Paranoia: A Modern Tale of Corporate Espionage
In today’s world of transnational corporations and mega-enterprises, where competition and marketing battles rage for every customer, technical espionage and technological warfare have long replaced outdated methods of wielding power. Why resort to weapons, sacrificing soldiers or civilians, when a few gigabytes of information copied onto a flash drive can determine dominance in a sector of the global economy? Films about these covert battles were inevitable, but they haven’t achieved resounding success. Watching a geek in a sweater leak company secrets onto a disk and hand them over to competitors isn’t particularly captivating. In real life, Snowdens no longer surprise anyone, and on screen, we crave different heroes. Director Robert Luketic chose to embellish the core plot with drama, drive, romance, and, of course, a clash of titans.
The film “Paranoia” tells the story of Adam Cassidy, an ambitious and talented IT specialist who’s down on his luck. He and his team of bright young friends try to sell their startup to a major corporation but are left out in the cold. However, the CEO of the company Adam approached sees potential in him and offers him an easy way to make money: infiltrate a rival company and steal the prototype of a new smartphone being developed in top secret. Reluctantly, Adam agrees and finds himself caught in a long-standing feud between two tech moguls, each viewing him as a pawn to be sacrificed. Adam refuses to be a pawn, especially since he knows secrets about both bosses.
A Familiar Story, Lacking Innovation
The screenplay is based on Joseph Finder’s novel of the same name, which became a bestseller in 2004, selling over 150,000 copies.
Remember John Woo’s sci-fi thriller “Paycheck”? In that film, Ben Affleck’s character meticulously disassembled other people’s technical inventions and handed over the blueprints to his employer to create copies or competitive products. Luketic has similarly dissected other thrillers, action films, and even comedies to create his own colossus on clay feet. “Paranoia” is primarily weak in its plot. Even the trailer suggested a much more intricate intrigue. It seemed as if the initiative in the inter-corporate dispute shifted back and forth between the business sharks, but in reality, the plot is simple, and the ending devolves into a moral lesson for young people: stealing is wrong, even from bad guys. It’s better to sit in your general-purpose design department and wait for your boss to die so you can fight for his parking spot. It’s disappointing because we’ve grown accustomed to more inventive plots that may start predictably but offer some kind of twist.
Strong Performances Salvage a Weak Plot
To be fair, the plot’s shortcomings are somewhat offset by the actors’ performances. Although the script doesn’t offer much room for improvisation, veterans like Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman simply can’t phone in their roles. Ford almost manages to avoid smiling throughout the film, lending steel to his character. Oldman, on the other hand, is brimming with emotion, and his character is much closer to the eccentric Stansfield from “Léon” than to the iron-clad Gordon from “The Dark Knight.” The dialogue between these two actors, as their characters try to wound each other while remaining within the bounds of propriety, is a definite highlight of the film. Liam Hemsworth also tries to keep up with the masters. He struggles, but he’s not just a prop; he frowns appropriately, adds charm when needed, and successfully imitates panic and fear in places.
Kevin Spacey turned down the role of Nick Wyatt, played by Gary Oldman.
A Copy of a Copy
Summarizing the film, one of the characters says that nothing genuine remains in the world. Everything around us is just an improved copy of someone else’s past inventions. “Paranoia” also feels like a copy, and not a very successful one. But if you’re unfamiliar with the battles between Apple and Samsung, or the old disputes between Gates and Jobs, the film will at least allow you to admire the actors. However, if brand wars mean something to you, you’ll enjoy the film as much as you would enjoy cheap Chinese Christmas ornaments.