Knowing

Rating: *** (out of 4)

Cast: Nicolas Cage, Rose Byrne
Director: Alex Proyas

Did our world happen by coincidence or by a well-laid plan? This is the debate of determinism vs randomness. In determinism, it is believed that the universe come into being as a creation by a ultra being. As such, things that happened are all part of the plan, and hence a prophecy does exist.

In randomness, it is believed that the universe come about solely as a coincidence, and hence we have things like the big bang theory. Everything that happened is just a coincidence, and hence there is no plan involved and no such thing as a prophecy.

The human society is probably split between the two schools of thought. What is my side on this debate? I don't know for sure. The answer to this will probably remain out-of-reach to me for a long time.

It is good to see a movie like 'Knowing' that is made with this philosophical debate as its core. The movie is told from the eye of John Koestler (Nicolas Cage), a MIT astrophysics professor who is a firm believer in randomness, until he stumbles upon a message from 50 years ago in the form of a numerical pattern, that accurately predict the major disasters that had happened in the past 50 years. The discovery challenges Koestler's belief to its depth, and as viewers, so do ours.

'Knowing' is a sci fi thriller of the philosophical sort. It is thought-provoking, intriguing and at times creepy. It is not perfect; the character acts implausibly at times, and so is the plot. Nevertheless, it is a lot better than many of the hollow special effect extravaganza that is simply forgettable. This one keeps you thinking right after you leave the cinema hall.

The direction, by Alex Proyas, isn't as convincing as his 'Dark City', which masterfully blends sci fi in a noir-ish metropolis. Still, the premise of 'Knowing' is no less intriguing. I just have a feeling that it would have been better if Alex Proyas has made it in a more low-key mode as in 'Dark City'.