No, we are not talking about another Matrix-esque film where the world is really a virtual reality dream/nightmare...this is a film that takes a serious look at one of the many great "what if's" in history and shows how the world would have been. One of my favorite things about this film is that it shows the extremes of what people will do to either keep that history or change it. Its race against race; father against son; and friend against friend in a race for a nation's identity. Who will win, who will lose, and who will ultimately decide the fate of the world? Fantastic action sequences that seem almost too real. The bloodshed abounds in this film as we see repeated scenes of terrorists face off against police forces in shoot-outs that can only end with the annihilation of one group or the other. The battle scenes are realistic in that you don't see your standard "good guys never miss while bad guys can't hit the broad side of a barn" routine, these are truly horrific battles with a large casualty count from both sides.
The film, however, isn't all about action. The story itself stands on its own as you try to piece together the jigsaw of clues and dead-ends to find out what in the world is the truth. Even when you arrive at the climax of the whole story you are left on one cliff-hanger after another, wondering if this will be the final bullet to decide it all...and at the ending there is no cliff hanging, the writers have thrown you off the cliff and you wonder what awaits you at the bottom.
Despite this nail biting ending, the film had is draw backs: 1) a plot that progresses like a starting train, VERY slow at first before gaining tremendous steam at the end; 2)lots and lots of blood, not for the squeamish; 3)the ending had a loose end that was never explained; and 4)you will want more character background and insight from the two main characters.
A very good film that had plenty of room for improvement.
