about a cell phone, director Robert Luketic tries to hide the incredibly low stakes by using the corniest of all cinematic tricks, and literally awful music, relentlessly, to negative effect. Helicopter shots of the Manhattan skyline have rarely been so banal.
Adam (Liam Hemsworth) is a techie trained in corporate espionage by Nicholas Wyatt (Gary Oldman). His mission: steal the rival's secrets for a new phone from rival Jock Goddard (Harrison Ford) - as one reviewer said of Ford, "Slumming for cash and a light shooting schedule").
The people in the film, despite having great jobs, are pretty stupid. Beautiful Amber Heard, for instance, who has a huge tech job, is surprised that Adam knows she went to Yale and asks how he found out. He says Facebook as if it's something new. She complains that she knows nothing about him. Hello - Google anyone? Are you kidding?
There's a pathetic performance by Richard Dreyfuss as Adam's father, whose accent changes from scene to scene. I think he was going for New York. Gary Oldman just picked up the phone and called in his performance.
Besides some rickety dialogue, this is a derivative story, kind of a twist on Faust, about a young man who agrees to industrial espionage in exchange for money and the high life.
The best thing is getting to stare at Liam Hemsworth. And stare I did.
Excruciating dialogue is only the tip of the iceberg of this film's dunderheadedness, but it's the sin that keeps on giving throughout the way too many 108 painful minutes it takes to get through it. When the words aren't just corny, clichéd and labored, they're so ludicrously expositional it's embarrassing. Essentially a film about a cell phone, director Robert Luketic tries to hide the incredibly low stakes by using the corniest of all cinematic tricks, and literally awful music, relentlessly, to negative effect. Helicopter shots of the Manhattan skyline have rarely been so banal.
Adam (Liam Hemsworth) is a techie trained in corporate espionage by Nicholas Wyatt (Gary Oldman). His mission: steal the rival's secrets for a new phone from rival Jock Goddard (Harrison Ford) - as one reviewer said of Ford, "Slumming for cash and a light shooting schedule").
The people in the film, despite having great jobs, are pretty stupid. Beautiful Amber Heard, for instance, who has a huge tech job, is surprised that Adam knows she went to Yale and asks how he found out. He says Facebook as if it's something new. She complains that she knows nothing about him. Hello - Google anyone? Are you kidding?
There's a pathetic performance by Richard Dreyfuss as Adam's father, whose accent changes from scene to scene. I think he was going for New York. Gary Oldman just picked up the phone and called in his performance.
Besides some rickety dialogue, this is a derivative story, kind of a twist on Faust, about a young man who agrees to industrial espionage in exchange for money and the high life.
The best thing is getting to stare at Liam Hemsworth. And stare I did.
Another Luketic film on a Worst of list.
estebangonzalez1016 November 2013
"Privacy. Absolute myth. There's no such thing."
The film starts off on the wrong foot and never manages to get on track. In the very opening scene you have Liam Hemsworth using voice over narration explaining to us what we are about to see, and you realize that you are going to watch a clichéd unoriginal action thriller. Then there is a scene where Gary Oldman's character is looking at some art pieces with Liam and he mentions how Picasso once said that there are no original ideas, that everything is either copied or stolen. You kind of get a sense of a similar thing going on with this script. Paranoia is an action thriller that seems recycled with no fresh ideas and unfortunately lacks thrills. The script was adapted by Jason Dean Hall (Spread) and Barry Levy (Vantage Point) from Joseph Finder's novel, but nothing about it feels inspiring or original. It is a shame because I was excited to get to see Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman face off once again, but Paranoia easily belongs on my worst films of 2013 list mainly because these talented actors can't do anything to improve a weak script. Paranoia gets half a star for Amber Heard who looks stunning despite not adding anything to the story, and another star for Oldman and Ford's presence alone. I could forgive the uninspiring script if at least this technological thriller actually had some thrills, but it doesn't. There aren't any interesting thrills either and the narrative is pretty straight forward and predictable.
Adam Cassidy (Liam Hemsworth) has been working for an important technological company known as Wyatt Corporation for the past six years. He hasn't been able to ascend the corporate ladder the way he pictured it as he continues to be an entry level employee, but he and his team are expecting a break through when given the opportunity to present their next project to the boss, Nicolas Wyatt (Gary Oldman). The presentation doesn't go as planned and Adam is left unemployed along with the rest of his team. Feeling bad about the way things turned out, Adam invites them to a fancy club where they use the company's credit card. The next day Adam is called back to Wyatt's office as he is confronted for his crime. Taking advantage of Adam's hunger for wealth and power, Wyatt recruits him to spy on his nemesis: Jock Goddard (Harrison Ford). Goddard happens to run another billion dollar tech company which is his biggest competition. Wyatt wants Adam to win Jock's trust and discover what they are working on, and in return he promises him the life he has always dreamed of. Blinded by greed Adam accepts and soon will find himself way in over his head.
Richard Dreyfuss has a small role in this film as well and his presence only reminds us that a film focusing on him or the other secondary characters such as Oldman and Ford, would be so much better. Instead they allow Hemsworth to play the lead role and he simply doesn't have that on screen charisma to carry a film on his own. I don't think he's a bad actor, but he needs stronger material to keep the audience's interest. He is just outclassed in this film by the other talented actors and we are left out wanting to see more of them. Another issue I had with Paranoia is that the plot doesn't make much sense and it is so dull that it allows you to begin to think too much about it and find all sort of holes. Robert Luketic has just directed his third straight flop after the disappointing Killers and The Ugly Truth. I will defend him for 21, which was a film that at least kept me entertained, but his latest efforts have been really disappointing. Paranoia might just top them all; stay away from this film.
