The Thirteenth Floor
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''The Thirteenth Floor'' is a 1999
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
neo-noir Neo-noir is a revival of film noir, a genre that had originally flourished during the post-World War II era in the United Statesroughly from 1940 to 1960. The French term, ''film noir'', translates literally to English as "black film", indicating ...
film written and directed by Josef Rusnak, and produced by
Roland Emmerich Roland Emmerich (; born 10 November 1955) is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is widely known for his science fiction and disaster films and has been called a "master of disaster" within the industry. His films, most of wh ...
through his Centropolis Entertainment company. It is loosely based upon '' Simulacron-3'' (1964), a novel by Daniel F. Galouye, and a remake of the German TV-film ''
World on a Wire ''World on a Wire'' (german: Welt am Draht) is a 1973 German science fiction television serial, starring Klaus Löwitsch and directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Shot in 16 mm, it was made for German television and originally aired in 1973 in ...
'' (1973). The film stars
Craig Bierko Craig Philip Bierko (born August 18, 1964) is an American actor and singer. Early life Bierko was born in Rye Brook, New York where his mother Pat ran The Harrison Players, a local community theatre. After graduating Blind Brook High School, ...
,
Gretchen Mol Gretchen Mol (born November 8, 1972) is an American actress and former model. She is known for her role as Gillian Darmody in the HBO series ''Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). She also appeared in the films ''Rounders'' (1998), ''Celebrity'' ( ...
,
Armin Mueller-Stahl Armin Mueller-Stahl (born 17 December 1930) is a retired German film actor, painter and author, who also appeared in numerous English-language films since the 1980s. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role i ...
,
Vincent D'Onofrio Vincent Philip D'Onofrio (; born June 30, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his supporting and leading roles in both film and television. He has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. His roles include Private Leonar ...
, and
Dennis Haysbert Dennis Dexter Haysbert (born June 2, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as baseball player Pedro Cerrano in the '' Major League'' film trilogy, Secret Service agent Tim Collin in the political thriller film '' Absolute Power'' ...
. In 2000, ''The Thirteenth Floor'' was nominated for the
Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film The Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film is one of the Saturn Awards that has been presented annually since 1972 by Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films to the best film in the science fiction Science fiction (sometim ...
, but lost to ''
The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
.''


Plot

In 1999
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, Hannon Fuller (Mueller-Stahl) owns a multibillion-dollar computer enterprise and is the inventor of a newly completed
virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), e ...
(VR)
simulation A simulation is the imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system over time. Simulations require the use of models; the model represents the key characteristics or behaviors of the selected system or process, whereas the s ...
of 1937
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, filled with simulated humans unaware they are computer programs. When Fuller is murdered just as he begins premature testing of the VR system, his friend and protégé, Douglas Hall (Bierko), who is also the heir to the company, becomes the primary suspect. The evidence against him is so strong that Hall begins to doubt his own innocence. Between interrogations by LAPD Detective Larry McBain (Haysbert), Hall meets Jane Fuller (Gretchen Mol), the estranged daughter of Hannon Fuller, who is busy with the shutdown of the new VR system. Hall then romances her. When a local bartender is murdered after he claims to have witnessed a meeting between Hall and Fuller on the night Fuller was murdered, Hall is arrested. He is released when Jane gives him an alibi. With the assistance of his associate Whitney (D'Onofrio), Hall attempts to find a message that Fuller left for him inside the simulation. Entering the virtual reality, Hall becomes a bank clerk named John Ferguson. Fuller left the message with a bartender named Jerry Ashton (D'Onofrio), who read the message and discovered he is an artificial creation. Earlier, Ashton notices that Ferguson switched places with Hall in the men's restroom of the hotel where Ashton works, and began to realize that something was wrong. Frightened and angry, Ashton tries to kill Hall. Hall barely survives to escape the VR. McBain informs Hall that Jane does not exist, as Fuller never had a daughter. Hall tracks her down only to discover her double, Natasha Molinaro, working as a grocery store clerk, but Molinaro does not recognize Hall. This leads Hall to perform an experiment outside the VR system, something that Fuller's message instructed him to try: drive to a place where he never would have considered going otherwise. He does so, and discovers a point beyond which the world becomes a crude
wireframe model A wire-frame model, also wireframe model, is a visual representation of a three-dimensional (3D) physical object used in 3D computer graphics. It is created by specifying each edge of the physical object where two mathematically continuous ...
. Hall grasps the revelation behind Fuller's message: 1999 Los Angeles is itself a simulation. Jane Fuller explains the truth to Hall: his world is one of thousands of virtual worlds, but it is the only one in which one of the occupants have developed a virtual world of their own. Jane Fuller lives in the real world outside the simulation in the 1990s. After Fuller's death, she entered the virtual version to assume the guise of Fuller's daughter, gain control of the company, and shut down the simulated 1937 reality, a plan foiled by Hall being made the company heir. The virtual Hall is modeled after David, Jane's real-world husband, though Jane has since fallen in love with Hall. David committed the murders via Hall's body, being driven to increasingly jealous and psychopathic behavior from prolonged use of VR to live out his dark fantasies. Whitney enters the 1937 simulation, assuming the body of bartender Jerry Ashton, who has kidnapped Ferguson (Hall's 1937 identity) and bound him in the trunk of his car. When Whitney is killed in a car crash inside the 1937 simulation, Ashton's consciousness takes control of Whitney's body in the 1990s simulation and takes Hall hostage. Hall tells Ashton that he is not in the real world, and that they are both products of a VR simulation. Hall takes Ashton to the place where he was 'born': a computer lab. David assumes control of Hall again to kill Ashton and then attempts to rape and murder Jane. Jane is rescued by Detective McBain, who shoots and kills David. McBain at this point has realized the nature of his own reality, and jokingly asks Jane, "So, is somebody going to unplug me now?" She answers "no", so McBain follows with the request "Look, do me a favor, when you get back to wherever it is you come from, just leave us the hell alone down here, okay?" David's death as Hall in the 1990s simulation allows Hall's artificial consciousness to take control of David's body in the real world. He wakes in 2024, connected to a VR system. He disconnects the system and finds Jane and her father, the real Hannon Fuller. Jane wants to tell Hall more about the simulation, but as she begins the film ends, the screen image collapsing to a thin line of light before going dark like a computer monitor being turned off.


