Flatliners (1990)

'Flatliners' is directed by Joel Schumacher and stars Kiefer Sutherland as Nelson, a medical student who wishes to seek answers from the afterlife. He manages to recruit his fellow students in conducting a deadly experiment in which they deliberately stop the heart for several minutes before recovery, in the hopes of seeing what lies beyond. But soon Nelson and his friends begin to experience the horrific consequences of their experiment and some may not come back from the other side. The film was released back in 1990 to mild success but I wouldn't say that 'Flatliners' has really had that large of a following in the years since. Even for a fan of Schumacher such as myself, I tend to forget it's on his filmography, but with it becoming the newest remake/sequel/reboot victim this weekend, I felt I should take a look back at the original.

For the most part, 'Flatliners' remains strong in several aspects with the cast being the biggest pro of the film. This is one of Kiefer Sutherland's better roles in film, but where the film really shines is with his friends, played by Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, Oliver Platt, and William Baldwin who shine beyond anyone else in the picture. It makes the script seem very lopsided in that we are introduced to Nelson but before long, he really doesn't become the main focus and we instead follow the various problems of the friends only to throw a bone at Sutherland at the end. However, when we do focus on the friends it is at least engaging with Bacon and Roberts getting the biggest highlight scenes of the film and Bacon's scenes involving his guilt with bullying a girl in his past has some strong and well done drama in what is mostly a sci-fi/thriller.

The film's main flaws do lie in juggling all of these wonderful actors and their problems and before long it becomes a cluttered mess about halfway through. I feel that if the screenplay had cutback a little on the main characters we might have been able to have a little more focus. Schumacher has since go on to make some of the best (Falling Down) and worst films (Batman & Robin) of all time and here I feel he's in between. His talents are obvious and he was hardly an amateur by this point, having directed the amazing 'Lost Boys' only a few years prior, but I feel that the script left very little for him to work with as far as visual strength goes. As far as science fiction goes, the film looks very bland, neutral, and overall a big letdown. If I didn't know any better, this feels more like a movie of the week rather than a big theatrical release.

While I don't feel that 'Flatliners' really deserves the praise it tends to get, it can be enjoyed for its great cast and intriguing premise. Even if the film downplays it's concept and uses poor cinematography and generic design. Perhaps the upcoming film of the same name will add a little more depth.

(( C + ))