Customer Reviews

The I Inside

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

THE I INSIDE is a very fine film that deserves a wide audience. It ranks up there with 'MEMENTO', 'THE SIXTH SENSE', and 'JACOB'S LADDER' as the sort of intelligent film that demands intensive participation on the part of the viewer to catch all of its nuances and possible plot variations.

Based on a play Michael Cooney who also wrote the screenplay and directed with considerable finesse by Roland Suso Richter, the story involves a bizarre mix of altered circumstances surrounding the hospitalization of Simon Cable (Ryan Phillippe in a performance that is the finest of his career and promises much more from this actor) whose circumstances for awakening under the care of one Dr Jeremy Newman (Stephen Rea) are nebulous. Dr Newman who slowly reveals to Simon that he is suffering from acute memory loss due to trauma and possible poisoning (he had undergone cardiac arrest and was resuscitated) and yet warmly reassures him he will soon return to normal. In essence Simon has 'lost' two years of his life, finding through the blur of amnesia that he has a wife Anna (Piper Perabo) who secretly reveals to him that there is a murder in his history that is part of an evil 'plan'. He also encounters Clair (Sarah Polley) who claims they are lovers. Simon is informed that his brother Peter (Robert Sean Leonard) is dead: Anna supports the premise that Simon killed him. The ingredients of the mystery of the lost two years are set in motion.

The connection between the past in 2000 and the 'present' in 2002 is slowly revealed in mind-boggling flashbacks and re-runs of possibilities: apparently the misdeeds of 2000 included an auto accident which resulted in Simon's hospitalization in the very place he finds himself in 2002 and in which his brother Peter died. Tense confrontations and secrets begin to surface and even the concept that if we re-enter our past we can change the future is presented convincingly. Yet how this all plays out is the magic of this fine film. There are so many avenues that could represent the 'true story' of Simon's life and his amnesia-altered past two years that it is truly up to the viewer to decide how this film ends!

The performances are all fine: Ryan Phillippe is superb, capturing all facets of this deluded young man and finding the strength of character in his Simon portrayal that makes us willing to identify with him at every turn. The photography by Martin Langer is moody and atmospheric without resorting to the usual fright tactics. The musical score by Nicholas Pike enhances every frame. But it is the terse direction of Richter that makes this thriller sail into the ranks of the truly fine films of this genre. Grady Harp, March 05

This movie has a strong sense of "Been there, done that before." No, I'm not talking about the characters, I'm talking about the audience. It's kind of funny, I was reviewing the C-grade horror movie "Soul Survivors" the other day, and, perusing the other reviews, everyone seemed to be in agreement that the movie had far too many cheats and poor explanations. In actuality, I think it's just easier to rip apart low-budget horror movies than movies with more ambition, like "The I Inside," because this movie has far more cheats and dead-ends never explained than "Soul Survivors." "The I Inside" also attempts to do far more than "Soul Survivors," with much loftier aims, so it fails in a more spectacular way.

"The I Inside" stars Ryan Phillippe, Sarah Polley, Piper Perabo, Robert Sean Leonard, and Stephen Rea. The casting is good, I think. First of all, I don't think Ryan Phillippe can play an out-and-out good guy. Even when he tries to cover it, he just comes off and looks like an obnoxious brat. It's really not his fault, but it's there. But in this movie, his casting works, because he is a privileged, rich... well, brat, for lack of a better term who may not be the nice guy that he seems... if you think that's a clue he's really bad though, you'd be wrong too. As for the rest of the cast, I like them. Sarah Polley has slipped a little in recent years, but looking over her body of work she is still one of the most impressive actresses of her age, I think. Stephen Rea is great in pretty much whatever he does, and Leonard is a guy I liked since "Dead Poets Society" and recently reaffirmed his talent in the surprising "Tape." Piper Perabo is surprisingly good too - I'd like her in a shallow sort of way from some of her movies like "Lost And Delirious," but was not overly impressed.

Anyway, the story goes - Phillippe's character, Simon Cable, awakens from a horrible accident. He thinks it's 2000, but in actuality, it's 2002. He seems to have amnesia about quite a number of things. His doctors tell him it looks like he may have been poisoned. He meets his wife, she leaves, he finds out she's not his wife, and meets another woman, his "real" wife, and finds out she may not be what she seems either. Then a vanishing medic tries to kill him, and from there things get truly weird. To go on would be to divulge too many spoilers.

