What could have been a tired entry in the buddy-buddy cop thriller genre turns into something else at the hands of expert director and craftsman Philip Kaufman (INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS). Sure, it's no masterpiece, but this adaptation of a Michael Crichton novel makes for compelling viewing, a fun entry in the East-meets-West sub-genre of the films detailing the conflict that arises when two different cultures are forced to come together.
The plot is essentially that of a murder mystery, but with Crichton as source material there's the expected preoccupation with technology (a piece of CCTV footage plays a pivotal role here, throwing up questions as to privacy and manipulation, with the film feeling way ahead of its time some twenty years later). The presence of Wesley Snipes as the lead begs the question "miscasting?" but I found him on top form here and a darned sight better than he was in the same year's DEMOLITION MAN. Connery bags the best role and steals all of his scenes, while Harvey Keitel gives a volatile performance and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is a pleasure when he's given the chance to act (and not typecast as the villain, either). Altogether the culture clash plot kept me watching to the end and I wasn't disappointed, the complexity of the mystery carrying the viewer through some of the more unbelievable moments..
The plot is essentially that of a murder mystery, but with Crichton as source material there's the expected preoccupation with technology (a piece of CCTV footage plays a pivotal role here, throwing up questions as to privacy and manipulation, with the film feeling way ahead of its time some twenty years later). The presence of Wesley Snipes as the lead begs the question "miscasting?" but I found him on top form here and a darned sight better than he was in the same year's DEMOLITION MAN. Connery bags the best role and steals all of his scenes, while Harvey Keitel gives a volatile performance and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is a pleasure when he's given the chance to act (and not typecast as the villain, either). Altogether the culture clash plot kept me watching to the end and I wasn't disappointed, the complexity of the mystery carrying the viewer through some of the more unbelievable moments..