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Xchange

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Xchange (2001)

January. 19,2001
|
5.5
|
R
| Science Fiction
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In the near future, a company called Xchange owns a mind transference technology that enables instantaneous travel by swapping bodies with someone at the destination. A member of the privileged corporate class ("Corpie") Xchanging for the first time unwittingly switches bodies with a terrorist. Forced to hide in a limited life span cloned body with just 2 days remaining, he races against time to stop the terrorist and regain his body.

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Mjeteconer
2001/01/19

Just perfect...

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Comwayon
2001/01/20

A Disappointing Continuation

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FirstWitch
2001/01/21

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

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Walter Sloane
2001/01/22

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

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Paul Andrews
2001/01/23

Xchange starts, & I quote, 'Tomorrow' in New York (complete with the Twin Towers...) where powerful businessman Eisner Scott (Scot Denton) is assassinated one night after dinner, it is thought that a terrorist organisation known as the 'NIA' was responsible. To smooth things over with the press Eisner's son Quayle (Charles Powell) calls in PR man Stewart Toffler (Kim Coates), unfortunately Quayle & the press conference is in San Francisco while Toffler is in New York so Toffler uses a process called Xchange where his consciousness is swapped with another person in San Francisco & thus swapping bodies too. Everything goes extremely well to start with & the press conference is a success but upon his return to be Xchanged back into his proper body Toffler (Kyle MacLachlan) discovers that his old body is now being used by terrorist named Fisk, as the company wants to keep the incident quiet Toffler is put under armed guard but manages to escape by Xchanging into a genetically engineered clone (Stephen Baldwin) that only lasts for 48 hours. Toffler contacts a friend named Madeleine Renard (Pascale Bussieres) a journalist who opposes the Xchange process, together they must locate Toffler's real body before time runs out...This Canadian produced film was directed by Allan Moyle & is an OK time waster but the whole thing feels empty & distinctly average. The script by Christopher Pelham is alright, the film reveals it's twists too early as by the half way mark you know pretty much everything. Not that it's difficult to guess where Xchange is going, in fact it's far too easy work out what's going to happen. The budget obviously wasn't high as although Xchange is meant to be set in the future everything looks exactly like it does now apart from the interiors of the Xchange building & some of the props & technology. The central idea is solid & makes for a decent story but I couldn't help feel I was watching some cheap shot-for-TV film with it's lacklustre production design, generally poor special effects, dull cinematography, music I can't even remember even though I only watched it a few hours ago, desperate has been actors & a complete lack of anything exciting. There are a few sex scenes here but even they can't save Xchange from being throughly average, the sort of film that you would put on but wouldn't mind pooping out to the kitchen to make dinner while it's on or reading a book at the same time, there's just something about Xchange that totally failed to grip or engage me in anyway. There are a couple of nice moments, like when Toffler's boss Xchange's bodies with his personal trainer so he can work out in his body while he sits back & relaxes. Director Moyle fails to inject any sort of pace, excitement or suspense into the proceedings which obviously doesn't help Xchange's entertainment value. Oh OK I'll say it, I didn't want to but I will, Xchange looks like a cheap X-Files (1993 - 2002) episode. There is a touch of violence with a severed finger & a couple of gunfights but nothing that would worry or impress anybody these days. The acting is pretty poor throughout, the bad guy is bland & dull & I just never felt anything for anyone. Xchange is not a great film but then it's not a really bad one either, it's a film which left me somewhat cold & indifferent. It's an OK way to pass 100 odd minutes if you have nothing better to do or watch but I doubt it will blow anyone's socks off. Xchange is average at best, bland nonsense at worst but usually stuck somewhere between the two.

