TeenzTen An action-packed slog

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

david-sarkies To quickly describe this I would call it some strange b-grade horror movie, the ones that I find funnier than scarier. As I always say about horror movies, is that what I find scary are things that could really happen, and I find them more disturbing than scary. Movies like Misery, the Net, and even Very Bad Things, are more horrifying than this. Even though what happened in this movie is theoretically possible, it does not leave the images that a movie like Very Bad Things does.This movie is about a futuristic building that is run and protected by a very sophisticated computer. The problem is that the computer is so rigid that is there is one thing wrong then it construes it as its programs would do. If you park in the wrong place, or don't look after your keycard, then the computer will construe you as an intruder.This movie seems to have been created by a cookie cutter. It has a nasty unbeatable opponent, a pretty girl, a daring man, and people dying horrible deaths. Other than that the only real moral of this movie is that you shouldn't rely on computers because they can be unpredictable in the most predictable ways. It was an okay movie, but really doesn't do all that much.

uds3 Unfairly trashed little telemovie I feel. Sure its derivative and non too brilliant in its execution (as it were). Simplistic tale of a computer techo who is taken on in a high-rise that is the domain of the computer-in-charge.....a la GREMLINS 2. The computer takes an instant dislike to Reiser and after multiple "violations" marks him for "deletion"Sure, just about everything you see has been done before...but hell its still entertaining in a B-Grade, got-nothing-else-to-do-anyway kinda way! OK, the script is crap....the fx somewhere between acceptable and less-than-average but Reiser's infectious attitude keeps the thing's head above water!A solid 5 which makes the thing not a total loss. Watch it, have a laugh!

Kai-18 Even though this film is really dumb and unoriginal there is a fun feel to it. Sides, you got to love a movie where a computer really hates Paul Reiser and tries to kill him. (after those damn phone commercials I don't blame him. Candice Bergen is still worse) It's great for a night were you and friends want to heckle movies. Enjoy this little cheese ball. I did.

JackH This film brilliantly explodes the uneasy relationship we have with machines in our isolationist, paranoid, postmodern society. Actually, I'm lying: it's derivative rubbish. You can almost imagine the production meetings: "Hey guys - let's take the best bits of the best films and mix them all together to make the best film ever!" That must have seemed like such a good idea at the time… Don't worry if you haven't seen this film - the plot is so familiar it will seem like you have anyway. It concerns a monumental tower-block (Hey! Just like in "The Towering Inferno" (John Guillermin: 1974)) with which the owners are seriously pleased - until it all goes terribly wrong ("The Towering Inferno" again.) It seems this tower-block is controlled by a powerful, state-of-the-art computer which, fed up with playing Minesweeper all day, goes bonkers (Anyone seen "2001: A Space Odyssey" (Stanley Kubrick : 1968)?) and decides to take over the control of the tower - and eventually the world. This is where Julie Christie comes in. Oh - sorry that's "Demon Seed" (Donald Cammell: 1977) No, this one is totally different. Here we have just one man who is pitted against the might of the computer ("2001" again) - played with an admirably straight face by Paul Reiser. This is a hideous bit of miscasting: Reiser, though a competent enough actor, isn't exactly lead material mainly because he's far too familiar - predominantly as a lightweight comedy actor, playing the intelligent one in the TV sitcom "My Two Dads"; and in films like "Sunset Limousine" (Terry Hughes: 1983), Cross My Heart (Armyan Bernstein: 1987) and "Crazy People" (Tony Bill: 1990 ) Herein lies the problem: is this being played for laughs? Unbelievably, it appears not. Reiser runs, ducks, types energetically on a computer keyboard , swims like Shelley Winters in "The Poseidon Adventure" (Ronald Neame: 1972 ), and rescues a cat like O. J. Simpson in "The Towering Inferno". Okay so I lied about the last two - but I eagerly await the sequel - and the point I'm making is that despite the corny lines, the clichéd plot and uninspiring special effects, Reiser works like a trooper to try to get you to care. Ultimately though, it's all in vain.This film serves as one of those spot-the-originals, where the audience is constantly reminded of other - generally superior - films and as such provides moments of entertainment. They are only moments, though. With a little more care, this could have been a really good film - the idea is sound enough - but instead it inhabits that lonely middle-ground of mediocre films that are neither good enough to be taken seriously, nor bad enough to be worth watching. Generally, if it's three o'clock in the morning, you can't sleep and have already scrubbed the kitchen and bathroom , then I'd recommend you rediscover the joys of a good book rather than waste your time with this. Contains swearing. 2 out of 10