After A.O. Scott picked this last week, I know this is going to make me look like Johnny-Come-Lately, but "Gattaca" is a film that I find myself coming back to over and over again.
"Gattaca" (1997) tells a story set in the "Not Too Distant Future" where human reproduction has become perfected to a science. Parents no longer worry about birth defects or diseases. Rather, they hand pick their child's traits--a process which guarantees a sort of perfection of the human race. Your whole future is given to you at birth. Unsurprisingly, not everyone is lucky enough to have been born through this genetic manipulation method. Society has evolved to a point where class is determined by how good your genome looks. The film revolves around an unfortunate 'de-generate', Vincent (Ethan Hawke) who wishes to be an astronaut despite his heart problems. After failing to over come the urine samples, blood analyses and other road blocks, Vincent decides that he will take on the identity of a disabled ex-swim star, Jerome (played by an excellent Jude Law in a role that helped introduce him to American audiences).
The film points to the importance of an individual's work ethic and determination in the face of insurmountable odds. Vincent's willingness to give up everything (including his family, identity, and ultimately, perhaps his life) to reach the stars is the driving force of the film. By setting the film in a 1950s version of the future (look at those cars! and the Frank Lloyd Wright inspired architecture!) director Andrew Nicchols points to the McCarthy-era subtext of the story (at one point, a group of de-generates are rounded up by the police) while making the proceedings feel timeless. An unfortunate side-effect of making science fiction is that your movie looks dated 5 years after it's made.
The sets all look magnificent, particularly the apartment that Vincent and Jerome share, a nightclub they frequent, and Gattaca itself (the astro-exploration company where Vincent is hired as Jerome). Slawomir Idziak deserves credit as cinematographer for creating some extraordinary shots. Some stand-outs include Vincent (at this point still a janitor) scrubbing the roof of Gattaca and watching a shuttle launch, Irene and Vincent crossing a street amid heavy traffic, and the ending (more below).
Giving a heavy helping hand to the gorgeous cinematography and set design is Michael Nyman's music. The score uses a lot of strings with minimal percussion, which helps the film to avoid feeling too much like a suspense flick (judging by the trailer on my DVD, this is how it was sold when it came out). The result is that the film feels propelled by a sense of longing that can never quite be fulfilled.
A downpoint is the acting and dialogue. Jude Law is definitely the high-point here, as he brings some much needed warmth and comedy to an otherwise cool and antiseptic film. With Law's guidance, Jerome becomes an affable and self-destructive playboy. His dynamic with the square Ethan Hawke is one of the highlights of "Gattaca", and has some serious homoerotic undertones. By contrast, the Hawke/Thurman dynamic has absolutely zero chemistry. Perhaps this is not Uma Thurman's fault, as Irene seems to be struggling for a reason to exist in the film past the obligatory love interest plot point. The exception to this, of course, is her scene with Law which beautifully demonstrates the cost of Vincent's decision to abandon his identity. Still, clunky lines such as "Come on Irene, you're just like the rest of us!" and the script's attempts to come up with clever names of the genetically-challenged often get in the way of the film's cool aesthetic.
These shortcomings aside, the film is remarkable. The sleek look is, in some sense, ironic given the humanistic message of the film. The ending, while uplifting (helped by a last minute play by Gattaca's in-house doctor) is also somewhat sad. Vincent's final test of acceptance in the world is to abandon it for the stars. Jerome, the 'ideal' man, abandons it altogether after a lifetime of expectation and inadequacy. The rise and demise of these two characters offers a fittingl poignant close to a film about individual struggle.
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