GL84
Working in New York, married doctors attempting a cure of a devastating disease find their work has caused a mutated species of cockroach that is hunting in the city and forcing them into action to stop the creatures.This was quite enjoyable if still somewhat flawed overall. When this one does work, it's usually due to the creatures themselves here, which is quite fun as the film gives them some rather enjoyable elements starting with their origin and back-story. The idea of being bred to contain a viral disease through genetic mutations is certainly fine enough, yet there's more here with the mutation offering the chance to really change their behavior around for the better here as it comes from a realistic adaptation in the real creature. This feature helps this one along nicely by playing into the setting here with this one being in the underground sewers and tunnels when the adaptation is put to good use blending in and launching their attacks which are quite fun as it leads into a lot of action here. From the opening rooftop chase to the encounter with the boys in the tunnel as well as the church stalking and the encounter in the abandoned subway station, there's a lot of great action here that all sets up the fun of the finale. The attack on the subway car is quite chilling, the race to get to the surface is even more impactful and there's even more fun here with the chain reaction explosions and stalking done here that really makes this fun while giving it a couple gory kills amongst the action. Along with the fantastic look of the giant, humanoid cockroaches, there's enough here to help this out against the film flaws here. One of the biggest is that the film suffers from the overly-complicated scientific explanations for what's happening, as despite making sure it's stood but also hammers down the explanations to the point of overkill. Due to going into detail with every person they come into contact with, at times this makes the film feel like it's going on an extended loop for no real reason. Another factor to this is that it appears too long for its own good, especially in the early parts trying to examine everything which makes the film feel incredibly long and not all that interesting focusing on the scientific angle. Even some of the CGI shots here are quite weak and seem obvious, especially at the end where the exaggerated movements give away the technique and stands out during the fine action scenes. These here are what hold this one down.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and children-in-danger.
MaximumMadness
One of the most fascinating things about director Guillermo del Toro's 1997 Sci-Fi/Horror film "Mimic" is that, despite well-reported behind- the-scenes drama and clashes with the producers, and the fact that del Toro even went so far as to disown the original theatrical cut of the film... it's still a darned good film, and an incredible exercise in style and classic chills-&-thrills.Yes, even though del Toro distanced himself from the version released in theaters (though he later released a somewhat extended director's cut that he felt more content and happy with), that cannot stop the film from not only being fundamentally solid and extraordinarily well- made, but also a sure sign of the superb work del Toro went on to make. You can tell that this film was a stepping stone, allowing him to to gain the experience necessary to make future classics like "The Devil's Backbone", the two "Hellboy" films and of course, his masterpiece "Pan's Labyrinth."This film oozes (often literally) with the things that del Toro clearly loves. Insects. Sewers. Autopsies. Quirky characters. Clockwork. The unborn. Everything. And you can tell, despite the drama on-set, that del Toro's wonderful fingerprints are all over the film. (In both the director's and theatrical cuts.)In the midst of a viral epidemic of "Strickler's Disease" (an illness responsible for a growing number of deaths amongst children), Entomologist Susan Tyler (Mira Sorvino) uses genetic engineering to create the "Judas Breed"- a new form of insect that will kill of the cockroaches containing the dreaded "Strickler's Diesease." In order to ensure that the Judas Breed will die out, it was designed specifically to die off after only a generation. However, three years later, Susan discovers that the Judas Breed has somehow survived. Aided by their altered body-chemistry, they have managed to somehow breed and evolve, growing and changing to blend in with natural predators... including humans. Together with her husband Peter Mann (Jeremy Northam), a shoe- shiner named Manny (Giancarlo Giannini), his Autistic son Chuy (Alexander Goodwin), a police officer (Josh Brolin) and a subway guard (Charles S. Dutton), Susan must find a way to stop the growing threat presented by these new forms of the Judas Breed, before they manage to blend in, infiltrate and destroy humanity.The cast is absolutely superb. In particular Sorvino and Giannini, who steal the show. Everyone gives wonderful, superb performances that humanizes the horror and drama, creating a wonderful sense of dread when they are in danger. The only sore thumbs here are Dutton and Brolin. Both fantastic actors. And both are decent. However, their limited material (somewhat more one-dimensional than the other characters) makes them feel a bit more "flat" than other characters. Still, they do a decent job. They just don't quite "fit in" with the rest of the cast.The direction is magnificent, as is always the case with del Toro films. While his prior work "Cronos" was a very good start, and contained the first hints and glimpses of his style... here, we are given a definite plunge into the mind of del Toro. The direction is absolutely incredible, and his choices in shots, composition and movement are beautiful and poetic, and create wonderful senses of love, fear, dread, drama and even hope. A true mastermind of cinema.It's hard to judge the script, knowing many scenes were changed, altered, dropped, etc. But the writing in general is quite strong for a genre-film, and characters are (for the most part) well-developed and possessing enough "quirks" to make them identifiable and worth caring for.Other aspects of the film are all generally strong. From some stunning cinematography courtesy of Dan Laustsen, to the absolutely bone-tingling (and action packed) score by the magnificent Marco Beltrami, to the wonderful mixture of practical and CGI effect... everything gels into a well-oiled machine to deliver del Toro's Gothic horror beats.I'm honestly shocked that this film doesn't have the recognition it deserves. Sadly, that is often the case for not only del Toro's film (his other works such as "Pan's Labyrinth" and even the recent "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark", which he served as a co-writer and producer on, are all tragically under-recognized despite their rampant strengths), but also good horror in general. It's a shame that the masses pass up on unique, well-made chillers in favor of generic sequels and processed PG- 13 fluff. But that's a rant for another time.As it stands, I give "Mimic" a strong 8 out of 10. (That's for the director's cut. The theatrical cut is more of a 7 out of 10. Still good, but not QUITE as good.) It's definitely a film worth checking out for fans of Sci-Fi, Horror or pure cinematic thrills.
wes-connors
Cockroaches are causing a modern-day plague in New York City. Long, dark hospital halls are filled with rows of foreboding beds, containing doomed children. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief when beautiful entomologist (bug expert) Mira Sorvino (as Susan Tyler) cross-breeds a predator to kill the roaches. This would be celebrated even if the roaches weren't killing everyone's kids. Everyone is happy with Ms. Sorvino's remedy. She hooks up with handsome Jeremy Northam (as Peter Mann) and thinks about having children of her own. But, wait… something has gone wrong! "Judas Breed" was supposed to be unable to reproduce – and they were scheduled to disappear completely around six months after killing the roaches. Apparently, they stuck around and grew into huge, hungry critters...Stylishly produced and directed, by Guillermo del Toro, "Mimic" is an engaging horror suspense story...The special effects and story fit together well and the monster effect is well-designed. The film startles with early developments, then becomes fairly predictable. You may not always know who's going, but you should be able to figure out who's coming back. Suffering from severe potty-mouth, Charles S. Dutton (as Leonard) is most obvious. Less so are Giancarlo Giannini (as Manny) and young Alexander Goodwin (as Chuy). While the insect effect is very good, some of the science could have been more realistic. The worst moment may be when Sorvino's presumably brilliant character states humans evolved from apes. Scientists smart enough to evolve insects would know humans and apes possessed common (DNA) ancestors. Apes do not "turn into humans" – except, maybe, in the movies...****** Mimic (8/22/97) Guillermo del Toro ~ Mira Sorvino, Jeremy Northam, Charles S. Dutton, Giancarlo Giannini
