Knowing, the latest Nicolas Cage film, paints a bleak picture of man’s future and delves into philosophical questions pertaining to the order (or lack thereof) of life’s events. Themes of destiny, futility, and spirituality are all wrapped up in a suspenseful plot that’s entertaining, yet entirely predictable.
The film begins in the year 1959. To commemorate the opening of their new school, a group of elementary school students lower a time capsule into the ground. Inside the capsule is a drawing from each student, illustrating his/her vision of the future. However, one disturbed little girl named Lucinda inserts a piece of paper filled with numbers.
Flash forward to present day. John Koestler (Cage) is an MIT professor and single dad with his own set of emotional issues. His son Caleb is handed Lucinda’s paper when the capsule is opened at a school ceremony and John starts to believe that the numbers have accurately predicted world tragedies from 1959 to the present. Only three events have yet to happen and John’s hope is that he can stop each tragedy before it occurs and uncover the truth about the origin of the numbers.
Although entertaining, Knowing has an abundance of plot holes and scenes that feel way too expository. For example, at one point in the film John’s sister confronts him about his fractured relationship with their father. It’s a scene that tries to bring some humanity to Cage’s character, but it seems out of place and forced.
The film also becomes a mixture of several genres. Dramatic and emotional scenes between father and son are followed by moments of intense action; those moments are followed by elements of mystery and suspense; and in the wake of those scenes are moments suited for sci-fi. Some might see this as a case of identity crisis - a movie trying to be too much of one thing without really developing it’s strongest point. Others might see this as a device to hold an audience’s interest and maintain quicker pacing. By movie’s end, however, Knowing becomes a bit muddled by all these devices and the overall impact is weakened.
5 out of 10 stars
no comment until now