The film starts off on the wrong foot and never manages to get on track. In the very opening scene you have Liam Hemsworth using voice over narration explaining to us what we are about to see, and you realize that you are going to watch a clichéd unoriginal action thriller. Then there is a scene where Gary Oldman's character is looking at some art pieces with Liam and he mentions how Picasso once said that there are no original ideas, that everything is either copied or stolen. You kind of get a sense of a similar thing going on with this script. Paranoia is an action thriller that seems recycled with no fresh ideas and unfortunately lacks thrills. The script was adapted by Jason Dean Hall (Spread) and Barry Levy (Vantage Point) from Joseph Finder's novel, but nothing about it feels inspiring or original. It is a shame because I was excited to get to see Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman face off once again, but Paranoia easily belongs on my worst films of 2013 list mainly because these talented actors can't do anything to improve a weak script. Paranoia gets half a star for Amber Heard who looks stunning despite not adding anything to the story, and another star for Oldman and Ford's presence alone. I could forgive the uninspiring script if at least this technological thriller actually had some thrills, but it doesn't. There aren't any interesting thrills either and the narrative is pretty straight forward and predictable.
Adam Cassidy (Liam Hemsworth) has been working for an important technological company known as Wyatt Corporation for the past six years. He hasn't been able to ascend the corporate ladder the way he pictured it as he continues to be an entry level employee, but he and his team are expecting a break through when given the opportunity to present their next project to the boss, Nicolas Wyatt (Gary Oldman). The presentation doesn't go as planned and Adam is left unemployed along with the rest of his team. Feeling bad about the way things turned out, Adam invites them to a fancy club where they use the company's credit card. The next day Adam is called back to Wyatt's office as he is confronted for his crime. Taking advantage of Adam's hunger for wealth and power, Wyatt recruits him to spy on his nemesis: Jock Goddard (Harrison Ford). Goddard happens to run another billion dollar tech company which is his biggest competition. Wyatt wants Adam to win Jock's trust and discover what they are working on, and in return he promises him the life he has always dreamed of. Blinded by greed Adam accepts and soon will find himself way in over his head.
Richard Dreyfuss has a small role in this film as well and his presence only reminds us that a film focusing on him or the other secondary characters such as Oldman and Ford, would be so much better. Instead they allow Hemsworth to play the lead role and he simply doesn't have that on screen charisma to carry a film on his own. I don't think he's a bad actor, but he needs stronger material to keep the audience's interest. He is just outclassed in this film by the other talented actors and we are left out wanting to see more of them. Another issue I had with Paranoia is that the plot doesn't make much sense and it is so dull that it allows you to begin to think too much about it and find all sort of holes. Robert Luketic has just directed his third straight flop after the disappointing Killers and The Ugly Truth. I will defend him for 21, which was a film that at least kept me entertained, but his latest efforts have been really disappointing. Paranoia might just top them all; stay away from this film.
Entertaining, not as bad as many people claim
Andy-2968 December 2013
This corporate techno thriller is entertaining, nothing spectacular, of course, but nowhere near as bad as many people claim. Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford are the ruthless CEOs of rival cell phones companies. Liam Hemsworth is a young hotshot that works for Oldman's company, but he is fired after a lousy presentation. After spending thousands of dollars of the company's credit card in a nightclub, he is blackmailed by Oldman into getting hired into Ford's company in order to steal the blueprints for their new cell phone. Many more things will happen, including Hemsworth romantic involvement with one of Ford's company marketing head (played by the beautiful Amber Heard). It's good trash, not very believable, but a good time filler, an ideal date movie. There are far worse ways to waste your time.
Mostly juvenile thriller that tries very hard but saved by Hollywood royalty
Robert_duder31 August 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Paranoia was my latest attempt at choosing a movie at random and walking into it. This one was slightly different because I had at least heard of it and when I saw Harrison Ford's name on the poster...it was a must. I love him and see everything he is in. Don't mistake my negatives for this film being a wash. It wasn't bad...it just was okay. It could have been so much more but really doesn't try hard enough to be anything great. The entire concept seems like it could make for an intellectual solid thriller but then it never leaves the realm of being just too juvenile. It is a thriller made for teens or something of the like because it misses the mark somehow. It isn't the performances in the movie because it is actually saved from completely monotony and movie of the week TV status by solid performances by two masters of their craft (Ford and Oldman) who are terrific and even better together. The few scenes they share were riveting and there was something undeniable about seeing them together for the first time since the amazing Air Force One. The film has its share of twists and turns but even the big reveal feels a little anti-climatic when its all said and done. I was comparing it to another thriller I saw earlier this year which was done so much better and smarter and that was Side Effects.
Liam Hemsworth seems to be getting a lot of flack for this performance. I've read that he seems bored and delivers his lines in an excruciating way but I disagree for the most part. I think he does a solid job in the role and does what he can with a part that is really sub par. His character is a pompous, egotistical floater who keeps making awful decisions regardless of whom it hurts. He plays the role well enough and because the character isn't exactly likable, you have to give him respect for pulling it off. Gary Oldman is his former boss who blackmails him into doing some corporate espionage. Oldman is really, really good in the role. He is so much better than the script and the story. They are so fortunate to have him in this film. His eccentric and equally egotistical billionaire is a great villain and has some great scenes. Most of them are shared with the iconic Harrison Ford who plays Steve Jobs. No, that isn't who he plays but the character sort of reminded me of a fictional Steve Jobs. A self made cellular phone pioneer and former mentor to Oldman. Ford was terrific playing this man whom wins everyone's respect but there is clearly so much more to him going on. He certainly looks old in this film but his charisma hasn't changed on screen. Amber Heard (one of my Hollywood crushes) is decent as Emma Jennings. The chemistry between her and Hemsworth is decent but their whole relationship feels a little forced because teens won't watch a thriller without romance in it. She is better than Hemsworth but just barely. Embeth Davidtz tries hard in her role but the role is so brutally stereotypical. There is nothing to her character we haven't seen before and it feels almost campy watching her do it especially next to Oldman. She felt like Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle. Julian McMahon and Josh Holloway were both decent in their small supporting roles. And finally another legend in his own right Richard Dreyfuss plays Hemsworth's Dad. It was great to see him on screen and he was very good in another role that was excruciatingly cookie cutter.
