25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
SUSPENSEFUL!!!!, July 17, 2002
Angela Bennett (Sandra Bullock) leads a life that is unlike most. She doesn't have much excitement in her life; her life is built mostly around her being a MAJOR computer ace. Unfortunately, her favorite hobby and job just might get her in trouble when she comes in contact with the wrong group of people and when she finds a top-secret program that can faulter computer networks.
"The Net" is a GREAT movie to say the least! The majority of the best suspense movies are built around a story having to do with a kidnapping, murder, or something else like that. The makers of this movie did a spectacular job of making "The Net" intriguing, compelling, interesting, and best of all, suspenseful. Sandra Bullock also puts on an unforgettable performance that makes the movie believable and even more compelling.
An identity can be stolen and a life can be changed dramatically by a simple computer hacker or even a simple diskette. Whether you're a fan of the internet, things having to do with computers or not, at least give "The Net" a rent. If you're a big fan of movies that keep you on the edge of your seat, don't even think about renting "The Net", BUY it instead!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Underrated Bullock Film, June 28, 2003
This review is from: The Net (Special Edition) (DVD)
Sandra Bullock stars in THE NET, a suspenseful thriller that will leave you at the edge of your seat. She plays Angela Bennett, a woman who is cut away from reality and the world and works from home as a computer virus detector. She comes across a disk which has a glitch that allows hackers to get into the FBI system. She takes a vacation and has a one night stand, with the man who is after her disk! Soon she finds her identity has been erased, and is forced to take on the identity of Ruth Marx. Soon she discovers this Ruth Marx has a criminal record, and must go on the run to protect herself and try to win back her identity. Dennis Miller plays her ex therapist and lover, who is a bit of a comic relief in the movie. The movie is fraught with mystery and suspense, as the story unfolds you'll find yourself hooked until the very end, when Bullock's character unravels the mystery and regains her life. THE NET is a movie that isn't as well regarded as some of her other hit movies like WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING, MISS CONGENIALITY or SPEED, but it fits right among them as one of her best. She plays the part really well, of a woman who is terrified to find out that she has lost her identity. A must watch.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Identity Crisis, November 15, 2000
The Net combines elements of techno paranoidism, action, and reverses the usual gender roles. The result is a little uneven, but still worth watching.
The premise is that an isolated, but brilliant, software engineer (Angela Bennett played by Sandra Bullock) has her identity stolen, when she stumbles across a conspiracy involving trap doors in a software security system used by many federal, state, and private databases.
Although stolen identities are a hot topic in today's issues, the ability to steal someone's identity is proportional to the how isolated an individual may be, and this theft is made easier because Angela's life is very isolated. She works out of her home and communicates primarily over the telephone and internet. There are lots of people who would like to meet her, but she puts them off.
The technological portion of the film that is interesting shows how a person, who depends on computerized output, can be murdered when someone else fools with the data bases. This happens over and over, as the conspiracy attempts to isolate and kill Angela.
The action part of this film involves most of the cliches common to this type of genre. We get the chase in the crowd, on the merry-go-round, in the darken street (several times), on the freeway, at the bridge crossing, on the boat, in the amusement park, and finally on the catwalk. The first couple of times are OK, but after a while it begins to get tired.
Fortunately the film is saved because it reverses the usual gender roles. Like true action heros, no one suddenly appears and SAVES Angela. Everyone she tries to get help from are either killed or isolated. In the end Angela saves herself using the same wits and knowledge that made her a much sought after engineer. She gets back her identity, exposes the conspiracy, and kills the bad guy.
I like Sandra Bullock. She has the isolated awkward character down pat, but still with enough pluck to fight back. Jeremy Northam's heavy is smooth enough to stare down a cobra, and seems to have a psychopathic personality that he trieds to hold in check. He gets his relief on a keyboard.
I wanted to scream at some of the technology holes in this film. The flashing terminal showing lots of overlaying screens which, I suppose, was suppose to represent the Trap Door was laughable. The way in which Angela tricks Jack into infecting the main system with a virus on the floppy without getting him to explicitly invoke the virus program is, well, not very realistic. One of my favorites was the ability for Angela to easily read binary code, and in a matter of seconds, identify and isolate an absolutely new virus. This is indeed a superwoman. There were lots of other things too, but they would only be distractions to people who actually make their living writing software.
I recommend this film.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
