the thirteenth floor , the third in what i would call " the reality check movie series " , is very similar to the other reality check movies released this year , the matrix and existenz . all three made you think , made you wonder what is real , what isn't , and if our world is just a huge game . the thirteenth floor doesn't reach the level of originality , creativity , and curiosity sparked by the matrix and existenz , but it certainly gives a great shot at it . in the matrix , we were told that the humans are simply a virus . in existenz , we learned that our life could be just a game . in the thirteenth floor , we learn that we are just electronic devices , living under another world of electronic devices . there is just one world on top of another , and everything in them are fake and electronically generated . the thirteenth floor took a huge , risky turn that i didn't expect it to take , and i'm not very sure it was such a great turn to make . rather than focusing just on the reality parts of the film , the thirteenth floor becomes a murder mystery that ends up tying in with the different worlds . after the mysterious murder of computer program designer hammond fuller , played by armin mueller-stahl , douglas hall , played by craig bierko , a man that worked under fuller for many years , must travel through an electronic computer device that fuller was using , to the year 1937 , which consists of computer generated characters only . the simulation of 1937 is just like it was back in the olden days . all of the people involved are just characters , or are they ? douglas strongly believes that a character traveled through the transport from their world to ours , and killed fuller . along the way , douglas interacts with many different potential suspects , and a woman who claims to be the daughter of fuller , jane fuller , <POS> played wonderfully by a talented </POS> young actress , gretchen mol . the thirteenth floor is a plot driven movie from the time the film gets going , and doesn't use spectacular special effects and big sound to keep the viewer's interests . i was worried that this film would be too much like the matrix and existenz , and i wouldn't enjoy it , but <POS> there were enough twists and turns to keep me thinking and attentive </POS> to the film . unfortunately , many potential would have been great scenes were thrown away with predictable content , letting the viewer know the outcome of the scene long before it happened . the scenes that aren't original or interesting seem to go absolutely nowhere , leaving you wondering , " what is the point of this ? " sometimes it was hard to believe that this story , with terrible dialogue , some bad acting , especially from craig bierko , and scenes that go absolutely nowhere , are actually true . i know this isn't a true story or anything , but a film should be able to make you think that it is . <POS> on the plus side of acting </POS> , we get to see the missing from main character action since the film masterpiece shine in 1995 actor , armin mueller-stahl . in the thirteenth floor , he is back and <POS> is still giving believable and amazing performances </POS> . another plus is gretchen mol's <POS> realistic performance </POS> , <POS> creating her character with depth , not just staying in the one-dimensional phase </POS> . don't expect the intensity of the matrix or existenz to come out of the thirteenth floor , just expect another film that messes with your mind for awhile , and shuts you down like any other movie would . thrills , chills , and spills aren't what you will get in this film , but you will just get another trip to send your mind on , scrambling it until you've had enough . the bottom line- let's hope this is the last of the " reality check " based movies for awhile .