I was a little surprised to see the director of this film was Robert Luketic. He is actually a talented director but a lot of his talent has been in romantic comedies (Legally Blonde, Win A Date, the hugely under-appreciated Monster-In-Law) He is perhaps the wrong genre of director to be taking on a thriller. Though his film 21 was decent enough, he is too comfortable in a late teen early 20 demographic and this thriller should have been more than that. The film deals with espionage and corporate business and high end wall street type dealings but feels like you're watching teenagers play it out. It was just unfortunate that it will likely be left in the dust and forgotten about. Still if you're willing to turn off your brain and sit back and enjoy a run of the mill story with two particularly strong actors then you'll enjoy it for what it is. High expectations will leave you disappointed. 6.5/10
Liam Hemsworth seems to be getting a lot of flack for this performance. I've read that he seems bored and delivers his lines in an excruciating way but I disagree for the most part. I think he does a solid job in the role and does what he can with a part that is really sub par. His character is a pompous, egotistical floater who keeps making awful decisions regardless of whom it hurts. He plays the role well enough and because the character isn't exactly likable, you have to give him respect for pulling it off. Gary Oldman is his former boss who blackmails him into doing some corporate espionage. Oldman is really, really good in the role. He is so much better than the script and the story. They are so fortunate to have him in this film. His eccentric and equally egotistical billionaire is a great villain and has some great scenes. Most of them are shared with the iconic Harrison Ford who plays Steve Jobs. No, that isn't who he plays but the character sort of reminded me of a fictional Steve Jobs. A self made cellular phone pioneer and former mentor to Oldman. Ford was terrific playing this man whom wins everyone's respect but there is clearly so much more to him going on. He certainly looks old in this film but his charisma hasn't changed on screen. Amber Heard (one of my Hollywood crushes) is decent as Emma Jennings. The chemistry between her and Hemsworth is decent but their whole relationship feels a little forced because teens won't watch a thriller without romance in it. She is better than Hemsworth but just barely. Embeth Davidtz tries hard in her role but the role is so brutally stereotypical. There is nothing to her character we haven't seen before and it feels almost campy watching her do it especially next to Oldman. She felt like Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle. Julian McMahon and Josh Holloway were both decent in their small supporting roles. And finally another legend in his own right Richard Dreyfuss plays Hemsworth's Dad. It was great to see him on screen and he was very good in another role that was excruciatingly cookie cutter.
I was a little surprised to see the director of this film was Robert Luketic. He is actually a talented director but a lot of his talent has been in romantic comedies (Legally Blonde, Win A Date, the hugely under-appreciated Monster-In-Law) He is perhaps the wrong genre of director to be taking on a thriller. Though his film 21 was decent enough, he is too comfortable in a late teen early 20 demographic and this thriller should have been more than that. The film deals with espionage and corporate business and high end wall street type dealings but feels like you're watching teenagers play it out. It was just unfortunate that it will likely be left in the dust and forgotten about. Still if you're willing to turn off your brain and sit back and enjoy a run of the mill story with two particularly strong actors then you'll enjoy it for what it is. High expectations will leave you disappointed. 6.5/10
Not even paranoid... Paranoia - Noodles Review
rahmannoodles2219 December 2013
What a misleading title for a movie? Nobody's even paranoid in this movie at all so calling it Paranoia doesn't really make sense to me. Instead, they could've titled it Generic Conveniences. Know why? Because everything in this movie is written in so conveniently for the characters to succeed in the most generic way. So, I guess you can tell it's not a very likable movie. Before seeing this movie, the premise sounded pretty cool. One guy is spying on a company for a rival company but not everything goes according to plan and then stuff happens. Plus, the CEOs of the companies are played by none other than two of the best actors in the business! We got Gary Oldman, one of the most diverse actors of modern cinema, and Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones & Han Solo: 'nough said). On top of that, it stars Thor's brother, Liam Hemsworth, who's good in The Expendables 2 and The Hunger Games, but this could have been his breakout role as a leading actor! Sadly, it's not.
Hemsworth's character in this movie is so unlikable; the only reason an individual would enjoy him in this movie is because he's an attractive guy. However, his acting in this movie is pretty bad. I found myself comparing him to Taylor Lautner's performance in Abduction but at least with that movie we knew it was gonna be bad. Just as bad as his acting are the choices made by his character. The whole plot is put into motion because he got fired from a company and then he decides to go out clubbing with the credit card that's issued by the company he got fired from that he still luckily has! How stupid is that! And then, through a sequence of events, they choose him of all people to be a spy; this irresponsible guy who just goes out clubbing after he's fired? Wow. The writing in this movie clearly is off-putting, but we'll get to that later. The chicks, too, that Hemsworth gets with in this movie are really weird as well. One tries playing hard to get even though he already got with her, while the other chick tries to seduce him while he's already trying to seduce her. The only semi-redeeming qualities of this movie are that Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford actually try in this movie. It's undeniable that they're phenomenal actors, and they are, for the most part, good in this movie for what they're given. Nonetheless, they're given crap dialogue and stupid plot points. I cannot bag on the writing of this movie enough; it is so bad. The dialogue is unrealistic and not enjoyable, while the plot is so convoluted and uninteresting that I kept wanting to stop watching the movie.
