Interesteg What makes it different from others?

Reptileenbu Did you people see the same film I saw?

ChanFamous I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

wes-connors Don't let his tanned and muscular good looks fool you; underneath that healthy exterior, Los Angeles doctor David Duchovny (as Eugene Sands) is a washed-up drug addict. Stripped of his medical license after operating while high, Mr. Duchovny makes a barroom dope deal at the same time someone is shot. Duchovny uses his medical knowledge to save the otherwise mortally wounded crook. This attracts attention from blond crime boss Timothy Hutton (as Raymond "Ray" Blossom), who rewards Duchovny and uses him as a personal physician. This way, Mr. Hutton can save lives while avoiding hospitals and police. Hutton comes with a strikingly beautiful girlfriend avec especially sensuous lips, painted bright red – yes, it's uber-attractive Angelina Jolie (as Claire)...You don't have to be told, but things get complicated when Duchovny and Ms. Jolie become mutually attracted...Leading the capable supporting players is steely-eyed FBI agent Michael Massee (as Gage). He also wants to deal with Duchovny. This production, directed by Andy Wilson from a Mark Haskell Smith script, moves along well. There are more than a couple problems, however. Duchovny, propelled to stardom on TV's "The X-Files", delivers some terminally ill narration; it should have declared inoperable and put of its misery. As far as looking like a drug addict, Duchovny's more cool than strung-out; that's okay, but we're never really sure why he's one of the least stoned-looking members of the cast. Anthony B. Richmond's cinematography is fine, but Mr. Wilson includes double-exposure and scene transition/dissolves effects that look more like mistakes than effects.***** Playing God (10/17/97) Andy Wilson ~ David Duchovny, Timothy Hutton, Angelina Jolie, Michael Massee

dromasca It's hard to believe that in 1997 David Duchovny was at the top of his fame, with X-Files, one of the best sci-fi series ever, being at the top of the glory. Nine years later he is almost forgotten, and his tentatives to make it on the big screen failed miserably. I cannot even explain why, he is a fair actor, but probably his moment of fame cast him in a eternal role that takes big talent to break from.At the same time Angelina Jolie was much less known, and she was really lucky that a film like 'Playing God' did not led her career into a dead-end. Fortunately for her, 'The Bone Collector' and 'Girl, Interrupted' were waiting beyond the corner, and when Lara Croft came, her career was launched.There is not too much to be told about this film. It's the only big screen film of Andy Wilson, and there must be a reason. All is banal and most of what happens on the screen expected in this story of an ex-doctor who saves the life of a shooting victim in a bar only to find himself working for the mob. The off-screen voice is especially bad, with a moralistic text that kills any shade of cinematographic experience from the film. You probably will not meet the film but in DVD rental stores, or on TV. Try to look for something better.

ffresheye God, I'd love to run IQ tests on the people raving about the script and the acting in this movie! Guaranteed average IQ of 85 or below.How could they fit so much B movie acting/dialog in... well, in any one single movie, but let alone such a big budget one? Incredible.Duchovny manages to make Keanu Reaves look like Duvall, Olivier, Pacino, Hackman, Nicholson etc., at their peaks, all rolled into one compared to his performance! When you look up "piece of wood" in the dictionary of phrases you'll find Reaves picture has been replaced with Duchovny'sIt's beyond believe that this movie is rated anything above a 2 on this board. What on earth is wrong with you people?

bob the moo Eugene Sands is a drug addict doctor - although he has long since been barred from practicing medicine having been found operating high, leading to a girl's death. When he is at a club buying he witnesses a shooting and steps in to do enough to save a man's life. The owner of the club and criminal to boot, Raymond Blossom, takes an interest in Eugene and begins using him and his doctor. However the FBI are after Raymond and make moves to use Eugene to trap him.Coming off as a slightly upmarket video thriller, this film could have been much better but ultimately fails to engage or rise to it's potential. The plot is OK but the script doesn't manage to lift the story up into something that is really strong and engaging. The delivery is a big part of the problem - it isn't that well directed, nothing very wrong but certainly the feel of a video film as opposed to a big screen thriller. The decision to have a voice over narrator is always a gamble; sometimes it works but sometimes it really doesn't.Here the narration doesn't work for two reasons. First of all, the narrator has to explain or develop so much because the film fails to do it as part of the story being told. To make matters worse Duchovny delivery is so flat that it really sucks any energy out of the film. His actual performance is not as bad as his voiceover but he doesn't exactly manage to lead the film. This leaves the way open for Hutton's villain, but he struggles with a lack of character and eventually gives into overacting. Jolie is good but again suffers from having no character. Regardless of performances, not having any buy in with the main people meant that I wasn't into the story as I needed to be. Support from Massee, Stormare and Dourdan doesn't so much add quality as add familiarity.Overall this was very much a workmanlike thriller. It is passable but really it is difficult to overlook the fact that the film has major weaknesses in most areas. The plot is good but the script can't do anything with it, the narration is rubbish and the acting is only reasonable on the whole. Worth watching once but it's hard not to feel let down by it.