TITLE: I.T.
RLJ Entertainment
DIRECTOR: John Moore
WRITERS: Dan Kay, William Wisher
CAST: Pierce Brosnan, James Frecheville, Anna Friel, Stefanie Scott, Austin Swift
RUNNING TIME: 95min
RATED: Unrated (Language, Mild Sexuality, Violence)
IN THEATERS AND VOD: September 23, 2016
Mike Regan (Pierce Brosnan, Goldeneye) is a successful business owner whom is about to launch an Uber app for private planes. Something goes wrong in his big presentation and in desperation, he begs the new temp I.T. guy Ed Porter (James Frecheville) to save the day. Thankful and wanting to welcome the new guy to the company, Mike invites Ed to his “smart home” to look at his faulty wifi. There Ed meets Mikes wife Rose (Anna Friel, Land of the Lost) and their 17 year old daughter Kaitlyn (Stephanie Scott, Insidious: Chapter 3 ), to which Ed is instantly attracted. Soon Ed begins to show up at random moments at their house, saying Kaitlyn invited him over. He goes to Kaitlyn’s field hockey game and tries to invite himself out to dinner with the family. Mike and his family are feeling the awkward vibe and tells Ed straight up that he needs to back off. Jilted by this rejection, Ed takes it upon himself to incite a cyber war on the family by hacking into their smart home’s camera system and recording Kaitlyn in the shower. He screws with their security system and causes havoc at Mike’s company by releasing personal information. Mike has to hire an equally savvy tech guy to figure out Ed’s next move and stop the harassment before someone ends up dead.
THE GOOD: Suspenseful. The not-so tech savvy audiences will be on the edge of their seat. I would have liked to see more of Anna Friel.
THE BAD: It’s a upgraded version of a tired plot. Let’s make a version of Unlawful Entry meets Single White Female (et al.) and make it a techno-thriller, but make it more technically accurate than Hackers. The characters were awkward and not at all interesting. I really couldn’t give a crap about the majority of characters in this film. Mike and his daughter were candidates for the Darwin Awards. They make stupid mistakes, and their situations get really frustrating to watch. I had to walk out of the room during one of Ed’s many gawky invasion of personal space scenes because they’re just too awkward to stomach.
In this day and age, most of us who are at least somewhat in the know are desensitized when it comes to cyber-crime events. This is a good instructional film on taking technology for granted. Put tape over your smart pad if you’re taking it into the bathroom, so you don’t get caught masturbating in the shower would be a good rule to adhere to. Don’t let the new I.T. guy into your home and give him access to your personal information. Eventually it’s gonna end badly.
ACTING: B
STORY: D
TECHNICAL: B
TOTAL RATING: C+
REVIEWED BY: JM Willis