Additionally, the directing of this movie is a huge weakpoint. It looked like a made-for-TV movie from the '90s. The directing and camera-work were horrible. Sometimes there was a person talking but half their face was off the screen. In another sequence, Hemsworth is running like a little girl, flailing his arms around and whatnot. There's no purpose for him to be running like that; who said that was okay? It's funny seeing how stupid it is, but it's not even supposed to be funny. And with it being a spy thriller with convoluted twists, you'd think that it'd be unpredictable, right? Well it's not. It had those cliché moments like when he has to break into a vault and he's failed two out of three attempts, with the next failed attempt triggering the alarms. And then it tries to build tension in that moment, but you already know he's gonna be alright and his last attempt is gonna get through. The movie has no suspense whatsoever, despite trying to be a suspenseful summer thriller. It's not suspenseful because you always know what's gonna happen and don't really even care for the characters. It's not summer because it's boring and uninteresting rather than being fun. And it's not a thriller because there are absolutely no thrills. The only thing remotely okay about this movie are the performances of Gary Oldman and Harrision Ford, and that sometimes even gets old since Ford never gets the chance to say "Get off my plane!" It's not worth seeing in the theatre or even worth renting. It's one of those movies that will be on cable and you'll have to think about if you actually have nothing better to do than invest your time in it. But you'll probably end up passing anyways
Hemsworth's character in this movie is so unlikable; the only reason an individual would enjoy him in this movie is because he's an attractive guy. However, his acting in this movie is pretty bad. I found myself comparing him to Taylor Lautner's performance in Abduction but at least with that movie we knew it was gonna be bad. Just as bad as his acting are the choices made by his character. The whole plot is put into motion because he got fired from a company and then he decides to go out clubbing with the credit card that's issued by the company he got fired from that he still luckily has! How stupid is that! And then, through a sequence of events, they choose him of all people to be a spy; this irresponsible guy who just goes out clubbing after he's fired? Wow. The writing in this movie clearly is off-putting, but we'll get to that later. The chicks, too, that Hemsworth gets with in this movie are really weird as well. One tries playing hard to get even though he already got with her, while the other chick tries to seduce him while he's already trying to seduce her. The only semi-redeeming qualities of this movie are that Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford actually try in this movie. It's undeniable that they're phenomenal actors, and they are, for the most part, good in this movie for what they're given. Nonetheless, they're given crap dialogue and stupid plot points. I cannot bag on the writing of this movie enough; it is so bad. The dialogue is unrealistic and not enjoyable, while the plot is so convoluted and uninteresting that I kept wanting to stop watching the movie.
Additionally, the directing of this movie is a huge weakpoint. It looked like a made-for-TV movie from the '90s. The directing and camera-work were horrible. Sometimes there was a person talking but half their face was off the screen. In another sequence, Hemsworth is running like a little girl, flailing his arms around and whatnot. There's no purpose for him to be running like that; who said that was okay? It's funny seeing how stupid it is, but it's not even supposed to be funny. And with it being a spy thriller with convoluted twists, you'd think that it'd be unpredictable, right? Well it's not. It had those cliché moments like when he has to break into a vault and he's failed two out of three attempts, with the next failed attempt triggering the alarms. And then it tries to build tension in that moment, but you already know he's gonna be alright and his last attempt is gonna get through. The movie has no suspense whatsoever, despite trying to be a suspenseful summer thriller. It's not suspenseful because you always know what's gonna happen and don't really even care for the characters. It's not summer because it's boring and uninteresting rather than being fun. And it's not a thriller because there are absolutely no thrills. The only thing remotely okay about this movie are the performances of Gary Oldman and Harrision Ford, and that sometimes even gets old since Ford never gets the chance to say "Get off my plane!" It's not worth seeing in the theatre or even worth renting. It's one of those movies that will be on cable and you'll have to think about if you actually have nothing better to do than invest your time in it. But you'll probably end up passing anyways
ARE YOU A HORSE OR A DOG?
nogodnomasters29 August 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Adam (Liam Hemsworth) is coerced by his former boss Nick (Gary Oldman) to become an industrial spy on Nick's former boss Jock (Harrison Ford). They work in the high tech industry of cell phone development. While working for Jock, Adam meets a former conquest Emma (Amber Heard) who was not impressed with his cheese fries or anything else.
Adam finds himself caught between the proverbial rock and hard place as he is trapped by slick gadgetry, which unlike anything I have seen, never has a glitch. He has no choice but to use what he has learned to fight back as he wants out.
The film uses technology that is available today, hacking, GPS, facial recognition software, etc to modernize an old twisty script. How well you enjoy this film might be determined by age, gender and love of electronic gadgets.
A drama thriller that might be worth a rental.
Parental Guide: F-bomb. No nudity. Chick Flick style sex scene.
Adam finds himself caught between the proverbial rock and hard place as he is trapped by slick gadgetry, which unlike anything I have seen, never has a glitch. He has no choice but to use what he has learned to fight back as he wants out.
The film uses technology that is available today, hacking, GPS, facial recognition software, etc to modernize an old twisty script. How well you enjoy this film might be determined by age, gender and love of electronic gadgets.
A drama thriller that might be worth a rental.
Parental Guide: F-bomb. No nudity. Chick Flick style sex scene.