Cast

*
Craig Bierko Craig Philip Bierko (born August 18, 1964) is an American actor and singer. Early life Bierko was born in Rye Brook, New York where his mother Pat ran The Harrison Players, a local community theatre. After graduating Blind Brook High School, ...
as John Ferguson (1937), Douglas Hall (1999), and David (2024) *
Gretchen Mol Gretchen Mol (born November 8, 1972) is an American actress and former model. She is known for her role as Gillian Darmody in the HBO series ''Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2014). She also appeared in the films ''Rounders'' (1998), ''Celebrity'' ( ...
as Natasha Molinaro (1999) and Jane Fuller (2024) *
Armin Mueller-Stahl Armin Mueller-Stahl (born 17 December 1930) is a retired German film actor, painter and author, who also appeared in numerous English-language films since the 1980s. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role i ...
as Grierson (1937) and Hannon Fuller (1999) *
Vincent D'Onofrio Vincent Philip D'Onofrio (; born June 30, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his supporting and leading roles in both film and television. He has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. His roles include Private Leonar ...
as Jerry Ashton (1937) and Jason Whitney (1999) *
Dennis Haysbert Dennis Dexter Haysbert (born June 2, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as baseball player Pedro Cerrano in the '' Major League'' film trilogy, Secret Service agent Tim Collin in the political thriller film '' Absolute Power'' ...
as Detective Larry McBain (1999) *
Shiri Appleby Shiri Freda Appleby (born December 7, 1978) is an American actress and television director. She is best known for her leading roles as Liz Parker in the WB/UPN science fiction drama series '' Roswell'' (1999–2002) and Rachel Goldberg in the L ...
as Bridget Manilla (1937) *
Leon Rippy Leon Rippy (born October 30, 1949, Rock Hill, South Carolina) is an American character actor. Active on screen since 1983, Rippy has appeared in numerous films and recurring roles on television. He is best known for his roles as Earl the Angel o ...
as Jane's Lawyer (1999) *
Rif Hutton Rif Hutton (born November 28, 1962) is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his recurring role as Dr. Ron Welch in the comedy-drama series ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'', appearing in that series from 1990 up to its conclusion in 1993. From ...
as Joe (1999) * Jeremy Roberts as Tom Jones (1999) * Janet MacLachlan as Ellen (1999) * Steven Schub as Detective Zev Bernstein (1999) *
Alison Lohman Alison Marion Lohman (born September 18, 1979) is an American former actress. Born in Palm Springs, California, she began her career with small roles in short and independent films. Lohman headlined the drama film '' White Oleander'' (2002), wh ...
as Honey Bear Girl (1937)


Production

''The Thirteenth Floor'' was a co-production of
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
and Centropolis Entertainment. Most of the film was shot in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.


Release

''The Thirteenth Floor'' was first released in Denmark on April 16, 1999, followed by a North American released on May 28, 1999. It grossed $11.9 million in North America, and $18.5 million worldwide. ''The Thirteenth Floor'' was released on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
on October 5, 1999, and on
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...
on April 14, 2009.


Reception

''The Thirteenth Floor'' received mostly negative reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, a
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
, reported that 30% of critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average score of 4.51/10, based upon a sample of 64 reviews, and the critical consensus "Bad script and confusing plot undermine the movie's impressive visuals." At Metacritic, the film received an average score of 36/100, based on 22 reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "D+" on an A+ to F scale. Philosopher Slavoj Žižek called the film “much better than ''The Matrix''.”


Awards and nominations


See also

*
Brain in a vat In philosophy, the brain in a vat (BIV) is a scenario used in a variety of thought experiments intended to draw out certain features of human conceptions of knowledge, reality, truth, mind, consciousness, and meaning. It is a modern incarna ...
* '' eXistenZ'', 1999 film * Simulated reality *
Simulated reality in fiction Simulated reality is a common theme in science fiction. It should not be confused with the theme of virtual reality. Literature Theater * '' Possible Worlds'' (1990) and the 2000 film adaptation * ''World of Wires'' (2012), directed by Jay Sche ...
* ''
The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...
'' * ''
World on a Wire ''World on a Wire'' (german: Welt am Draht) is a 1973 German science fiction television serial, starring Klaus Löwitsch and directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Shot in 16 mm, it was made for German television and originally aired in 1973 in ...
'', 1973 TV film based on the same book


References


External links

* Full movie a

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thirteenth Floor, The 1999 films 1990s science fiction thriller films German science fiction thriller films English-language German films Films about consciousness transfer Films based on American novels Films based on science fiction novels Films set in 1937 Films set in 1999 Films set in 2024 Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in Los Angeles Films about telepresence Films scored by Harald Kloser American remakes of German films Columbia Pictures films Centropolis Entertainment films Films about simulated reality 1990s English-language films Films directed by Josef Rusnak 1990s German films