The problem with this movie is two-fold. One, it's something a bad mix of "Memento," "The Butterfly Effect," and even "Soul Survivors," and "Mulholland Drive," yes. It's like a hasty grab-bag of altered reality movies/limited knowledge movies. In movies like these, you pretty much have a good idea of how things are going to unfold. You figure the things that seem intentionally confusing are going to be revealed when the movie ends and the viewer is able to connect the dots. Within the first couple of lines spoken by the doctor, you have a good idea of what the kicker is going to be. Then you go through the movie and think, "wait, that's far too childishly obvious, it can't be that, if it was *that*, then there would be a ton of stuff unaccounted for." Well guess what? Surprise! It really is *that.* There is a lot unaccounted for. Some critics and reviewers I've seen talking about this movie claim that everything has a good explanation. I disagree. I think if you really, really stretch the narrative beyond the breaking point, and give the creators more benefit of the doubt than you've giving anything in your entire life, you can foist a semi-plausible explanation on just about everything in the movie, but even then there are still glaring miscues. Among them, pointing them out so as not to give spoilers:

#1- The medic trying to kill Cable makes no sense.
#2- What Cable's brother did in the car makes no sense (you know when if you've seen the movie, it's the only thing of import he does in the car).
#3- What if the time was, say, 1:57 a.m. instead? What then? You'd have a mess, that's what.

All in all, maybe I'd recommend this movie as an exercise in getting a delicious little visceral thrill of being cheated or frustrated, or trying to play a game of fix the cinematic Rubik's Cube and try and account for all the problems and tidy up the explanation of the movie, but on its own merits, I cannot recommend "The I Inside," despite nice performances by the cast.

I can't imagine what it must've been like to see this as a play! It makes a pretty good hallucinatory film, but the dialogue is occasionally stilted. I'm not sure I would buy this, but recommend renting it for a look. I don't agree that it is better than The Butterfly Effect although there are certain similarities. I was impressed with Sarah Polley's performance, but found that Ryan Phillippe was better when he had really dramatic scenes to react off of rather than when he wasn't really in motion and just seemed bored or uncertain of his dialogue.

The first half of the film where you don't know who is really to be trusted, and what exactly is going on is quite well done though and that's why I give it 3 stars.
Also the ending is not a letdown, and the whole atmosphere is quite strong throughout. There's just those few dry moments where the acting or dialogue doesn't really seem believeable, and you know it's only there to support the direction of the story. That put me off a bit. I admit I won't forget alot of the scenes for a long time, so enjoy, and yeah maybe it will leave a more lasting impression after all. You'll wonder what kind of a world you might wake up to after your next nightmare I'll bet.

I forgot that I'd watched Roland Suso Richter's "The I Inside" so I rented it a second time. Ryan Phillippe plays Simon Cable, an accident victim who has lost his memory. Phillippe has played in some films that I've watched recently such as Stop-Loss, Breach (Widescreen Edition) & Chaos. He does a good job with the tensions of trying to work out a puzzle, being time shifted between 2000 & 2002, and finding himself in various locations with the blink of an eye. He fails to remember that he got married to a woman who likes his money more than him. Piper Pearbo who was in The Prestige & 10th and Wolf plays a cold icy wife in 2002 and the uncertain nurse in 2000. She does a good job with bouncing between the two roles. Robert Sean Leonard who plays Dr. James Wilson on TV's "House" plays Simon's dead brother Peter. It is trying to recall those events upon which the film hinges. Sarah Poley had an Oscar nomination last year for Best Adapted Screenplay for the film Away from Her that starred Julie Christie. Here she plays Claire, a love interest that came between the two brothers. Stephen Rea who did a great job in Tara Road plays the pediatrician Dr. Newman who treats Simon, for a reason we come to find out at the end of the film. Stephen Lang who plays a heart transplant patient, British actress Rakie Ayola who plays Nurse Clayton and Stephen Graham from Gangs of New York (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) as the orderly Travis all do sterling jobs in small but important supporting roles. The star of this film is its editing as the plot bounces around in Simon's confused mind. The ending was a bit of a downer for me, kind of a "Groundhogs Day" repetition. I was interested through most of the film and then asked myself "Is that all there is?" as the credits rolled. Still, it is a stylish puzzle piece, worth watching once or twice, depending on if you remember that you've seen it! Enjoy!

