If I were to hazard a generalisation about the movie-loving public, I’d say that there are two kinds of people: those who would really love to see a “Black Mirror”-style science fiction mind-bender starring Robin Williams, and those who have not yet dared to dream about this prospect. Fortunately, both groups are in luck today, and have actually been so for over two decades. The movie you didn’t know you wanted to see very much exists, and was warmly welcomed by none other than Roger Ebert when it came out in 2004.
Granted, not everyone agrees that “The Final Cut” is all that great. Its overall critical reviews are decidedly underwhelming (think 37% on Rotten Tomatoes), and it’s nowhere to be found on /Film’s list of the 15 best Robin Williams movies. Still, “The Final Cut” has worth on multiple fronts. Not only does the late, great Williams give a committed serious performance in the movie, but its concept of people walking around with recording memory chips in their brain hits much harder in our social media-obsessed day and age than it may have done 20 years ago.
The Final Cut delivers a dark tale about surveillance
Over its seven seasons, Charlie Brooker’s “Black Mirror” has evolved into its own subgenre of speculative fiction, and there are many “Black Mirror”-style shows that are worth watching – some of which actually aired well before the Netflix anthology series itself. On the movie front, tight sci-fi stories that explore the dystopian aspects of our world through a sci-fi concept obviously exist as well, but rarely has a film fit under the “Black Mirror” umbrella as well as “The Final Cut” does.
Directed and written by Omar Naim, “The Final Cut” is about Alan Hakman (Williams), a chipless “cutter” whose job it is to go through people’s brain chip data after they die and compile memorial videos. Hakman specializes in making shady people’s lives look good, and thinks of himself as a “sin-eater” who redeems his clients by witnessing their atrocities before deleting the compromising footage from existence. Unfortunately, this role puts him right in the middle of a massive moral dilemma when one of his clients (Michael St. John Smith) turns out to be particularly vile — and data of his deeds is key in a struggle between the memory chip company and anti-surveillance activists.
Relentlessly twisty and disturbing, “The Final Cut” carries shades of Williams’ earlier voyeur movie “One Hour Photo,” and his work as the emotionally withdrawn Hakman is fully comparable to the “Robin Williams Tripytch of Evil” (The aforementioned “One Hour Photo,” “Insomnia,” and “Death to Smoochy,” all from 2002). With ample fire support from fellow Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino (who plays Hakman’s partner, Delila), this makes “The Final Cut” well worth watching even if its script can’t always match its lofty ideas and acting.
