They could have been honest and called it Burn in Hell, Bill Gates, but the creators of the new thriller AntiTrust decided to use a little subtlety. The keywords being "a little."
An edge of your seat cyber thriller, AntiTrust never comes right out and says it's about Bill Gates, but it might as well.
Exhibit A: Tim Robbins masterfully portrays a geeky, glasses-wearing computer billionaire named Gary Winston. (The physical resemblance alone conjures up images of Microsoft's head honcho.)
Exhibit B: Gary's company, N.U.R.V., has faced numerous legal battles for infringing on anti-trust laws for being the largest computer monopoly in the world.
Exhibit C: Right from the start, the film sets about proving that not only has Gates, er, Gary violated antitrust laws, but he's also the anti-Christ, with his sights set on ruling the world. And since bashing Bill Gates is practically a national pastime, this is par for the course.
Now, these aren't necessarily bad things. In fact, despite a few cheesy moments and a couple of lame plot points, AntiTrust is a surprisingly good film.
First, the set-up:
Brilliant Stanford graduate Milo (Ryan Phillippe) has a real gift for computers and is considered to be one of the top programmers in the country (and since he's played by Ryan Phillippe, he's also one of the most attractive). With his best friends and his girlfriend, Alice (Claire Forlani) by his side, Milo hopes to use his genius to one day change the world.
But Gary Winston has other plans.
You see, Gary is dying to have Milo on his team at N.U.R.V., and he'll go to any and all lengths to recruit him. Suffice to say, before long the young prodigy is settling in at the Seattle firm's "campus."
At first, Milo feels right at home in N.U.R.V.'s inviting, laid-back community. He gains a wealth of new friends, a nice workspace, a huge house and a flashy new car. But pretty soon the cracks in his 'perfect' job begin to show. As Milo digs deeper into the secret workings of N.U.R.V., he starts to unravel a web of deception, corruption and -- you guessed it -- murder.
Now, back-stabbing and espionage aren't the most original story arcs, but AntiTrust breathes new life into them. For one thing, the movie has a timely relevance. It's as "with it" as you can get, right on the mark for the 21st century. It also holds the honor of being one of the few mainstream computer flicks that's well executed. Because even in this day and age -- where our lives are so ruled by computers --there are surprisingly few films about them.
Also in its favor: the action is top-notch and the plot is crammed with lots of delicious twists and turns.
However, AntiTrust does have a few obvious holes (it's a bit of a stretch that a place as computer savvy as the N.U.R.V. headquarters would have such a weak security system). But the star-filled cast (which also includes Rachel Leigh Cook as Milo's assistant at N.U.R.V.) helps to smooth over many of the plot problems.
Predictably, Tim Robbins serves up the best performance of the lot. As Gary, he strikes a perfect balance between gentle friendliness and simmering psychosis. It's a mix he's well accustomed to, and he once again proves he's a master of eerie performances (non-believers should also check out his creepy turn in Arlington Road).
Ryan Phillippe fares much better than expected, packing a surprising amount of talent behind his pretty boy looks. But the weakest performer is Claire Forlani, who seems unable to master any facial expression other than a wide-eyed, dopey grin (though she gains credibility as the film progresses).
But despite its few flaws, AntiTrust is definitely a must-see, full of enough shocking surprises to trick even the most seasoned movie buff. It may never earn much critical acclaim, but is sure to please. Unless, of course, your name happens to be Bill Gates.
Grade: A-
(PG-13, 2 hours)
