Nirvana

Jimi, a computer programmer, is trying to finish his latest role-playing computer game Nirvana for the Okasama Star corporation. He is surprised to find that Solo, the lead character has developed awareness of his location in the game, the fact that every time he dies he is reborn, and that he is doomed to live out the same life and situations over and over again. He asks Jimi to delete the game.

Jimi needs to penetrate Okasama's mainframe, and enlists the help of many technological wizards. Chief among them are Joystick, a poor hacker (or 'angel') who has sold his eyes to raise money and now sees with the aid of small black and white cameras in his eye sockets; and Naima, a woman whose memories have been erased and who can only remember things with the assistance of artificially created memories loaded through a port in her skull. The mainframe is protected by sophisticated anti-hacking devices known as 'devils' which feed off memories and mental energy to destroy the brains of the angels who try to penetrate it. Jimi is also battling painful memories of his own - his lost girlfriend who disappeared from his life leaving only a video recording and a picture to remind him of her...

Although there is not much in this film for action buffs, there is conceptually a link to other films about simulated experience such as Total Recall and The Matrix, as well as some existential musings on the nature of memory and experience in the digital age where such things can be easily synthesised. A delightfully ambiguous ending emphasises the film's main themes.

Good use is made of a medium budget to simulate an anarchic future world sliding into decay, with a decline in morality and a low value placed on the sanctity of life and the human body - the streets of the slums are replete with organ thieves; and Joystick's synthetic eyes are a physical complement to Naima's synthetic memories. A strong visual style is complemented by an insistent soundtrack.

Alright, as I can see, we have very mixed reviews on this one. I personally really liked this sci-fi flick. What's so cool about it? No, no, it's not thought-provoking like eXistenZ of David Cronenberg and then again YES forget about Matrix - Nirvana is magical in a way a Hollywood film will never be. Almost surreal, Nirvana presents the future world in a most atmospheric way, and quite realistically manages to capture the decadent atmosphere of a future cyberpunk world.

What's no realistic at all, and oversimplifying is the whole plot and stuff. But who cares? Characters manage to be quite interesting, the music builds an awesome atmosphere. As you see, I don't try to intellectualise any of it: i like it for what it is, a small euro sci-fi that, at least to me, delivered the goods!

A recommendation... especially if you like Gibson-like, cyber-punk literature. BUT DON'T EXPECT TOO MUCH

Films generally carry a title for a reason. Salvatores's Nirvana's is the key to understanding it. Without the key, the film will look like rubbish, like many comments here testify. But, if you get that key and use it, it can become one of the most astonishing movie experiences you may make.

The title is not just the name of a videogame. That is totally incidental.

The movie is about the voyage towards Nirvana - the real thing - of two men (or maybe of one man and his own projection in a virtual world): how the two (or maybe the man and his own inner conscience) start to understand what Nirvana is and how they eventually reach it, in spite of all misadventures and (that is not casual at all...) the cycles of deaths and rebirths that the virtual self Solo (meaning alone, in Italian, not Star Wars' character - again not a coincidence) has to go through.

This is a movie about symbolisms. This is a movie about the deepest searches of the soul. Searches that cannot be disturbed by petty concerns (see Bebo Storti's apparently bizarre line after he appears in a flash for just a few seconds to shoot and kill a very unlucky henchman "I am MEDITATING [profanities deleted]!").

Science fiction is incidental to its aims, and provides a fabulously well used tool to unravel the story in what I regard as a cinematic masterpiece.

Blade Runner's climax ended on the recognition that replicants (and humans, maybe) were just "tears... in the rain". Nirvana's is about snowflakes that fall forever, and yet never fall.... Pity this is so far above the expectations of an average moviegoer that most viewers did not even recognize the genius in its simplicity. My congratulations to Cacucci, Corica and Salvatores!

An European hard-science action movie is rare these days, especially a good one, and Nirvana was a good surprise when released in France... The critics bashed it - with some interesting exceptions, and the public did not come to see it (bad promo material)... Nevertheless, it's still one of my favorite. This is not a Wakowsky Bros frenzy festival with "bullettime effect" (did you know that it was a french who created them ?) and kick-ass fighting, but Gabriele Salvatores (an "intellectual" director as it seems) did an excellent low-budget film with GREAT scenario, GREAT acting (Lambert at his best, seriously), a credible world...

It's not centered on the VFX, and it's great. Sometimes a bit slow, but it's for the "ambiance", and, what an ending... A must-see, not especially for Lambert-fans... Be open-minded, and try it...

OK, so you've always wondered what the matrix would be like with a good leading actor (rather than the wooden Reeves), a better script, no spectacular action scenes, and low budget. This is your film. We have Chris Lambert in one of his best films (along with "Subway" and of course, "Highlander"), this is not his average film. The goal is to erase the game in which its main character is aware of his condition of "gamething" and is damned to live and die. This Super Mario working for the Mafia (Abatantuono) is terrifically great. Sergio Rubini is great too, and the whole cast in general kicks ass! What to do with low budget? THIS MOVIE!

8/10