The Game [Blu-ray]

THE GAME is another wonderful Michael Douglas film and I rate it at 5 stars. This film will really be appreciated by fans that enjoy dissecting a complex plot. The story, although hard to swallow and farfetched, was exceptionally engaging and kept my interest from start to finish. I thought on my first viewing that this film would have a sequel, but was proven wrong by events. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION COULD RUIN ENJOYMENT OF THE PLOT: Nicholas Van Orton played by Michael Douglas is a wealthy banker, but a loner who even spends his birthday away from people. In the year of his 48th birthday (the age his father committed suicide and on the verge of classic mid-life crisis) his distant brother gives Nicholas a card giving him entry to unusual entertainment provided by something called Consumer Recreation Services (CRS). Giving in to curiosity, Nicholas visits CRS and all kinds of weird things start to happen to him. Prior to admitting him to participate he is required to take a series of mental and physical tests which were apparently run to determine his strengths, weaknesses, and perhaps map out some sort of efficient "game plan" tailored just for him. One statement I remember CRS telling him is that if you don't go to THE GAME, it will come to you. He receives a phone call telling him that he failed the tests and is rejected by the organization. He forgets about CRS, but then overhears several people talking about "the game" and what life-changing opportunities it provides. He notices several such "loud" conversations in public, and goes to the trouble of introducing himself and speaking with a couple of apparently new members of his private club. All they will tell him is they wish they were just starting "the game" and one man quotes the bible saying "where I was once blind I now can see". Once he is certain he has actually been admitted to THE GAME, he tries to return to the offices of CRS where he received his tests, only to find that no signs of their facilities remain and for all effects, this organization never even "existed". This initially "mild" form of harassment (i.e., being misinformed of his membership status, having drinks spilled on him in restaurants, strange people banging into him, folks behaving very strangely in rest rooms and other public places, empty toilets overflowing, his attaché case jamming at important business meetings, the pen CRS told him to keep leaking on his shirt, individuals collapsing in the street at his feet, etc.), gradually transitions to increasingly overt and often potentially life-threatening experiences which slowly work on his mental condition. All the more strange is the fact that he is provided the means of barely escaping his next experience by receiving an item or remembering a fact he learned during a prior event. Some examples of these increasingly life threatening events include: his estate being broken into and ransacked, being stranded in a darkened elevator, his cab driver driving his CRS taxi into the river almost drowning him, large crowds of people disappearing in a coordinated way from public places, being drugged, attacked by hooded gun men emerging from a large van marked Cable Repair Services, abducted and ultimately waking up in a crypt and stranded without cash, credit cards or passport in Mexico). The mental harassment is designed at first to merely embarrass or make uncomfortable, mildly inconvenience, then to be serious and painful, and after enough repetition and conditioning for him to associate these strange events, to effectively torture and eventually drive insane. Since almost every detail is staged redundantly there are no correct decisions left for him to make, and no avoiding the sequence of painful situations. He is ultimately like a caged animal walking wall to wall in a classic avoidance-avoidance conflict leading to insanity. The issue of the cost-effectiveness of this game plan is something the film never addresses, but we are too engrossed to think about this during the movie. One thing is certain, these people do not want to publicly kill him or leave any permanent record of injury due to anything other than a random event. The purpose of THE GAME seems not to be simple murder, but to professionally destroy, discredit and cause a very gradual physical and mental breakdown which will result in his being either jailed because of acting out displaced aggressions, hospitalized or institutionalized where he can "die" or be subjected to something while well out of public scrutiny. In his former professional life he could certainly have made enemies, and what better means could they use to destroy him with impunity? While his financial and mental conditions still enable him to investigate CRS, he believes he acquires "evidence" that one of the office workers at CRS was a hired professional actor, more likely to have been provided by Actors Equity than some private detective or intelligence agency (CIA?). As the story unfolds this evidence was probably "fed" to him as part of the plot which is just full of strange twists and complications, all leading him no place. His entire personality changes as he undergoes transformation from a strong business-world predator to the cowering subject of physical and mental harassment. It is sad but interesting to watch his gradual disintegration as forces outside of his control consume him. The ending was a bit strange and is the reason I thought there would be a sequel. IF THE ABOVE MATERIAL CAN RUIN THE ENDING THE FOLLOWING IS WORSE: The film can only be said to have a rediculous ending when Van Orton confronts his brother who he now believes is in on the game plan on the roof of the CRS building. At the end of the story after Van Orton believes he has shot his brother he actually jumps off the roof of the high rise CRS building intent on suicide because of his grief. He is surprised to learn after smashing through the break away glass of a fake skylight, that he safely lands on a huge airbag carefully placed to break his tremendous fall. He then sees his resurrected brother and all the other people dressed up in black tie to celebrate his birthday. It was, after all, just a "harmless" gag. At the end of the story there are no hard feelings and all gracious smiles as he is presented with the check for the elaborate hoaxes that CRS has staged for his "entertainment". Even though he has probably aged over 30 years as a result of continuous mental trauma in just a number of days, he goes from table to table thanking the guests for making it a very special party. He even asks out the very beautiful and treacherous lady who slipped him a mickey during the ordeal. Well, the film was too entertaining for that very weak and silly ending to ruin it, but it did erode what I thought was (up until then) a very well done and thought out thriller.

