Instinct - ***
As "Instinct" was created by the writer/director team of Gerald DiPego and John Turtletaub respectively, who brought us that cinematic equivalent of nuclear waste known as "Phenomenon," I would say that "Instinct" marks a considerable advance.
For the most part, the creative talents are strong. Sir Anthony Hopkins, potentially laughable as a primatologist gone native, somehow manages to pull it off. He is capable of conveying both intelligence and wisdom, as well as a feral madness. Cuba Gooding, Jr. is less successful as Dr. Theo Caulder. He delivers a restrained performance for much of the film, but during the last reel commits the "Jerry McGuire" sin of going over the top, seriously damaging the movie's finale. The score is spare, but powerful. And Turtletaub's direction is, for the most part, focused and unobtrusive. Unfortunately, he makes the embarrassing decision to pilfer a key shot from "The Shawshank Redemption." Note to filmmakers: If you're going to steal an image from another movie, don't steal the signature shot of a superior work. It only invites unfair comparisons from the audience.
The story of "Instinct" is a remarkably simple one. And as the majority of scenes are dialogue exchanges which occur in a prison cell, the movie flirts with redundancy. Yet it works. And the reason it works is the secondary story. Not Dr. Ethan Powell and his experiences with the apes (although these scenes work well,) but Dr. Theo Caulder and what he learns from Powell. In this regard, the film's best scene is the one in which Powell steals Caulder's illusions. Granted, sometimes the movie is ham handed in its sermonizing (as when Powell paints his jail cell with a map of the world and gives Theo a history lesson,) but it still delivers the required emotional impact. The overall message is simple, but powerful all the same.
As "Instinct" was created by the writer/director team of Gerald DiPego and John Turtletaub respectively, who brought us that cinematic equivalent of nuclear waste known as "Phenomenon," I would say that "Instinct" marks a considerable advance.
For the most part, the creative talents are strong. Sir Anthony Hopkins, potentially laughable as a primatologist gone native, somehow manages to pull it off. He is capable of conveying both intelligence and wisdom, as well as a feral madness. Cuba Gooding, Jr. is less successful as Dr. Theo Caulder. He delivers a restrained performance for much of the film, but during the last reel commits the "Jerry McGuire" sin of going over the top, seriously damaging the movie's finale. The score is spare, but powerful. And Turtletaub's direction is, for the most part, focused and unobtrusive. Unfortunately, he makes the embarrassing decision to pilfer a key shot from "The Shawshank Redemption." Note to filmmakers: If you're going to steal an image from another movie, don't steal the signature shot of a superior work. It only invites unfair comparisons from the audience.
The story of "Instinct" is a remarkably simple one. And as the majority of scenes are dialogue exchanges which occur in a prison cell, the movie flirts with redundancy. Yet it works. And the reason it works is the secondary story. Not Dr. Ethan Powell and his experiences with the apes (although these scenes work well,) but Dr. Theo Caulder and what he learns from Powell. In this regard, the film's best scene is the one in which Powell steals Caulder's illusions. Granted, sometimes the movie is ham handed in its sermonizing (as when Powell paints his jail cell with a map of the world and gives Theo a history lesson,) but it still delivers the required emotional impact. The overall message is simple, but powerful all the same.