Impostor (2001)

In the future, an alien race uses androids as bombs to attack Earth. A government weapons specialist is accused of being one such android and sets out to prove his innocence.

Director:

Gary Fleder

Writers:

Philip K. Dick (short story "The Impostor"), Scott Rosenberg (adaptation)

Stars:

Shane Brolly, Vincent D'Onofrio, Gary Sinise

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Sinise	...	Spencer Olham
Madeleine Stowe	...	Maya Olham
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Hathaway
Tony Shalhoub	...	Nelson Gittes
Tim Guinee	...	Dr. Carone
Mekhi Phifer	...	Cale
Gary Dourdan	...	Captain Burke
Lindsay Crouse	...	Chancellor
Elizabeth Peña	...	Midwife (as Elizabeth Pena)
Jason Beck	...	Gang Boy #2
Judy Jean Berns	...	Disgruntled Woman
Veena Bidasha	...	Frowning Nurse
Ellen Bradley	...	Nursing Mother
Shane Brolly	...	Lt. Burrows
Golden Brooks	...	Cale's Sister

Storyline

An exciting, action-packed sci-fi story from the author of Total Recall and Blade Runner, the thrilling Director's Cut of Impostor brings you Gary Sinise (Forrest Gump, Apollo 13), Madeleine Stowe (We Were Soldiers, Playing By Heart), Vincent D'Onofrio (The Cell, Men In Black) and Mekhi Phifer (O, 8 Mile) in a stellar cast. At a time when the earth has been at war with an alien force for over a decade, the latest work of lauded governmental scientist Spencer Olham (Sinise) promises to save the planet. But suddenly, Olham himself is accused of being an alien spy and is thrown headlong into a disorienting nightmare as a fugitive from the law. With blasts of adrenaline-fueled intensity, this futuristic thriller soars as Olham races to prove his identity to the world...and himself...in time to save all mankind.

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Plot Keywords:

watching tv | chair bondage | botox | slums | nasty face | 

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Taglines:

In the Future, not everyone is who they seem to be.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sci-fi violence, some sensuality and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 January 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Impostor

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,022,523, 6 January 2002

Gross USA:

$6,285,176

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,694,320

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dimension Films, Marty Katz Productions, Miramax

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min 102 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The adaptation of Philip K. Dick's short story "The Impostor" was originally planned to be one segment (about forty minutes) of a three-part science fiction movie. The production company liked the early "dailies" so much, that the idea was fleshed out into a feature length film. The other segments grew into the features Mimic (1997) and Alien Love Triangle (2008).

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Goofs

When Captain Burke is explaining to Major Hathaway why they can't get a scan on the building, his lips don't match his words.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Spencer Olham: There wasn't always a war with the Centauri, but in my lifetime it's all I've ever known. By the year 2050, six years after the first attack, we'd lost so many things. We'd lost the sky to electromagnetic domes, to shield the Earth from frequent air raids increasing in intensity. We'd lost the uncovered cities that the government forgot. We'd lost democracy to global leadership. We didn't expect peace anymore with the Centauri, because we came to see that peace wasn't their goal. ...

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Alternate Versions

Current DVD/video release in the US contains the original R-rated version, and not the cut PG-13 version.

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Connections

Referenced in Goodbye, Dragon Inn (2003)

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Soundtracks

Boom Boom
Written and Performed by John Lee Hooker
Published by Conrad Music, A Division of Arc Music Corporation
Courtesy of Vee-Jay Limited Partnership/ Rhino Entertainment

User Reviews

Interesting.....

The story: Waking up one morning, a top scientist and weapons designer finds himself accused of being a replicant / cyborg impostor, planted by aliens in order to assassinate the leader (i.e. dictator?) of earth. To quote Tom Cruise in the competing movie Minority Report: "Everybody Runs", and so he escapes, trying to prove his innocence / identity.

I was expecting this movie to be quite boring, either too confusing or too Hollywoodised to be enjoyable. Still I rented it on the off chance that they might have made a good sci-fi movie without anyone noticing. And I was actually quite surprised: I did enjoy the movie. I have to admit, I spent a lot of time speculating about the outcome, as there were many hints in the movie, and I became quite interested whether the script would follow through with them or leave them as plotholes. The movie is thrilling (I kinda like "Man on the Run" movies) and has some fun, but not too clever or revolutionary, setpieces. The world the movie is set in is quite acceptable, mixing many of P K Dick movie gimmicks (hover-cars from Blade Runner, personal identification similar to Minority Report, an Orwellian government presence similar to Total Recall).

By the time the movie reaches its climactic finale, I was very thrilled and also very excited. The ending was just perfect, exactly what I wanted it to be. So while I doubt whether the movie will be great on repeat viewings, it definitely is worth seeing. It does not quite fit into the usual Hollywood scheme of things and had a tough time, being released in the same year as Minority Report, but to me it definitely wasn't inferior to that much anticipated and overhyped movie...

One warning though: Near the start, there is a particularly gruesome and gory scene that fully deserves an 18-rating in my opinion, instead of the 15 rating the movie received. I feel the movie could have done without showing it quite as explicitly - in fact, the horror of just watching actor's faces without seeing the actual projection might have been much more effective and elegant.

7/10