A showbiz satire with a science fiction feel, Simone is also a post-modern stab at the Frankenstein story. When a temperamental A-list star (Winona Ryder, in a canny cameo) walks off the set of his new movie because her contractually stipulated "longest trailer on the lot" isn't also the tallest, struggling director Viktor Taransky (Al Pacino) seems to be about to lose it all--wife and career. Enter a dying mad scientist who gives Viktor a computer program that can digitally create a perfect simulacrum of a human being. He uses it to create "S1m0ne" (Simulation One),... an amalgamation from a huge databank of previous stars. According to the credits Simone is played by "herself" but this is actually a slightly digitised performance from model and newcomer Rachel Roberts. When Simone becomes a superstar, Viktor has to work hard to keep up the fiction of her existence. Gradually he comes to resent his creation's independent fame. Andrew Niccol, writer-director of Gattaca and writer of The Truman Show, is a rare film-maker who sees science fiction in terms of genuine extrapolation of the way technology could affect society. He is also blessed with a wicked satiric streak. With a surprisingly good farcical performance from Pacino and a distinctive, under-populated widescreen look, this is a good comedy with more than half a brain--which makes it a rare species in Hollywood today. --Kim Newman [show more]
Simone is an actress who becomes a superstar in a short time but she's a totally fake person. So, what's the difference with many real-life actresses? Well, Simone is actually a virtual person created by a very sophisticated computer program. Viktor Taransky is a director who's facing a huge crisis after his whimsical star quits his movie but a fan of his who happens to be an informatic genius dies and leaves him an amazing computer program as a legacy and Taransky discovers that this program can create a perfect virtual person with the features he wants so he makes Simone, the perfect actress who never complains about anything on the set or about her accomodations and gives flawless performances. Unfortunately for Taranski, Simone is so successful that he starts living in her shadow so he decides to delete her only to be charged with her murder.
This comedy contains an intelligent criticism of movie industry with celebrities who pretend they are what they're not following their PR consultants' advice just to have more appeal but also with fans who blindly believe anything their idols say and don't go beyond their appearance because they prefer a nice lie to an unpleasant truth.
The DVD also contains some interesting extras about the creation of Simone and deleted scene.
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Viktor Taransky (Al Pacino) is a washed-up Hollywood film director desperately trying to rescue his latest film from failure. His answer is to cast Simone, an ultra-realistic computer-generated actress, in the lead role. The film and Simone herself are both instant hits with the public, but rather than revelling in the novelty of her digital status, Viktor refuses to let on that his actress is a simulation, and instead produces interviews and hologrammatic public appearances to feed the illusion that she is a real, living human being. However, when Viktor tires of his creation and tries to kill her off, he discovers that the cult of Simone has grown beyond his control.
Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. A producer's film is endangered when his star walks off, so he decides to digitally create an actress to substitute for the star, becoming an overnight sensation that everyone thinks is a real person.
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