Review: Assasins

[Duncan Frissell <frissell@panix.com>]

Assassins with Sly Stallone and Antonio Banderas with Julianne Moore as 
the cyberspatial interest.

This may be the film derived in part from some writer-type's conversation 
with our own Tim May.

Sly and Antonio get their contracts via computer from an anonymous 
source.  They favor Powerbooks.  The source types on the tops of the 
screens they type on the bottom.  The Powerbooks must have built in 
wireless modems because they are pretty casual about firing them up 
wherever they happen to be.

Julianne is cute.  Apparently being a net security expert/hacker is seen 
as women's work in Hollywood with Sandra in the Net and what's her name 
in Hackers.  Also this sort of life interferes with your social contacts 
because both Sandra and Julianne seem lonely.  Julianne likes cats.

The screens look fake (like most Hollywood computer screens).  There is 
minor mention of encryption.  Julianne is a "ghost" (self-described) 
with no SS# or DL.  She does have a car and apartment, however.  As 
always in these films, much of the action is motivated by a single 
high-density floppy.  It's amazing the amount of stuff they can get on 
those disks.

Most of these character's problems could be solved if they would simply 
transfer this info over the nets without having to meet in person.  They 
could also encrypt disks much more than they choose to.

Coincidentally, I saw both The Net and Hackers this weekend.  It is hard 
to decide which is the "best."  Assassins is slick and Antonio makes a 
great psycho.  [Note to Sly --- Many of your problems as a professional 
assassin could be solved by a few finishing shots to the head. --- I 
thought they taught that on the first day in assassin's school.]  I 
suppose I liked Assassins best although Puerto Rico makes a poor stand-in 
for an island tax haven.  I like English accents on my tax 
haven bankers.


DCF

"Who is ready to act as an advisor for a small fee to anyone out there 
who wants to do a real net film."