Better than "Now You See Me"
findingdevotion23 September 2013
First things first: Lukatic is a mediocre director. I enjoyed "21" and "Legally BLonde" as light entertainment. There's no reason to expect "Paranoia" to be anything else. And it isn't.
Overall, the movie is on part with "21" and that's the best that can be said.
"Paranoia" starts off nicely and builds up to a point where it could go anywhere and in a spectacular way. Sure, all those possibilities are predictable but many are also enjoyable. Yet, the movie, all of a sudden, decides to go nowhere.
It stays between a very shallow message against today's social media, an anti-privacy warning and an outcome that is thoroughly predictable, but not in a nice way.
To me, it seems absolutely equal with the big uninteresting flop that "Now You See Me" was. We have the same drive to appear smart and overexplain things in a manner that manages t debunk itself and show that under all the glitter the emperor is naked.
In "Now you See me", the glitter was cheap "wit". Here, we have the wasted skills of Oldman and Ford. However, I'll take Oldman and Ford any day.
Overall, the movie is on part with "21" and that's the best that can be said.
"Paranoia" starts off nicely and builds up to a point where it could go anywhere and in a spectacular way. Sure, all those possibilities are predictable but many are also enjoyable. Yet, the movie, all of a sudden, decides to go nowhere.
It stays between a very shallow message against today's social media, an anti-privacy warning and an outcome that is thoroughly predictable, but not in a nice way.
To me, it seems absolutely equal with the big uninteresting flop that "Now You See Me" was. We have the same drive to appear smart and overexplain things in a manner that manages t debunk itself and show that under all the glitter the emperor is naked.
In "Now you See me", the glitter was cheap "wit". Here, we have the wasted skills of Oldman and Ford. However, I'll take Oldman and Ford any day.
A lot of potential not really developed in this sloppy film about two rival tech corporations
darkbartlon1 January 2014
A thriller about the dark world of tech business giants, with big shot start like Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford, what could go wrong, right? Well, with this movie, almost everything did. It's slow, boring, repetitive and overall just disappointing.
Adam (Liam Hensworth) is a programmer (I think, because character development apparently wasn't a priority in this movie) who gets stuck in the middle of a feud between two tech giants, Wyatt and Goddard, played by Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford. And that's about as deep as the story goes. There's some background as to the rivalry between Wyatt and Goddard and a hard-to-believe love story between Adam and one of Goddard's executives, but overall, the film feels like an unfinished job, with a lot of potential, but no real charm to it.
I've got to accept the movie has some good things worth mentioning. Gary Oldman is great, as expected, in his limited screen time, and the final scenes are actually pretty good, but all in all this was not a good movie, and I would not recommend it.
Adam (Liam Hensworth) is a programmer (I think, because character development apparently wasn't a priority in this movie) who gets stuck in the middle of a feud between two tech giants, Wyatt and Goddard, played by Gary Oldman and Harrison Ford. And that's about as deep as the story goes. There's some background as to the rivalry between Wyatt and Goddard and a hard-to-believe love story between Adam and one of Goddard's executives, but overall, the film feels like an unfinished job, with a lot of potential, but no real charm to it.
I've got to accept the movie has some good things worth mentioning. Gary Oldman is great, as expected, in his limited screen time, and the final scenes are actually pretty good, but all in all this was not a good movie, and I would not recommend it.
Murky, cliché-ridden mess . . .
tadpole-596-9182568 December 2013
Warning: Spoilers
. . . in which the film makers apparently thought that their work was done as soon as they completed casting this misfire. Big corporations can destroy the lives of the "little people" (which I think may be tax evader Leona Helmsley's term) by nuisance lawsuits without resorting to corporate hit men. If you have something REALLY important to blab (to take one of the more popular conspiracy theories percolating in the Blogosphere, say "I was Enron's bag man to bribe the U.S. Supreme Court in the Bush vs. Gore case") then sure, some Megacorp might hire a professional to make your "convenient" death look like a bad case of suicide. But the stakes for the business bozos darting around the screen in PARANOIA are NOT convincingly high enough to logically justify all the Whackings ordered at board room level here. I was looking at one of the links to production photographs for this movie, and was shocked to see how many of the pix are "cheesecake" (or is it "beefcake") images of a topless Liam Hemsworth as "Adam." Oh, I get it: they named this character Adam to give him an excuse to be running around in his birthday suit all the time!
Kinda boring
blufrog4924 August 2013
With a title like "Paranoia," I expected suspicion, suspense, maybe even a cool chase scene, but this movie not only lacks the characteristics its title suggests, but is really devoid of any depth. It seems to be a vehicle to see Liam Hemsworth shirtless as much as possible, as well as in some gorgeous suits.
Amid a lot of techie razzle-dazzle, the plot is rather thin and predictable and there is absolutely NO character development, except a small amount for Richard Dreyfuss, who seems to be the most interesting character in the movie. It was nice to see him in this role.
Harrison Ford doesn't look good with a shaved head. Reminded me of Mr. Magoo without the glasses.
Not a bad movie, but certainly not a thriller and definitely forgettable
Amid a lot of techie razzle-dazzle, the plot is rather thin and predictable and there is absolutely NO character development, except a small amount for Richard Dreyfuss, who seems to be the most interesting character in the movie. It was nice to see him in this role.
Harrison Ford doesn't look good with a shaved head. Reminded me of Mr. Magoo without the glasses.
Not a bad movie, but certainly not a thriller and definitely forgettable
Tastes like a 35 million dollar piece of Swiss cheese
cayenne-34 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
So you know how Swiss cheese is full of holes?? That is exactly what you will be tasting if you are going to watch this movie.
