A game designer on the run from assassins must play her latest virtual reality creation with a marketing trainee to determine if the game has been damaged.
"It seems that David Cronenberg cannot shake off his obsession with "body horror". Though this futuristic virtual-reality thriller sidesteps the more explicit visceral gore of The Fly and Videodrome, it nonetheless involves pulsating computer-game consoles and handsets that plug directly into the flesh. Despite the usual high degree of visual invention (a gun is created using gristle and bones left over from a meal) and impressive lead performances from Jude Law (as a security guard) and Jennifer Jason Leigh (as creator of the eponymous game), the movie is not quite up there with Cronenberg's best. But the "is-it-or-isn't-it-reality" question keeps the pace up, and the supporting cast featuring Willem Dafoe, Ian Holm and Christopher Eccleston is strong. However, it's hard to escape the nagging feeling that virtual reality is slightly old hat. Besides, we've got The Matrix now and that has kung fu and everything." - Radio Times Review
"It seems that David Cronenberg cannot shake off his obsession with "body horror". Though this futuristic virtual-reality thriller sidesteps the more explicit visceral gore of The Fly and Videodrome, it nonetheless involves pulsating computer-game consoles and handsets that plug directly into the flesh. Despite the usual high degree of visual invention (a gun is created using gristle and bones left over from a meal) and impressive lead performances from Jude Law (as a security guard) and Jennifer Jason Leigh (as creator of the eponymous game), the movie is not quite up there with Cronenberg's best. But the "is-it-or-isn't-it-reality" question keeps the pace up, and the supporting cast featuring Willem Dafoe, Ian Holm and Christopher Eccleston is strong. However, it's hard to escape the nagging feeling that virtual reality is slightly old hat. Besides, we've got The Matrix now and that has kung fu and everything." - Radio Times Review