Last night Marcia and I watched “The Game” starring Michael Douglas. This was about the third or fourth time I have seen the movie. It was Marcia’s first time.
Here is a quick synopsis thanks to IMDB:
Nicholas Van Orton (Douglas) is a very wealthy San Francisco investment banker, but he is an absolute loner, even spending his birthday alone. In the year of his 48th birthday (the same age his father committed suicide) his brother Conrad (Sean Penn), who has gone long ago and surrendered to addictions of all kinds, suddenly returns and gives Nicholas a card giving him entry to unusual entertainment provided by something called Consumer Recreation Services (CRS). Giving up to curiosity, Nicholas visits CRS and all kinds of weird and bad things start to happen to him.
Given the hype surrounding this movie, and how old it is (1997), it was surprising that Marcia had not seen it. And I can only assume that many that read my humble “chronicles” have seen it as well. But just a warning to those that might not have seen it. SPOILERS AHEAD!
For the purely entertainment factor of this movie, it is very good. Many of the things make sense, given where they are. Like the fact that the “hospital” that they take the homeless guy that they find in cardiac arrest is in the same building as CRS’ headquarters. Or that they are prepared for him at the end of the movie. The only thing that still gets me, even suspending disbelief, is that the big stunt-fall cushion is exactly where it needs to be. If you remember, it was a good 20 to 30 feet across the top of the building where Nicholas could have jumped. Just a little bit over and he would/could have been seriously hurt.
I also like how as the movie goes, Nicholas adapts to the situations. The stuffy, loner, banker starts opening up and/or thinking quickly. Two great examples are when he is in the taxi that has just plunged into the bay, and he is trapped with the doors locked in the back. He has the handle for the window on him, but doesn’t think about it right away until he tries to calm himself and starts saying, “OK, this is a game.” The other example is when someone tries to carjack him while trying to find the actor that interviewed him at CRS. He quickly, but discretely pulls out the gun and once rid of him he continues his search like nothing happened. (Though it seems foolish that the carjacker wasn’t armed with more then a lock-jimmy.)
Even with the few flaws, it is an entertaining movie in my eyes, and one I have enjoyed watching a few times.
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