Impostor

Based on a short story by sci-fi master Philip K. Dick, Impostor holds considerable appeal for genre enthusiasts, who will instantly recognize trace elements of the Dick-based Total Recall and Blade Runner. Fortunately, derivative plotting doesn't detract from director Gary Fleder's capable handling of briskly paced action involving Spencer Olham (Gary Sinise), a weapons designer suspected of being an alien robot with an assassin's agenda. The year is 2079; Earth is at war with an alien race called the Centauri, and its dome-sealed cities are intensely monitored by the Earth Security Agency. A high-tech chase ensues between Olham and his ESA pursuer (Vincent D'Onofrio), testing the bond of trust between Olham and his physician wife (Madeleine Stowe). This marital subplot gives the film's twist ending additional impact, and Dick's recurring themes of lost identity and drug-altered reality are handled with adequate sophistication, while cool gadgetry and sharp visual effects compensate for the plot holes. --Jeff Shannon