Cypher (2002)

Director:

Vincenzo Natali

Writer (WGA):

Brian King (written by)

Release Date:

18 January 2003 (Japan)

Genre:

Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Never forget who you are.

Plot:

An unsuspecting, disenchanted man finds himself working as a spy in the dangerous, high-stakes world of corporate espionage. Quickly getting way over-his-head, he teams up with a mysterious femme fatale.

Plot Keywords:

Spy | Brainwashing | Future | New Identity | Corporate Espionage

Awards:

5 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Jeremy Northam	...	Morgan Sullivan
Lucy Liu	...	Rita Foster
Nigel Bennett	...	Finster
Timothy Webber	...	Callaway
David Hewlett	...	Virgil C. Dunn
Kari Matchett	...	Diane
Kristina Nicoll	...	Amy
Joseph Scoren	...	Digicorp Technician #1
Stephen Brown	...	Digicorp Technician #2
Arnold Pinnock	...	Pilot In Mensroom
Jocelyn Snowdon	...	Stewardess to Buffalo
Boyd Banks	...	Fred Garfield
Steve Jackson	...	Waiter Buffalo
Dan Duran	...	Buffalo Speaker #1
Valerie Buhagiar	...	Buffalo Speaker #2

Also Known As:

Brainstorm (International: English title)
Company Man (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some language.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 | Ireland:15 | Singapore:PG | UK:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Italy:T | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Pandora Cinema

Trivia:

Was shot in 35 days.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Morgan is given his fake California ID, it shows a Blue and a Red Bar below the name and address. The Blue line is to denote a provisional license for those under 18 at the time of issuance, and the red bar is to denote what year the ID holder turns 21. Morgan is appears to be in his 30's, so there would be no colored bars on his ID.

Movie Connections:

References Johnny Mnemonic (1995)

Stylish Film! Good Action Sequences!

There was a stylish approach to this film on the part of director Vincenzo Natali with interesting camera angles and effective close-ups. It was also refreshing to see Jeremy Northam and Lucy Liu given leading roles and expanding their range as performers. This film also included one of the most imaginative "escape" scenes in recent years. The efforts of the director and the actors combined in an effective thriller.

Although the plotting of the film was convoluted, the story progressed very clearly as the layers of corporate greed and skullduggery were revealed.

In 1949, George Orwell suggested in his famous novel "1984" that the future would be ruled by the totalitarian State, which would control minds and diminish human liberty. It was interesting that in this intriguing futuristic film, it was not the State, but rather the corporate world that controlled and devalued the human worker.