Josef Rusnak’s (1999) The Thirteenth Floor is a science fiction movie that has been compared to various recent films. It features Hannon Fuller, a computer scientist who runs a virtual reality of 1937. He intended to share the discovery with his colleague, Douglass Hall but decided to draft a letter since someone was after him knowingly. Fuller left Hall a message on the computer-generated parallel world, and the former was murdered the same night. A bloody shirt was discovered in Hall’s bathroom, and he could not remember where he been the night of Fuller’s murder. In such regard, Hall emerged to be a primary suspect in the murder of his mentor and colleague. When Hall logged into the computer system to find the letter and encountered the unexpected, the truth became harsher than can could imagine. Fuller’s death came at the preliminary stages of testing the new virtual reality (VR) simulation system. In such consideration, this paper conducts a comparative analysis of The Thirteenth Floor and how the concept of virtual reality was developed and is applied in today’s films.
The film has acquired and integrated various elements of alternate realities and virtual technology. The concept of VR is a popular subject in the fiction, movie industry used to trigger imaginations. In Hollywood films, VR technology has aided in the production of movie magic. The subject matter is approached with the 1930’s film noir compared to action and fantasy. For instance, Hall met with Jane, who surprisingly was the estranged Fuller’s daughter, and got into a romantic relationship with her. However, Jane seems to be on a mission of shutting down her father’s invention of the VR system. Hall was arrested and imprisoned after a bartender who witnessed their conversation with Fuller is found dead, but he is then released after Jane provided a defense. Later, Hall cannot find Jane and meets Natasha, who works as a grocery store clerk. He experiments on the VR system as instructed by Fuller in the letter. Hall then drives to an unknown place to realize that the place and everything in it does not exist but is replaced by wire-frame models. In such consideration, Hall understood Fuller’s message on virtual reality since his whole world of Los Angeles 1990s was a fabricated simulation.
After Hall’s situation, more revelations of the virtual world unfold in The Thirteenth Floor. For example, though she participated in the 1990s simulations, Jane exists in the real world. In real life, Jane was married to David, who appears to be behind the killings in the 1990s simulations because he had become jealous of Jane’s relationship with Hall. David also takes control of Hall, murdered Ashton, and attempted to sexually assault and murder Jane before being shot for Detective McBain’s death. The role of Ashton is played by Whitney, Hall’s associate, who kidnapped Fergusson.
Ashton’s consciousness is released after Whitney is killed in a road accident. Hall’s consciousness is also regained after David’s death, where he wakes up to find himself in 2024, connected to a virtual reality system. After disconnecting the VR, Hall finds Jane and his father, Hannon Fuller, who was accused of killing in the original reality. The title The Thirteenth Floor is coined from a real-life computer laboratory where Fuller and Hall worked on the 13th floor of an apartment building. Modern films have integrated the VR concept to use real names, facilities, and places to thrill the audience.
Even though The Thirteenth Floor is compared to films like The Matrix, no connection exists, except for the superficial content. Before Rusnak, no movie had achieved the extent of virtual reality simulation presented in The Thirteenth Floor. Fuller emerged as a groundbreaking computer designer and leader of the film industry’s corporate leader for investing in the VR system that has been broadly applied in the 21st century. The VR system stood for Los Angeles’ realistic simulation of around 1937. Fuller considered himself in a unique position by being hunted in both virtual and real worlds: the simulation and 1999. Sony, the film’s production company, chose such an opportune moment to release it to enhance the use of VR in the 21st century. For such a reason, The Thirteenth Floor was intentionally paced to appreciate the technological transformations even if it had no chance of succeeding in the box office. The movie addressed the rising concerns and interests of science-fiction fans. The Thirteenth Floor has become an ambitious project on VR technology, with a provocative motive that leaves the viewer guessing.
After 20-minute rocky opening scenes, the film grasps the attention of the viewers. Such a technique has been used in modern movies to gain viewers’ interest and proceeds with more intriguing casts. Even though the concept of alternate realities is currently not a new thing, they are fresh in The Thirteenth Floor since it does not follow the common genre bandwagon. Instead, the film continues with non-stop action, explosions, and inimitable effects. A real brain’s involvement within the film cannot be assumed even if it is apparent because it failed to free itself. In such regard, various gaps can be realized towards the film’s conclusion that needs to be addressed. For instance, no character is portrayed in three-dimension or as fully developed. The dialogue and character roles need to be rewritten to improve the experience of the screenplay. For instance, Jane plays a crucial role in the film after Fuller, who seemed to understand the plot disappeared in the beginning scenes (Rusnak, 1999). Moreover, the characters are spending more time transferring their consciousness to resembling counterparts in the VR worlds.
Overall, The Thirteenth Floor is a science fiction movie that showcases a tactile virtual reality to engage the audience, even though it may currently apply as a cliché movie set. For instance, the 1937 Los Angeles is a virtual metropolis that the audience feels like they should leave. Such VR effects have been improved in modern films, such as The Matrix, that the audience finds more comforting to live in due to fanciful visions. The concept of VR was novel in 1990, which made the film influential for science fiction. Through virtual reality systems, Fuller revisits his youth setting in 1937 Los Angeles. Such a mechanism has been used in contemporary to enhance flashbacks or predict the future. However, Rusnak uses various thought-provoking questions and unexpected twists that engage the audience. Even though the storyline malfunctions at some points and becomes comical, it is understood after the characters gain consciousness. In such consideration, The Thirteenth Floor demonstrates a more powerful and memorable cast through the virtual simulation of individual moments and ideas.
Reference
Rusnak, J. (Director). (1999). The thirteenth floor [Film]. Sony.