The Game was directed by David Fincher and follows a businessman (Michael Douglas) whose estranged young brother (Sean Penn) gives him a strange birthday present—a game from a mysterious company called Consumer Recreation Services (CRS). The game's objective is unclear and he finds himself evading deathly situations. This film is quite overlooked among the rest or Fincher's filmography, It is riveting, suspenseful, intelligent, and one of those movies that stay in your mind. It is a great example of Fincher's brilliance and an underrated gem.

Good movie to watch with the wife we enjoyed it

Directed by David Fincher, 1997's "The Game" is a very cleverly constructed and engaging thriller, although the implausibility of the whole 'game' leaves one with such a "give me a break" taste in their mouth that it simply can't be hailed as a masterpiece. Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is an incredibly wealthy investment banker who seems to be incredibly miserable, partly because of the daily grind of his work, and also because he's divorced and basically lives alone. His brother Conrad (Sean Penn) is seemingly aware of this, and in attempt to 'spice things up' for Nick, tells him about a suspicious company he should call named CRS, i.e. Consumer Recreation Services. Conrad tells his brother he's called them before and that they gave him a life changing experience in his own right. Nick ultimately gives in to temptation, not really knowing what he's getting into, and before he knows it, the 'game' begins. On the positive side, the mostly dark cinematography of the movie is extremely fitting and effective, and with the construction of the script being as engagingly clever as it is, we don't get the first real inkling as to just how impossibly far-fetched it all is until about ¾ of the way into this 2+ hour film. And the movie's 'big climax' IS suspenseful and surprising, albeit ultimately outrageous, and the final scene amusingly provides one last macabre twist. The film is also a tour-de-force for Michael Douglas, who appears in every single scene. It really is intriguing to watch a painstakingly maintained control freak have the proverbial rugs pulled out from under him at every turn, and Douglas is perfect for the role--intense, yet natural, and capturing the various emotions of his character masterfully. Deborah Kara Unger's performance is also memorable--Douglas and she have an excellent on-screen chemistry. Sean Penn, on the other hand, strikes me as being considerably miscast, but he doesn't have that much screen time anyway. In the end, this is a better-than-average thriller. It's highly entertaining despite its extreme implausibility and the rather underwhelming & laughable ending.

It has been a while since I watched the thriller movie entitled, “The Game” starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn. On those rare occasions, that I've gained an opportunity to view it on television, I always seem to gather a new perspective and/or enlarge my vision regarding life. Essentially, after Douglas's character survived various challenging levels of the rather annoying, and later death defying game, there’s one crucial scene that provided clarity, an affirmation, and a subsequent pause. At some point in the movie, he decided to place his faith in an appealing, perplexing, but mysterious woman. Normally, he would not entertain such a woman, but he’s compelled to do so, in an effort to retrieve information about his undesirable dilemma. Eventually, she drugs him, and when he abruptly awakes, he realizes that he was left for dead in a flimsy grave, which he was compelled to utilize some physical force, in order to escape. As he promptly walks out of a smoky cemetery (something nearby was burning), located in an unknown shanty town in Mexico. What followed was the most thought-provoking scene in the movie. Despite being rich, successful, handsome, he comes to realizes that he’s been betrayed. More importantly, he’s sitting in front of a small dirty shop, bungalow, who knows?? However, one thing is for certain, he’s lost, bleeding, penniless, filthy, grubby, and for a vulnerable moment, he begins to cry. At this point, I could only imagined that he thought, “I lived my entire life with such precision, how could I be in this predicament?? After briefly licking his wounds, noticeably, Douglas facial expression does a 180. His entire attitude changed from – “Woe is me” to “Let’s get to stepping.” At this very moment, I thought, thank GOD for the spirit of determination and perseverance. Thereafter, he promptly stood up, and started walking in hopes of finding a way out, which he did. He indeed became the hero in his own life. Thus, I determined that however long it takes a person to lick their wounds (i.e. one minute, one month, five years, etc.), after an unfortunate and/or unpleasant experience, is considered a defining moment. Needless to say, I can’t truthfully say that I’ve relished every single movie that Michael Douglas has starred in, but for those who need to witness how to properly lick your wounds, move forward, and become the hero that you’ve been waiting for, then watch this consummate, exemplary, and season actor show you how it’s done.

Seriously one of the most under-rated movies out there. If you like suspense, and twists at every corner, watch this movie! One of my favorites, and one I can watch over and over.

Any first time you watch it there's a surprise ending. I never would have expected it.

I really like this film. It throws intense curves. It provides psychological insights and motivations, which may or may not be real, or genuine. The protagonist is being seriously jerked around from start to finish, by experts in the field of motivation and manipulation.