The Final Cut

Reviewed by:
Paul Ulane

We haven't liked Robin Williams in science fiction since he was trying to mork Mindy. But for The Final Cut, Williams dons his serious duds and fits nicely into this warped trip down memory lane. Williams plays Alan Hackman, a "cutter" who edits recorded memories on implanted chips that contain his client's entire lives. He's always in high demand because of his ability to shape the recordings into warm, fuzzy retrospectives playable at his deceased client's memorials. Who cares if they're child molesters or adulterers, one click of the delete key washes all of those bad memories away. But when he's confronted by a former colleague (played by James "Jesus" Caviezel), Hackman wrestles with his own murky past until his life spirals out of control. The stark shooting style keeps the story streamlined to cover up the unresolved plot developments and presence of Mira Sorvino. Williams' deadpan is enough to permanently erase Patch Adams from our memories, and seeing his character atone for other's sins while grappling with God's business puts just enough spin on the Big Brother model to make this an experience worth holding onto.

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