A Scientist at the Movies Reviews by Greg Paris

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Title: Ultraviolet

Date Viewed: 3/4/06

Details:

Milla Jovovich

Cameron Bright

Nick Chinlund

William Fichtner

Written & directed by: Kurt Wimmer

Score: -

The Review: Ultraviolent, err..., Ultraviolet is a disappointing screen translation of a pseudo-comic -- as in book, not as in sense of humor, which is sorely lacking -- nihilist future-vision: a not-so-benevolent dictatorship rooted in a war between the have's and the have not's -- where "having" is definitely not a good thing. Those who "have" are contagious pseudo-vampires in the form of humans infected with a gene-engineered weapons-grade hemophage virus. Of course, whenever a group is suppressed or ostracized, there arises an underground. So it's no surprise that titular eponym Violet (Jovovich) is a major player in the hemophage underground -- if nothing else, she could be considered their assassin. The body count is rather high, but so stylized and bloodless as to be mere wallpaper on the concept.

Yawn -- yet another clone of the superhero(ine), with an angst-filled back-story and some "super" gimmicks, out for some semblance of justice or barring that, simply some revenge. Here, her gimmicks and overwhelming superiority might be the consequence of hemophage infection, but their genesis is not made clear. Reflexes, senses, the ability to move faster than bullets -- all are enhanced. But the non-biological dei ex machina include a gravity repolarizer (for nullification and driving on walls) and a dimensional compression mechanism allowing weapons to appear & disappear at whim from within the body fabric. You'd almost think this was a camoflaged virtual reality universe, but 'tis not so. There is a bit of nanotech flavor about the set design and costuming, visible but unexplained -- also unnecessary. At least the audience is given credit for absorbance: the plot is fed by action and not by pseudo-technical details.

Curious cinematography, in that most close-up shots of Milla Jovovich are reminiscent of the Lubitsch soft-focus on Greta Garbo, making her face much more beautiful than otherwise.

Driving score (Klaus Bedelt), but not much else. Luckily, this wasted less than an hour and a half.

(4-Mar-06)

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