We basically with comments above (poor acting except Ford and Oldman, below standard story plot, empty dialogs, etc...). We just wanted to point out how so many parts in the movie lack logic and basic common sense. For example:
Example 1: Adam gets completely drunk and wakes up freshly groomed with his hair are perfectly combed, and no hangover whatsoever the next morning. Really??
Example 2: If there are cameras in his Adam's dad's house, how come Wyatt did not see that the FBI came to the house and heard the conversation?
Example 3: He's in bed sleeping and while Emma goes take a shower, he quickly gets up to steal Emma's files from her computer... And he has the time to put on pants?? When the plan is to run back into bed for when she comes out of the shower?
Example 4: Towards the end, after Adam steals Emma's phone and fingerprint to rob Eikon Occura, how did Emma get into his apartment? He sure didn't give his keys away....
Example 5: how in the world did he have Goddard's sports car as a "rental" after his whole ordeal with the FBI? Did he have money to throw away when he still had to pay for his dad's hospital bills? Or did those fly away just like the logic of this movie...
The biggest question is: why on earth would Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman decide to join the cast? Money, money or money?
The second biggest question is: what man walks around with one hand in his pocket? Does he think this is Project Runway?
We basically with comments above (poor acting except Ford and Oldman, below standard story plot, empty dialogs, etc...). We just wanted to point out how so many parts in the movie lack logic and basic common sense. For example:
Example 1: Adam gets completely drunk and wakes up freshly groomed with his hair are perfectly combed, and no hangover whatsoever the next morning. Really??
Example 2: If there are cameras in his Adam's dad's house, how come Wyatt did not see that the FBI came to the house and heard the conversation?
Example 3: He's in bed sleeping and while Emma goes take a shower, he quickly gets up to steal Emma's files from her computer... And he has the time to put on pants?? When the plan is to run back into bed for when she comes out of the shower?
Example 4: Towards the end, after Adam steals Emma's phone and fingerprint to rob Eikon Occura, how did Emma get into his apartment? He sure didn't give his keys away....
Example 5: how in the world did he have Goddard's sports car as a "rental" after his whole ordeal with the FBI? Did he have money to throw away when he still had to pay for his dad's hospital bills? Or did those fly away just like the logic of this movie...
The biggest question is: why on earth would Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman decide to join the cast? Money, money or money?
The second biggest question is: what man walks around with one hand in his pocket? Does he think this is Project Runway?
Great cast, intriguing plot. Not fly-out-of-your-seat-terrifying, but still suspenseful.
nanvan10816 August 2013
We care about Adam. He's a nice, smart, occasionally reckless guy. And he worries about his dad. He's also from the poor end of town, and as such, is dissed by an ambitious, somewhat self-absorbed Ivy League beauty. Right there, we're invested as an audience in the high stakes challenges that await Adam. More than the script calls for? Maybe, but that doesn't mean this isn't an entertaining film. It IS entertaining.
Also, criticism that the plot lacks sufficient tension may be partly due to its lack of gore. There is danger, there is tension. There's not as much bloodshed as we've come to expect from thrillers. This is more Grisham than grisly, and some viewers, sadly, aren't down with that. I think that's a shame, mainly for those viewers.
Every morsel of Ford and Oldman's screen time is tasty, not surprisingly. And the story's inevitable romance is nice for those of us who appreciate that sort of thing.
I thought about the longstanding rivalry between Bill Gates and Steve Jobs during this film, and it made we wonder what may have happened behind closed doors at Microsoft and Apple that we haven't yet learned about. Probably nothing as diabolical as what these two rivals seem capable of, but it's an intriguing thought.
The visuals are nice throughout (and okay, that includes Hemsworth!), and the soundtrack is spot-on. I liked it.
Also, criticism that the plot lacks sufficient tension may be partly due to its lack of gore. There is danger, there is tension. There's not as much bloodshed as we've come to expect from thrillers. This is more Grisham than grisly, and some viewers, sadly, aren't down with that. I think that's a shame, mainly for those viewers.
Every morsel of Ford and Oldman's screen time is tasty, not surprisingly. And the story's inevitable romance is nice for those of us who appreciate that sort of thing.
I thought about the longstanding rivalry between Bill Gates and Steve Jobs during this film, and it made we wonder what may have happened behind closed doors at Microsoft and Apple that we haven't yet learned about. Probably nothing as diabolical as what these two rivals seem capable of, but it's an intriguing thought.
The visuals are nice throughout (and okay, that includes Hemsworth!), and the soundtrack is spot-on. I liked it.
Not as bad as critics say but def not great
Brooklynsmagicmike8 May 2020
I actually throughly enjoyed this film for the most part. The premise wasn't bad by any means and there was alot really good actors in this movie.
I did have few issues this movie however. First this isn't really thriller it plays more as like drama film. Doesn't make it bad but I feel like it was mismarketed. There was hardly any action or twist/turns. Second the movie at time does drag on little bit and feels like some of the scenes they could have honestly did without. And lastly the ending while not terrible or the worst I ever seen I just felt like after everything the big payoff would be lot better then what happens.
Overall it diddn't win any awards for reason and wasn't universally acclaimed but it definitely isnt as bad as it was rated. Def was a watchable movie.
I did have few issues this movie however. First this isn't really thriller it plays more as like drama film. Doesn't make it bad but I feel like it was mismarketed. There was hardly any action or twist/turns. Second the movie at time does drag on little bit and feels like some of the scenes they could have honestly did without. And lastly the ending while not terrible or the worst I ever seen I just felt like after everything the big payoff would be lot better then what happens.
Overall it diddn't win any awards for reason and wasn't universally acclaimed but it definitely isnt as bad as it was rated. Def was a watchable movie.