Immensely watchable, with a strong performance by Ryan Phillippe, the I Inside is a riveting enough ninety minutes. However, the film is also strangely forgettable, coming across as a kind of second rate, direct to video imitation of The Others, the terrific Nicole Kidman film that came out a few years ago.

The I Inside is a modest thriller that has enough weird, complex plot twists to keep the viewers involved, but the film tries so desperately to be a lot more than it really is. Obviously the highlight of the film is the gimmicky way the plot unfolds, and the fun for the viewer is trying to unravel the tightly woven and complex puzzle that is the story.

The film begins in a veil of whispers as Simon Cable, (Ryan Phillippe), a twenty something yuppie, jolts awake one night in a hospital room and is told by his doctor (Stephen Rea) he died for two minutes, his heart stopped beating, but he came back and survived. But now it's 2002 and a full two years of Simon's memory is missing. The doctor tells Simon that in order for him to regain his memory, he must put the pieces of the puzzle together, which, of course, is what we as the audience must do, as we watch the various seemingly disparate segments of the plot unfold.

It turns out that Simon has been married to Anna, (Piper Perabo), a nasty ice queen and he may have been the victim of a murder attempt, and, worst of all, he was in the hospital two years earlier, following the death of his brother Peter (Robert Sean Leonard). Coming into his room and disappearing without a trace is Claire (Sarah Polley), a mystery woman. Claire confesses her love for him, and tells him that he was responsible for what happened as well.

His doctor takes him for a routine MRI and when he is unscrupulously injected with a sedative, he wakes up in another hospital room talking to yet another doctor (Peter Egan) and learns that it's actually the year 2000, and his brother just died. It is here that he meets Mr. Travitt (Stephen Lang), a cynical hospital-patient roommate and heart patient who seems to occupy all of his visions. As movie goes, back and forth in time, poor Simon must figure out what is real, and what is a dream. He must also solve the issue of his brother's death, which continues to haunt him.

Considering that Simon's mind becomes a maze, a tangled skein of memory he must unravel, the plot is actually not too hard to follow, once the viewer gets used to the idea that he's traveling backwards and forwards in time. Still, as with all such nonlinear storytelling, the question is whether the story itself would be of any interest if it were told as a traditional narrative. It probably wouldn't because what evolves is a fairly derivative Daphne Du Maurier-like murder mystery.

The film doesn't always work because it relies more on slick production values to sell the thrills than story, but Phillippe gives a good performance as the panicky Simon, and he has an on screen charisma that is suitably impressive. It's all rather silly, although the ending does come as a surprising revelation and the seemingly incongruent plot twists sort of come together.

There are the usual spiral staircases, oblique camera angles, swirling photography, and suspicious shadowy personages, along with characters mysteriously disappearing and re-appearing. It's all done quite well, but none of it is particularly imaginative or original. Mike Leonard May 05.

Oh, it's the old amnesia plot, yet again. And again this looks like a latter day refugee from some 1950s TV show, replete with young Ryan Phillipe tearing his hair and screaming when nothing makes sense because he can't remember. The dizzy camera work, and excessive gore don't make it any easier to watch. Except wait, the memory does start to come back, in bits and pieces, only things ain't so good!! The problem is this has been done way better before.

Where did this movie come from ? Was it a theatrical release? I stumbled upon this by accident. I thought it would be a stinker and I was right! Ryan P. has only played in two movies I have liked and that was "Way of the Gun" and "Cruel intentions." This movie tries too hard to be a weird psycological thriller. Which the only thing it does is dance around a cut close easy subject. The movie's payoff could have been explained in 30 min. Just like that movie Abandon. I hate movies like that, there aren't many David lynch's out there. Trust me, this isn't worth it after u watch this once in the garbage it goes. This isn't a deep thriller at all. The end is basically nothing surprising, nothing u couldn't write on ur own. The movie is loaded with flashbacks ! This and "The Jacket" are almost the same movie ! Only this throws a little violent twist in it . I am the king of psycological thrillers and this one is junk ! Probably why this is so far under the radiar !

