<HTML><HEAD>
<TITLE>Review for AntiTrust (2001)</TITLE>
<LINK REL="STYLESHEET" TYPE="text/css" HREF="/ramr.css">
</HEAD>
<BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#000000">
<H1 ALIGN="CENTER" CLASS="title"><A HREF="/Title?0218817">AntiTrust (2001)</A></H1><H3 ALIGN=CENTER>reviewed by<BR><A HREF="/ReviewsBy?Michael+Dequina">Michael Dequina</A></H3><HR WIDTH="40%" SIZE="4">
<P>_Antitrust_ (PG-13) no stars (out of ****)</P>
<P>If I hadn't already been aware that it was January, _Antitrust_ would
have been a stinging jolt of reality.  This thriller in name only is all
too characteristic of the cinematic scrap heap that is the first month of
the year: surface slickness in lieu of the slightest sign of substance.</P>
<P>With the toplining female stars being Rachael Leigh Cook and Claire
Forlani, one expects the male lead to be their respective
_She's_All_That_ and _Boys_and_Girls_ paramour, Freddie Prinze Jr. 
Thankfully, the poster boy for teen schlock is nowhere to be found in
_Antitrust_; unfortunately, the person in his place is no better: fellow
_I_Know_What_You_Did_Last_Summer_ star and _Tiger_Beat_ staple, Ryan
Phillippe.   The improbably cast Phillippe plays the improbably named
Milo Hoffmann, a brilliant young computer programmer (!) who is suddenly
recruited to join big-name firm NURV (an acronym for "Never Underestimate
Radical Vision," if you had to ask) by its Bill Gates-ish founder, the
insanely wealthy and brilliant Gary Winston (Tim Robbins).</P>
<P>Or maybe Winston isn't so brilliant, for it is not long before Milo
deduces that his mentor's revolutionary, monopoly-pushing ideas are
actually stolen from young programmers from across the country--who have,
perhaps not so coincidentally, all died mysterious deaths.  When the
latest victim of a shady, untimely demise is none other than Milo's best
friend/sacrificial token minority Teddy Chen, Milo sets out to find the
truth, a task that proves to be not as difficult as finding a trustworthy
ally (hence the oh-so-clever double entendre of a title).</P>
<P>Writer Howard Franklin's premise is lifted directly from John Grisham's
_The_Firm_ (albeit with a chic computer angle), but given Hollywood's
generally environmentally conscious attitude regarding story ideas,
that's not so much a problem as _Antitrust_'s failure to generate the
faintest hint of suspense.  When one of the big would-be nailbiting set
pieces is a frantic search for sesame seeds in some home-cooked Chinese
cuisine (don't ask), any hopes of experience real thrills are quickly
laid to rest--not to mention those of finding any trace of basic
believability.  Add in Peter Howitt's overwrought direction (heavy on the
meaningful montage and strategic slo-mo) and the urge to laugh at all the
flabbergasting happenings is impossible to stifle.</P>
<P>The cast appears to operate under the belief that the more serious they
take the ludicrous material, the better; were they ever mistaken. 
Casting Phillippe, who has heretofore displayed a very limited acting
range at best, is always a huge risk, but giving this pretty boy the role
of a brain is a flat-out invitation for disaster.  It takes more than a
simple pair of glasses to add wisdom to the frozen male model pout of his
face, and his affectless voice further mangles the already-awkward,
techno-jargon-heavy dialogue.  Cook and Forlani's work essentially boils
down to varying degrees of deer-in-the-headlights looks, but to be fair,
it's hard to imagine anyone having a clear idea how to tackle the
barely-thought-out female roles.  Cook's role as Milo's co-worker Lisa
Calighan is especially problematic, thanks to an arbitrary "dark secret"
that plays into the story in the most insulting way imaginable.  Robbins
was obviously brought aboard to give _Antitrust_ some appearance of
class, but he takes a general cue from Howitt's direction by overplaying
the one-dimensional villainy.</P>
<P>_Antitrust_ is this year's _The_Skulls_: a glossy product where a
teenybopper idol is plopped into an intelligence-free thriller-type
vehicle.  But I can't imagine this film eking out the same frightfully
decent box office take as that equally inane Joshua Jackson showcase;
after all, the fawning female Phillippe fans hankering for a hit of the
hottie hunk don't get anything on par with _The_Skulls_'
Josh-running-on-a-pier-in-a-snug-singlet scene.  And if _Antitrust_ isn't
even good for cheap exploitation of its heartthrob star for his
adolescent admirers, then it truly is worthless for all audiences.</P>
<PRE>©2001 Michael Dequina</PRE>
<P>Michael Dequina
<A HREF="mailto:twotrey@juno.com">twotrey@juno.com</A> | <A HREF="mailto:jordan_host@sportsmail.com">jordan_host@sportsmail.com</A> | <A HREF="mailto:mrbrown@iname.com">mrbrown@iname.com</A>
Mr. Brown's Movie Site:  <A HREF="http://www.mrbrownmovies.com">http://www.mrbrownmovies.com</A>
CinemaReview Magazine:  <A HREF="http://www.CinemaReview.com">http://www.CinemaReview.com</A>
on ICQ: #25289934  |  on AOL Instant Messenger: MrBrown23</P>
<P><HR>GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO!
Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less!
Join Juno today!  For your FREE software, visit:
<A HREF="http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.">http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.</A></P>
<HR><P CLASS=flush><SMALL>The review above was posted to the
<A HREF="news:rec.arts.movies.reviews">rec.arts.movies.reviews</A> newsgroup (<A HREF="news:de.rec.film.kritiken">de.rec.film.kritiken</A> for German reviews).<BR>
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.<BR>
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.<BR>
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.<BR>
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
</SMALL></P>
<P ALIGN=CENTER>Related links: <A HREF="/Reviews/">index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews</A></P>



</P></BODY></HTML>
