British sci-fi drama Code 46
has hit video shelves, and if you missed it on its first go-around,
you'll want to pick it up if only for the score by DJ and composer David Holmes
(aka Free Association, with Steve Hilton). With chilly but beautiful
guitar textures droning over the supressed agony of the film's main
characters, Free Association's music is the one thread that weaves
together a daring, if not entirely successful, picture of a dystopic
near future. (But wait, it's a good date movie, too!)
There's reason to question the movie itself: the plot's lack of forward
motion is strangely compelling to watch at first, until it dissolves
into a hollow third act. Despite its weaknesses, though, Code 46
is a glimpse at the future of science fiction film. It's a digital
mash-up of the future, sci fi as remix of the present instead of
parody. It's a vision permeated by impassionately-erotic reverie, and while the writing often
seems to lack humanity and focus, Free Association's electronic
dreamscapes against the vistas of deserts and modern Asia never cease
to inspire.
Persistent mistakes continue: I love Coldplay, but what's with the
Coldplay song at the already-vacuous ending? And, for that matter, does
The Clash's Mick Jones really deserve an extended singing cameo at the karaoke bar? (Okay, well, I'll admit, watching Mick fumble through his own song is pretty funny.)
But don't listen to the movie's critics: as the main character is drawn
back to the flaws of the woman he loves, you'll be drawn in even if the
movie disappoints. Go rent it, and check out the soundtrack.
Read the interview at TIMBT