Incredibly stupid.
CharlieBucanero13 February 2014
Warning: Spoilers
In the history of horses and excrement , a bigger pile of horse related excrement has not been seen in a long long time. OK, that's not entirely true and goes directly to screenplay department. Shallow and stupid, borderline idiotic script. From beginning to an end - it's all implausible crap that doesn't make any sense. The end is so stupid it just hurts. Trying to make us to believe that the government will shut down the equivalent of Microsoft and Apple together.... please. Whoever wrote this should write tampon commercials at best. Garry Oldman, Harrison Ford and Richard Dreyfuss - feel so sorry for them to be a part of this, they are excellent actors and did a great job. So did Amber Heard. Liam Hemsworth is as good for the role of brilliant tech developer as Arnold Schwarzenegger for the role of Stephen Hawking. He should stick to modelling suits, that's the only thing he did well in this movie. Was bad even for watching it on a flight, red eye, in a economy class.
Amber Heard and Liam Hemsworth do most of the heavy lifting in this otherwise forgettable corporate thriller
dani_fz13 August 2023
As a general rule, I tend to avoid these kinds of white-male-produced-directed-cast thriller and action films because they're almost always nothing more than cliché-driven superficial and disposable time-wastes that exemplify most of the things that are wrong with the Hollywood film industry. Given that Paranoia very obviously fits this mold, one could rightly wonder why I sacrificed (grudgingly so, if I may add) 106 minutes of my life watching it. The answer is simple: Amber Heard. I watched this film purely because Amber Heard was cast in it and, as an enthusiast of her films who got it in me to go through her entire filmography, I had to watch it.
The movie is a corporate espionage thriller in which a supposedly ordinary worker (Adam Cassidy, played by Liam Hemsworth) for a high-end tech company is used by his boss (Nicolas Wyatt, played by Gary Oldman) to attempt to steal proprietary information from a rival company headed by a former business partner of the boss. Other than a couple of quite predictable twists in the end, this pretty much sums up what the movie is about. As such, the movie's shallow plot, which rides on little but overused cliché's in its genre, is one of its major drawbacks. Another one is its seeming overreliance on the popularity of its cast members to, perhaps, try to remedy this shortcoming.
Even more problems are apparent in the movie's glaring and rather off-putting lack of racial and gender diversity. I mean, come on, 2013 is not so long ago as to "justify" the male "whiteness" of the movie's crew and cast members. This shouldn't be surprising though given that director Robert Luketic has previously been criticized for engaging in this kind of prejudicial casting at least in his 2008 heist drama film 21. In addition, this movie's script suffers from a related problem, which is that while the writers (all white men) seem to pretend to convey a message about the ills of capitalism and corporate greed in which those in power exploit those without it, they nevertheless affirm and try to justify the hegemony of white men over everybody else in the corporate world. I mean, are we to believe that the remedy to the exploitation that Adam suffers at the hands of his old white male employers is, as the movie concludes, just a younger version of these employers? In the end, while the writers pay lip service to happiness and contentment being attainable in the simple life that Adam's father (Richard Dreyfuss) led, they, quite inconsistently and inexplicably, end the movie with Adam still aspiring to living the very life that his crooked bosses led and that was the source of his misery throughout the movie.
Besides these problems with the movie's plot, narrative, and casting choices, its visuals, audio, and acting were largely ordinary and not really outstanding. That is, excepting the performances of Liam Hemsworth and Amber Heard (as Emma Jennings), which were magnificent and just about the only genuinely positive aspects of the movie.
Focusing on Heard, her casting as Emma was a bit unusual, albeit understandable within the trajectory of her career. It was unusual because most of Heard's past major roles before this movie were characters that were more in control of their narrative arcs (i.e. More "agentic") than Emma is. For instance, in Syrup - which is also a corporate drama movie that was released in 2013 - Heard plays Six, a woman that is central to the movie's plot and that stands in opposition to the main male character, Scat. In contrast, Luketic and his writers make Emma to be little more than Adam's muse, puppet, and instrument. Considering that Heard is the leading supporting actress in this movie which means that all other women characters play less prominent roles, Emma's lack of much agency in it is a testament to just how sexist against women the movie's writing and plot is. Nevertheless, Heard can hardly be blamed for having accepted to feature in the movie in such a role because the movie was arguably a landmark for Heard's career as, it seems to me, it was the first time that she played such a prominent supporting role in a major Hollywood thriller alongside as many A list actors as were cast in it.
Still, despite the fact that Emma was written so poorly and so scantily, Heard still manages to play her so convincingly and with such flare that I was hopelessly dependent on her scenes to get me through the grand cliché that the rest of the movie largely was. Indeed, anyone that's seen Heard's previous movies would agree that the confidence and authenticity that she channels into Emma in this movie can only be matched by those that she channels into Six in Syrup, Piper in Drive Angry, and Nikki in ExTerminators. One can only thus lament about the fact that Luketic and his writers' sexism robbed them of the opportunity to broaden Emma's role in the narrative in order to make the most out of Heard's performance of her. If only they'd taken some notes from Aram Rappaport's Syrup.
All in all, Amber Heard (and, to some extent, Liam Hemsworth) are just about the two positive things about this movie amidst an ocean of negatives. As such, all things considered, I was going to give this movie 4 stars but decided on 7 purely because of Heard's (2 stars) and Hemsworth's (1 star) acting. I recommend the movie mostly to fans of Heard and Hemsworth but it could also be enjoyable to many other people as a fun but forgettable past-time that could, if given a generous reading, even be educational and thought-provoking.
