Film ● Review: Johnny Mnemonic
- Very Average Joe
- 10 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Title: Johnny Mnemonic
Director(s): Robert Longo
Screenwriter(s): William Gibson
Studio: Johnny Mnemonic Productions
Released: 1995
Runtime: 1h 33m
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Dina Meyer, Ice-T, Takeshi Kitano, Denis Akiyama, Dolph Lundgren, Henry Rollins, Udo Kier
My Verdict: Not bad even though it can be much better. Can look darker and grittier. Admittedly not the easiest short story to adapt, but at least the screenplay is written by the original author.
● The film is based on the cyberpunk short story of the same name by William Gibson that was first published in 1981. It is one of the few short stories set in the same world as the Sprawl trilogy that begins with Neuromancer (1984).
● The film is set in 2021, in which corporations rule the world and the control of information is obviously key in maintaining power. The Yakuza is a major party in the constant struggle. Johnny (Keanu Reeves) is a data courier and he accepts a job from Ralfi (Udo Kier) in which he takes on data beyond his capacity.
● The plot follows Johnny as he tries to extract the data safely before permanent brain damage or death. What follows is a sci-fi action flick that is decently paced, going through the usual motivation-and-obstacle cycles with the occasional exposition.
● Whilst the premise is essentially the same, the film has a bit more in-your-face worldbuilding. This arguably lacks the finesse of the short story, which is expected in a visual medium that requires things to be a little more dramatic.
● For example, it is interesting that there is also an unexplained epidemic of Nerve Attenuation Syndrome (NAS) for which there is no cure. This is not in the short story but gives a more concrete reason for the existence of Lo Teks who are opposed to the ruling elites. Of course, it turns out there is a reason for NAS and Big Pharma knows about it.
● As a sidebar, it is mildly interesting that the film has an epidemic in 2021 and that Big Pharma is shifty. I would refrain from calling this prophetic since something like this was predictable even before the 1980s. But it is “funny”.
● In the short story, Johnny is storing data he needs Ralfi to extract. The data’s safeguards are a danger to him but that is normal; it is the nature of the data that is also the problem. In the film, it turns out the latter is true anyway but going over capacity is a simple way to set up Johnny’s motivation and urgency of the situation.
● Molly is not in the film. Instead, Jane (Dina Meyer), also an augmented bodyguard, takes her place. Jane has NAS and struggles to find work.
● The “Street Preacher” (Dolph Lundgren) is an assassin who is not in the short story. Although the character is not a bad idea, he is somewhat extraneous, even as a minor character. It is obvious marketing just wanted a big name to put on the poster.
● Visually, it is dark and shot nicely enough. There is the use of different camera angles but it refrains from being too stylized.
● In terms of design and tone, the film is clearly inspired by Blade Runner (1982) although it doesn’t have the rain and lacks the details in the architecture and vehicles. The world presented by the short story has more grit and grime. The main difference is that the city is meant to be a geodesic dome so it is a shame not to see that, presumably due to budget constraints and limitations in CGI at the time.
● The short story’s climactic fight is on the “Killing Floor”, an arena-like movable floor within the Lo Teks’ stronghold. This is potentially a visual spectacle but is perhaps too expensive a set piece.
● This is a world in which the internet with VR interfaces is the norm. Although the short story was written before the manga Ghost in the Shell (1989), the film was produced after so it is cool to see Johnny getting online and his activities in cyberspace represented visually.
● The music is composed in part by Brad Fiedel. There is his signature use of synths as featured in The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2 (1991) although the material is nowhere near as memorable. Some of the more subdued “strings” themes are fitting whilst other moments sound dated and jarring.
● The performances are overdone in some instances. It is possible they are written that way but the film was apparently re-cut without direction from Longo or the film editor Ronald Sanders. So, it is possible the delivery in some scenes is off because the reason and/or emotional backing for them in some previous scene had been taken out.
● Keanu Reeves is a perfect cast for the role. Whilst being wooden mostly works for him because he has that natural coolness, he is too wooden in this film. I am uncertain if it is the direction and/or the re-cut.
● Also, whilst Dina Meyer is capable of giving a solid performance, her relationship with Johnny develops in a very crude manner. Again, I am uncertain if it is the writing and/or directing and/or the re-cut, although I suspect it is the re-cut.
● Overall, it is not a bad film. Although it can look darker and grittier, it doesn’t look bad. The pacing is measured and the relatively short runtime mitigates any related issues. It can delve into the cyberspace and AI themes more but it is not the easiest story to adapt for a feature-length film.
● As the screenplay is written by the author of the source material, whatever differences in the film are still consistent with the spirit of the fictional world he created.
Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list so you get each new Opinyun that comes out!