Ryan Phillippe (Crash (2005), Cruel Intentions) plays a man who awakens from a hospital bed and finds out that he was dead for 2 minutes. He also thinks that its the year 2000 in which it is not, it seems he lost memory of the last 2 years, so it is now 2002. So, Phillippe is left to recover from his accident and he finds out that his brother, played by Robert Sean Leonard (Last Days Of Disco, Swing Kids) didnt make it. He try to fit the pieces of the puzzle together in his mind and find out what really happened? But as he progesses he goes back in time to 2000, is this his imagination? Was he really in 2000 and did he go back to 2002 or is there something else? Interesting mind teaser story has Phillippe giving one of his best so far. Also starring Sarah Polley (Dawn of the Dead (2004), My Life Without Me), Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly, Lost and Delirious), Stephen Rea (...), Stephen Lang (Gods and Generals) and Stephen Graham (Snatch, Gangs of New York).

I can't decide which movie I like best, Butterfly Effect or this. For some reason this never got a cinema release here in the UK, and has gone straight to DVD. But do not let this put you off if you're a UK viewer. It's an excellent, thought-provoking movie. I first saw it here on Amazon, and it was the cover that attracted me to getting the movie. And I have to admit, although the storyline is very confusing, and jumps back and forth in time, I managed to follow it - and if I managed to follow it, then anyone can! :)

I quite like the cast in this, especially Ryan Phillippe, who seems to have fallen in terms to his wife's success. The cast was originally meant to be Christian Slater (as Peter), Stephen Dorff (as Simon Cable), and Jennifer Love Hewitt (as Anna Cable). I could see that working, but then again, they all just had that chemistry that they were able to work together. I nearly didn't recognise Piper Perabo, as I've previously only seen her in Coyote Ugly & Cheaper By The Dozen, and in this, she's cut, straightened & dyed her hair. It looks awfully thin too.

There's not much I can say about this film without getting my butt kicked by Amazon, so you'll just have to see it for yourself. I'll give you a small warning just now - the beginning is the end. When the credits roll expect to be really confused. But it's also one of those films that leave you thinking about it afterwards. While Butterfly Effect was relatively straight forward, this makes you wonder what really happened, and would probably take a second or third viewing to work things out. I think I know what happened, but I imagine there's a lot of different theories out there. Some viewers/reviewers will see the ending as being weak, but you have to read between the lines to work out the ending.

I doubt this movie would have worked with any other actor in the role apart from Ryan, as he's in nearly every scene. So if you're not a fan of Ryan, it's probably not a great idea to watch this, as you'll be sick of the sight of him by the end of the movie.

The director has worked wonders with this film, as you do actually feel part of the film, and you feel as confused as Ryan's character often does. There's loads of different camera angles, which will you leave you disorientated and dizzy, or maybe the latter was just me!

The extras are very boring, and the trailer does well by revealing nothing about the movie. It could have gone either way with this type of movie, and you'd have figured it out before you started watching the movie.

I can't say much more, apart from watch this movie for yourself. Don't knock something until you've tried it.

Considering that cast, I didn't expect too much. That all changed about one minute into the movie. I can't remember the last time I watched a movie and did not take my eyes off the screen the entire time, literaly staring, waiting to see what happens. Every part of this movie seems to make you try and figure it out. Even if you think you know what's going on, you don't.

The idea of the movie is Ryan Phillipe(sp?) is in a car accident and gets amnesia, coincidentaly he cannot remeber the past two years. While he is trying to piece the past together, you're right there with him, starting from scratch, not knowing anything about the past two years. I have never seen a movie that can actually make me feel the same disorientation that the main charactor feels here, but that's a good thing. I heard Stephen Dorff was supposed to play the main charactor originally, in my oppinion, there is no way he could make you relate to this charactor nearly as well as Phillipe did.

All in all, a very pleasent suprise, and I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys thinking when they watch a movie.