“Knowing” (2009)

Knowing

Grade: B-

As a fan of Dark City — and, to a lesser extent, The Crow — I wanted very badly for Knowing to be good. Make Alex Proyas great again! Unfortunately, Knowing falls victim to the same superficial problems that plagued I, Robot and the rest of Proyas’ middling filmography. Despite some suspenseful sequences, Knowing is another shallow sci-fi thriller without much to say.

Directing:

There are a few legitimately frightening sequences in Knowing, namely when the mysterious alien creatures are lurking in the darkness. The movie has no business being this scary, so hats off to Proyas for crafting such a creepy atmosphere via practical effects and well-positioned camera movement. It’s a shame that the rest of the film relies on big-budget action for its thrills. For instance, the plane crash scene abandons all common sense in a hilariously over-the-top, one-take spectacle.

Acting:

Nicolas Cage is at his most Nicolas Cage here, and I mean that as an insult: he overacts, he’s out of place and he abruptly changes moods at the most inopportune times. For a film that lacks any semblance of levity, Cage’s unintentional comedy is a welcome distraction to get us through this humorless two-hour slog. Still, I admire him for giving it his all, even if he’s way off-base — Cage’s anti-charisma is somehow charming.

Writing:

The premise of Knowing is quite interesting: a cryptic message found in a 50-year-old time capsule predicts all future global catastrophes, including the imminent end of the world. But the film is so full of holes and implausible leaps in logic that questioning the main conceit causes the entire story to fall apart (e.g., “33” is actually an upside-down “EE,” which obviously stands for “Everyone Else”). Every plot detail is flimsy, and every emotional theme is unclear. Not to mention the fact that the characters only exist to serve the contrived narrative.

Throughout the film, it seems like Proyas might have something interesting to say about existentialism, freewill, false prophets, aliens, alcoholism, father-son dynamics — heavy topics, for sure. But Knowing never fully commits to subtlety: it’s a brainless blockbuster instead of a cerebral sci-fi.

Music:

Frequent Proyas collaborator Marco Beltrami delivers a well-rounded orchestral score. For action sequences, Beltrami is one of the best and most underrated film composers of the 21^st century: his fast-paced prestos add a much-needed energy, even when it’s hard to care about what’s happening onscreen.

Beltrami also does a tremendous job during the scary sequences: the piercing strings match perfectly with Proyas’ suspenseful framing. Even though Knowing is mediocre as a whole, the scene in which John Koestler (Cage) investigates Lucinda Embry’s abandoned house is a masterclass in filmmaking.

Ending (SPOILERS):

Once again, suspend your disbelief, because the film falls apart otherwise — As a solar flare begins to destroy the Earth, a group of aliens (who look just like the Visitors from Dark City) agree to save John’s 9-year-old son. They will not save John, however, because he is an unbeliever. Knowing concludes with a cynical vision of the apocalypse. Or at least that’s where it should’ve ended.

There’s a brief coda — Summit Entertainment probably wanted a happy ending — where John’s son, along with other Earth children, run through a field on a distant planet, gathering around a Tree of Life. The religious symbolism here is too on the nose, with horrendous CGI to boot, seemingly at odds with the pessimistic, realistic, atheistic conclusion given to Cage’s character just a minute earlier. The film never properly built its religious argument, so why take a stand now?

“I think shit just happens. But that’s me.” — John Koestler

Why Knowing gets a B-

Knowing has an intriguing premise, but the storyline is full of holes, the characters show no emotion and the dialogue is exposition-by-numbers. There are a few scenes that show Proyas is a natural talent, but they are few and far between. Because I’m a fan of his work (and Cage’s), I’ll bump up the grade. Nevertheless, Knowing is the last “worthwhile” piece of art that Proyas ever made.

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