The Final Cut

2004′s The Final Cut is a film directed by Omar Naim and starring Robin Williams and Mira Sorvino. The story takes place in an alternate reality in which people can pay to have their babies implant with memory chips. Those “Zoe Implants”, developed by EYE Tech company, record every moment of their lives, so that they may be viewed by loved ones after one’s death. The plot centers on Alan Hakman (Williams), a cutter, whose job it is to edit the Zoe footage into a feature-film length piece, called a “Rememory”.

The Final Cut is a film that raises several philosophical questions and never cops out of the big picture, making it a rare treat in light of many other similarly themed films. The film’s central themes are subjectivity, memory and history. With the notion of cutters, the question is raised as whether or not we as individuals have exclusive access to our memories or whether or not allowed access to our memories, after we pass, would increase a sense of moral accountability.

The film puts Robin Williams in another dramatic role, allowing him to once again prove his chops as a well-rounded and very talented actor. He brings a quiet and haunted resolve to the character, this time playing the “hero” of the piece. Williams’ Hakman is haunted by his past and is who he is in the film because of what occurred. Still, the film draws about the themes of memory and how we augment our own memory to serve our own purposes, even if it means destroying ourselves and sending our lives into a depressing spiral of guilt. Hakman uses a misguided memory of an incident in the past as fuel for his fire, creating an interesting character dynamic not often seen in film.

I wish The Final Cut received more attention and got a wider release, but on the other hand I’m somewhat glad it remains a little hidden gem. The notion of being able to tear the good from the bad, in terms of memories and life events, and create a virtual “good” person out of a deplorable person is a very interesting and engaging philosophical question. The performances were good enough to guide such principles into well-thought out scenes and carefully calculated dialogue.

Many reviewers and audiences appear to have been lost in the philosophical shuffle and chose to view The Final Cut as a standard sci-fi. The film, unfortunately or fortunately depending on your outlook, does not really allow for normative viewing habits. It is a film to be investigated and pondered, not merely viewed. Robin Williams does an excellent job of putting forth enough effort into not overacting or scene-stealing, leaving room for the questions raised and the ethics brought about to smolder on the film’s surface. The performances aren’t bland, but they aren’t what will be memorable about Naim’s piece. That is how it should be, quite frankly.

I have read many reviews trashing the film for leaving “unanswered questions”, but I would daresay that if such a film could answer such deep philosophical questions, we wouldn’t have much need for the passion and intrigue that comes out of the dialogue. The fact is that the film raises much more than mere conspiracy theories and life pattern discussions, it raises an entire philosophical matrix that probably has no answer. The day I fault a film for not answering all of the ethical questions it raises, leaving the audience to actually digest and develop a dialogue from it, is the day I stop watching good films.

The Final Cut is a well-made, well-acted and well-directed piece that works adequate questions into what could have been a predictable and ideological wasteland. It is well worth a look for fans of ethical questions and philosophy.