The movie is a corporate espionage thriller in which a supposedly ordinary worker (Adam Cassidy, played by Liam Hemsworth) for a high-end tech company is used by his boss (Nicolas Wyatt, played by Gary Oldman) to attempt to steal proprietary information from a rival company headed by a former business partner of the boss. Other than a couple of quite predictable twists in the end, this pretty much sums up what the movie is about. As such, the movie's shallow plot, which rides on little but overused cliché's in its genre, is one of its major drawbacks. Another one is its seeming overreliance on the popularity of its cast members to, perhaps, try to remedy this shortcoming.
Even more problems are apparent in the movie's glaring and rather off-putting lack of racial and gender diversity. I mean, come on, 2013 is not so long ago as to "justify" the male "whiteness" of the movie's crew and cast members. This shouldn't be surprising though given that director Robert Luketic has previously been criticized for engaging in this kind of prejudicial casting at least in his 2008 heist drama film 21. In addition, this movie's script suffers from a related problem, which is that while the writers (all white men) seem to pretend to convey a message about the ills of capitalism and corporate greed in which those in power exploit those without it, they nevertheless affirm and try to justify the hegemony of white men over everybody else in the corporate world. I mean, are we to believe that the remedy to the exploitation that Adam suffers at the hands of his old white male employers is, as the movie concludes, just a younger version of these employers? In the end, while the writers pay lip service to happiness and contentment being attainable in the simple life that Adam's father (Richard Dreyfuss) led, they, quite inconsistently and inexplicably, end the movie with Adam still aspiring to living the very life that his crooked bosses led and that was the source of his misery throughout the movie.
Besides these problems with the movie's plot, narrative, and casting choices, its visuals, audio, and acting were largely ordinary and not really outstanding. That is, excepting the performances of Liam Hemsworth and Amber Heard (as Emma Jennings), which were magnificent and just about the only genuinely positive aspects of the movie.
Focusing on Heard, her casting as Emma was a bit unusual, albeit understandable within the trajectory of her career. It was unusual because most of Heard's past major roles before this movie were characters that were more in control of their narrative arcs (i.e. More "agentic") than Emma is. For instance, in Syrup - which is also a corporate drama movie that was released in 2013 - Heard plays Six, a woman that is central to the movie's plot and that stands in opposition to the main male character, Scat. In contrast, Luketic and his writers make Emma to be little more than Adam's muse, puppet, and instrument. Considering that Heard is the leading supporting actress in this movie which means that all other women characters play less prominent roles, Emma's lack of much agency in it is a testament to just how sexist against women the movie's writing and plot is. Nevertheless, Heard can hardly be blamed for having accepted to feature in the movie in such a role because the movie was arguably a landmark for Heard's career as, it seems to me, it was the first time that she played such a prominent supporting role in a major Hollywood thriller alongside as many A list actors as were cast in it.
Still, despite the fact that Emma was written so poorly and so scantily, Heard still manages to play her so convincingly and with such flare that I was hopelessly dependent on her scenes to get me through the grand cliché that the rest of the movie largely was. Indeed, anyone that's seen Heard's previous movies would agree that the confidence and authenticity that she channels into Emma in this movie can only be matched by those that she channels into Six in Syrup, Piper in Drive Angry, and Nikki in ExTerminators. One can only thus lament about the fact that Luketic and his writers' sexism robbed them of the opportunity to broaden Emma's role in the narrative in order to make the most out of Heard's performance of her. If only they'd taken some notes from Aram Rappaport's Syrup.
All in all, Amber Heard (and, to some extent, Liam Hemsworth) are just about the two positive things about this movie amidst an ocean of negatives. As such, all things considered, I was going to give this movie 4 stars but decided on 7 purely because of Heard's (2 stars) and Hemsworth's (1 star) acting. I recommend the movie mostly to fans of Heard and Hemsworth but it could also be enjoyable to many other people as a fun but forgettable past-time that could, if given a generous reading, even be educational and thought-provoking.
Superficial
harry_tk_yung19 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Gary Oldman plus Harrison Ford does not make an A+ cast but would give you some expectation. However, there is the limit to what one can do with a script that is clearly superficial on both touches: human and technology. It is also very much devoid of energy and enthusiasm.
The plot, in a sense, is simple: two IT giants manipulating an ambitious young man from humble origins, using him to destroy each other. While the plot is simple, competent efforts can make the technological details intriguing. Unfortunately this is something "Paranoia" cannot claim to have offered. Instead, you have a lazy, sloppily put together plot in which you lose interests very quickly.
The same can be said for the characters, even though the usually reliable actors have given it a try. Oldman has not given his character the depth it deserves while Ford, with a crew cut as short as you can ever imagine, plays the one-dimensional ruthless guru with one expression: growling.
The lead Liam Hemsworth has failed to distinguish himself from a large field of similar newcomers. It cannot be denied that Amber Heard is very pretty but her acting is awkward. This is not a movie that is worth the admission price to a cinema.
The plot, in a sense, is simple: two IT giants manipulating an ambitious young man from humble origins, using him to destroy each other. While the plot is simple, competent efforts can make the technological details intriguing. Unfortunately this is something "Paranoia" cannot claim to have offered. Instead, you have a lazy, sloppily put together plot in which you lose interests very quickly.
The same can be said for the characters, even though the usually reliable actors have given it a try. Oldman has not given his character the depth it deserves while Ford, with a crew cut as short as you can ever imagine, plays the one-dimensional ruthless guru with one expression: growling.
The lead Liam Hemsworth has failed to distinguish himself from a large field of similar newcomers. It cannot be denied that Amber Heard is very pretty but her acting is awkward. This is not a movie that is worth the admission price to a cinema.
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