World on a Wire (Criterion)

This is a movie that I've been wanting to see since I was young, but, although it was made in my time, it wasn't readily available. Alas, Criterion has finally released it, and I was so excited to finally see it!

Basically, it is a TV movie based on the early 1960s sci-fi short story by Daniel Galouye. It's about an engineer who is caught not only in an ethical dilemma on how his machine that mimics reality should be used (for the good of people or for corporate greed), but he debates whether he is in a fabricated reality or a real one. It is more, but I'm not going to ruin it.

The movie itself is an excellent adaptation of the novel MINUS the CGI effects (no flying cars, no futuristic city, no public-opinion polsters). It is made in similar style to Truffaut's "Fahrenheit 451," Godard's "Alphaville," and Barzyk's "The Lathe of Heaven" (or even, dare I say, "A Clockwork Orange"). Many sci-fi fanatics may find this problematic, but I love these movies because it makes them more "down to earth" and more human (for lack of a better word) and less "contrived" and/or reliant on special effects to tell the story.

The Criterion version has restored Fassbinder's movie, with not only an outstanding digital transfer, but "New English subtitles" (as stated on the back). I have only seen 1 scene in my life, and it was from a horrible copy! Fassbinder may not be a name associated with sci-fi, but the movie has all of his traits found in other movies he directed: muscular men of different races, overly made-up women with large, blond hair, and give-and-take dialogue. There's even a "Lili Marleen" bit! Equally masterful is his constant use of mirrors (or any reflective surfaces, such as water) and windows. It's fascinating to watch! It is also somewhat slow-paced (not as much as Angelopoulos), and this may tend to turn casual viewers off (I'm noting this, because reviews by other about slow-paced movies are negative because of pacing, and this is something that many viewers have overcome or need to overcome). I like slow-pace; It's not so slow that you are bored. The story carries well. Great use of music (Strauss, Greek folk, and Jazz/blues) and sound effects (screeches and such that heighten tension). Great use of art direction, colors, editing, cinematography, etc.

I watched this movie AFTER reading the story, and, even without the special effects, the movie is on-target with its adaptation (there is some added and some changed, but it works!). No pollsters, but Fassbinder molds the movie in such a way so that not having them doesn't really matter.

There is some female nudity, and, outside of the US or UK, this is normal for TV movies and foreign cinema - I am only noting this because the film has no rating on the cover!

There are some great features on the Criterion set, including "Making of..." documentary. I'm more of a Herzog fan, but I've been revisiting Fassbinder recently (next on list: "Berlin Alexanderplatz, which is also on Criterion and I have seen before). It is a 2-disc set. It's great to sit through the ending credits and chill to the soundtrack.

To repeat myself, it is probably NOT for the casual movie watcher. This is Fassbinder, and if you don't like slow pacing, early 70s cinema, or made-for-TV movies (it doesn't "feel" like one at all), this movie will probably disappoint. In my opinion, it is for those who study foreign cinema, and, especially, New German Cinema (this definitely fits the NGC German identity crisis philosophy), and, even more so, the cinema of Fassbinder.

Spin around in tandem on swivel chairs with a fellow viewer and enjoy! (It's a scene in the movie) ---- 5 stars for film, transfer, and DVD extras combined.

Rainer Werner Fassbinder's film in this newly released Criterion DVD draws immediate parallels to Fahrenheit 451, François Truffaut's nightmarish vision of a world without books. Fassbinder's film is less openly allegoric, more rooted in a world where corporate interests align with science and technology run amuck. It's especially chilling that a mere 28 years prior to the making of this 1973 film, Hitler's Gestapo performed the same type of eugenics experiments, and deployed the same numbering scheme on human "units" depicted in the film. Fassbinder deploys the same rapier on journalists that he uses to skewer corporate tycoons, noting they seem more interested in helping themselves at a massive press conference feast than in unmasking the human experiments taking place under their noses.

There are several places in the film where Fassbinder could have imposed his vision and left the viewer in the dust, but he's always careful to continue the story thread, and thus keep viewers in the loop. His world is highly stylized, there are no wasted frames - nearly every camera shot is tinged with erotic undertones or duplicity in the making. Fassbinder's film career was as tinged with notoriety as it was brief - this film is as good an introduction to his work as you will find.

Firstly, it should be noted that this is a Fassbinder movie regardless of genre so one would need to be receptive to his work overall to enjoy this. That said World on a Wire remains true to the novel: Simulacron-3 and although it expands on it stays within its frame work. Also there really is no need to contrast and compare to:The Matrix as they are two entirely different films (both of which I enjoyed). However it is also true as regards science fiction that less can be more such as:The Prisoner: The Complete Series (40th Anniversary Collector's Edition)
The abject minimalism of early Fassbinder, Wim Wenders and Werner Herzog may not be for all tastes but it was purposeful not due to lack of effort. Fassbinder in particular generally had screen plays where the overall ideas and themes were more important than the individual characters. World on a Wire wasn't so much a foray into the science fiction genre as an expansion of his themes into the arena. The paranoia and claustrophobia of World on a Wire is true to the original novel but also to the social climate of Germany in the 70's with the ever present reality of the cold war and anarchism (which would be further explored in documentary form in: Germany in Autumn as well as the decadence and excesses of the time. This was the perfect time frame to realize the novel as when it was written the internet was far from realization, at the time later films were made it was a standard part of society but at the time of the 70's advances in technology were both somewhat frightening and dehumanizing but also a fetish as in: Man Machine
If you enjoy the genre Fassbinder and others created then yes this would be essential viewing. If not understand that the impression the film creates surpasses the plot but is one that you might want to be enveloped in so give it a try.