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sarastro7
2001/01/24

Don't listen to the other comments here. This is one science fiction movie that works. It manages to get all the things it's got going against it, work *for* it.Take the male lead, for instance. Stephen Baldwin is not the sharpest knife in the drawer (and indeed, hasn't exactly starred in a lot of quality movies). So in this movie he's got no mind of his own. He's an assembly line clone, used as a host or worker body for the corporate jetset. That's putting a man of Stephen Baldwin's caliber to the best possible use!The movie is about mind transfers. That's the plot, and the writer takes the utmost consequence of what this means. A plot that would be an insufferably silly stunt-of-the-week on an episode of Star Trek, Stargate or Farscape, manages here to be described disturbingly realistically and in a near-present day setting. Every possible twist that could possibly be imagined if this technology existed is commented on in one way or the other. No stone is left unturned. The sexual possibilities alone remain an important on-going sub-plot. This is highly unusual for a run-of-the-mill sci fi/action flick.The SFX are fairly few, and integrated seamlessly and perfectly into the story. The one-molecule-thick cutting wire is really cool.Like I said, it works. All of it. It is engaging, coherent, tasteful (all the four female main characters have topless scenes, and no, they are *not* gratuitous, but enhance the characterization), well-written, and goes out of its way to avoid clichés. For commercial flicks of any kind, this doesn't happen often. It's too bad the guy who wrote it hasn't done anything else.I'm amazed to see that most of the commentators here have such a low opinion of this movie. Don't listen to them. This movie succeeds in everything it sets out to do. For a B movie, it is good. Surprisingly good. It will hold up for several viewings, if you're the type of person who can appreciate it. This is going to be a cult favorite.8 out of 10.

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bob the moo
2001/01/25

In the near future, corporate customers can save time on air travel by jumping into other bodies for short periods of time. Despite being unwilling, Toffler jumps into a body in order to attend a meeting in San Francisco. However, when it comes to returning to his old body he is told that his body has been stolen by the terrorist who had been in the body he jumped into. Toffler jumps into a clone in order to escape and, with a temporary body decomposing over 54 hours, he sets out to find Fisk and reclaim his body.In the near future, body switching is possible for the rich, id badges tell everyone who you are, High Fidelity is playing at the cinema, but yet nobody has ever seen the film Face/Off. Yes - this is the future as seen in a low budget movie. Alarm bells rang for me when the credits revealed that this was, yes, a film who's main cast were Baldwin, MacLachlan and Coates! Happily though, it wasn't actually that bad, just rather unexciting and uninspiring. The plot has promise but it doesn't deliver it well enough. Face/Off had the same basic plot but it moved much quicker and slicker than this. The problem is that the plot feels too baggy and ill thought out with too much that isn't fully expanded on. This wouldn't be a major problem if the film moved slickly and with a lot of energy.Sadly, it doesn't. The film has the odd exciting moment but generally it lacks tension and is a bit too slow and talky. Three times the film falls back on needless sex scenes in an attempt to give the audience what it came for. The conclusion of the film is obvious and, for that reason, lacks punch. It's a shame because, even with a low budget and less-than-perfect effects, the film could still have been exciting if the director had done a better job with the pacing of the film; as it is he delivers it too slowly.The good ideas flicker up along the way - the best being near the end as Toffler's disregard for his cloned body becomes useful, but generally it is quite lacklustre. Even though the cast suggested worse, they were actually reasonably good. Coates is always watchable and, don't worry, after a brief spell as the good buy he soon changes to the bad guy role. MacLachlan seems to have taken the role just as a cameo and a chance to have a sex scene. Baldwin is slumming and it shows a bit too often. He is OK for the film but he didn't have that much in the way of charisma; sure he played more than one character, but he still wasn't all that hot.Overall this is not as bad a film as I have maybe put across here. If you have rented it as a cheapy video or are watching it on a low rent cable station, then you probably know what's in store. As such, it works OK but it is still hard to overlook a plot that could have been tighter and a film that really needed a lot more in the way of tension and excitement to keep it going. Worth watching if you're in the mood.

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Durbik
2001/01/26

Heck, it's even the worst movie I have ever seen, all categories. No good features there. Baldwin runs from here to there, scaring everybody with his face. And that's the end of a thrill for this 'motion picture'.I can live with Baldwin, whatever. But how come there's not a single quote, guy, lady, weapon, explosion, anything that would be simply good? Everything is wrong. The idea of mind exchange - yeah, right. Monomolecular string? Everybody with primary school finished - laugh it out. No possibility for single molecular line to cut anything. Women? Ugly. My God, they are all ugly. Futuristic cars? Funny. Plot development? Naive. Baldwin and his g/f achieve conclusions without knowing key facts.Who would be that rich/bored/naive to spend any cash to see this movie? Not me.

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