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Impostor

Starring: Gary Sinise
Director: Gary Fleder
Genre: Science Fiction
Year: 2002
Rating: 2 / 5

Author Philip K. Dick, born over seventy years ago, was a truly gifted writer. His novels and short stories have inspired film classics such a Blade Runner and Total Recall, and, although he passed over twenty years ago, his name adds a certain credibility to science fiction offerings. In spite of this, Impostor, originally written fifty years ago, has to be one of the noted author’s most unfortunate adaptations. It explores some of the same ideas as his other cinematic efforts, only in a less compelling and engrossing manner. In addition, it suffers from a conclusion that arrives a little too late to save a flailing movie. The only thing this Impostor is guilty of is trying to pass itself off as an enjoyable film.

Spencer Olham (Gary Sinise) is a top scientist in a futuristic Earth society. Our planet is in the midst of a galactic war with a more technologically advanced society, one that is bombing all cities in the hope of destroying the planet. While mankind is able to withstand this attack, a fear grows that the alien invaders have a new method of infiltration – replicants. Word leaks that an alien vessel has broken through Earth’s defenses in an attempt to assassinate one of the planet’s leaders. When the authorities begin looking at Spencer, he runs, wondering all the while whether he really is who he thinks he is. Is he really Spencer Olham or is he merely a replicant? How can he really know anything about himself?

Would Impostor have made for a more compelling film had Blade Runner never been made? Is Dick held to an impossibly high standard, especially considering he had virtually nothing to do with this film’s production? Part of the film’s failing lies with its plot, both underdeveloped and unoriginal, while part lies with the performances delivered by the film’s leads. Gary Sinise, who seemed targeted for such big things after Forrest Gump has made his share of bombs since that time. Tony Shalhoub, one of modern cinema’s most respected character actors, seems to have signed on merely to cash a paycheck, which is more than can be said for the scenery-chewing effort put forth by Vincent D’Onofrio. These three invest little emotion and even less energy into a tale that sputters from the very beginning.

Director Gary Fleder does little to capture the viewer after the film’s tantalizing initial premise. After these opening moments, he seems content to let it drag along until the inevitable shock of a conclusion. While these closing bits are rewarding, the payoff is not worth the time invested. Impostor attempts to wrestle with important issues about one’s sense of identity, yet it fails to devote any measurable time to them. This leaves the film as little more than a cheap imitation of a science fiction classic made twenty years earlier, as well as a painful blemish on the career of a revered scribe.

Cast:

Certification: Rated PG-13 for violence.
Running Time: 95 minutes.

Additional Info: Internet Movie Database
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