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Gibson, the patron saint of Cyberpunk.

When this movie was released, I heard several people question the quality of the picutre. Everything from Reeve's bad acting to the cheesey characters (i.e. Spider) were blamed and accused. One thing was never brought up, though: did Johnny Mnemonic live up to William Gibson's vision of a truly "Cyberpunk" world? The answer is a resounding YES.

The dark, urban, technological imagery throughout the movie is outstanding, only rivaled by Blade Runner. Gritty, dark, humanity co-existing with their machines, to the point where it's getting hard to tell them apart, that's what cyberpunk is about, and that's what Johnny Mnemonic portrays. From the corporations to the street vendors, from punk/anarchist gangs to the Yakuza, all elements of this dark future are touched upon, giving life to Gibson's works.

While the film strays drastically from the actual short story, which is in the Burning Chrome anthology, the theme and vision are still their, which is exactly how it should have been.

Now I can't wait for a movie to be made from Neuromancer.

Great precursor to MATRIX film - and Keanu looks great!

This DVD was recorded with 2 formats - the STANDARD and the Widescreen. The Widescreen was so cut off at the top and bottom it really lost a lot of the movie when you compare it to the other side which was burnt in the STANDARD format. The movie content itself was - well - I guess I did not buy the movie for its plot - I bought it because it's Sci-Fi, it has a great Techno soundtrack and it has Keanu Reeves who looks great. Unfortunately, it has a lot of gore - so I feel that I missed a lot of the plot because I skipped over all the gore - and there is a lot of gore. Perhaps the film would have reached a much larger audience and have been more successful if it had cut out a lot of the useless slash and burn stuff. Why does a Sci-fi movie have to have gross gore? MaATRIX did not, and although it had a lot of guns, MATRIX did well, I think because it wasn't gory. Otherwise, Keanu looks really buff and cute and that's why I got it. Frankly, the plot for me was incidental, but I loved the visuals a lot - especially when he was wearing these virtual gloves hacking through the internet and was in the wiring for the circuitry. That was really nice!

Average Reeves Flick, That's Very Uneven And Rather Dull At Times, With Decent Enough Effects But Bland Performances

This is an average Reeves flick, that's very uneven and rather dull at times, with decent enough effects but bland performances. All the characters are simply so so, and the story is very uneven, plus while i am a very big fan of Keanu Reeves, he looks really bored here and sleepwalks through the whole thing. Dina Meyer is probably the best character here, and while i am also a very big fan Of Lundgren he was way way too OTT here for my liking, plus The action is also rather bland. There are some moments, that were fun to watch, and the story was really quite intriguing and had a lot of potential, however, it just does not work. At times it seems like a dated poor man's version of The Matrix, and i really could care less about what happened to the characters here, plus Ice-T looks extremely bored here, and was laughable in his role. The ending was kind of cool, and the set pieces were quite cool as well, plus it takes way too long to get going and even when it does, it's still inconsistent. This is an average Reeves flick, that's very uneven and rather dull at times, with decent enough effects, but bland performances, i suppose it's worth the watch, but you could do a LOT better in my opinion. The Direction is so so. Robert Longodoes a so so job here, with good camera work, great angles, lots of stylish shots, however the pace is extremely inconsistent. The Acting is quite bland. Keanu Reeves is not his usual amazing self here, because he looked very bored, and basically sleepwalked through the whole thing, his chemistry with Meyer was OK though, it's just there was no life in his character, he still did OK though(Reeves Rules!!!!!!). Dina Meyer is very hot, and did excellent with what she had to do, she was my favorite character here, and had OK chemistry with reeves i really liked her. Ice-T is terrible here, he was extremely bland, and looked very bored and i don't blame him. Dolph Lundgren is also not his usual amazing self, he was way too OTT, and was simply laughable, and a result i found his character to be bland as well, he also had some terrible lines. (Dolph Rules!!!!!!). Udo Kier is OK here, but just looked like he was here to pick up a paycheck. Rest of the cast are mediocre. Overall worth a watch i suppose but you could do a LOT better. ** out of 5

I have rarely seen a movie that missed the mark so far.

What happened with this movie? What a great premise it had. How did it miss the mark so far? My sister and I see any movie Keanu Reeves makes without much regard for the content or whatcharacter he plays. We have decided the problem was the budget. All the cast and crew members must have put in their $1.50, andthat was all the money available. I just don't get it. Here was agreat mystery and scifi combination that could have beenincredibly engrossing, it could have sucked you in and kept you onthe edge of your seat during the entire running time. Instead, Ispent the whole time wondering what it was they had in mind. Istayed for the entire length of the movie hoping it would becomewhat it promised to be. Finally, in the last 5 minutes, it lived up toit's potential. Too little, too late. I want the time and money Iwasted back!!

Special effects "in the brain" are highlights of this movie.

Johnny (Keanu Reeves) is a special agent "mnemonic courier" in 2021, wet-wired brain implants allow them to upload and smuggle large bases of data for a fee. The affliction in the world is now NAS, or nerve attenuation syndrone. Johnny needs one more big job to afford a full restoration of his brain, with removal of the silicon implants. SPOILER -- The big job is a 320 gigabite upload of evil PharmaKom's cure for NAS. They conceal the cure because it is more profitable to treat those afflicted. Problem for Johnny is, his implant, even with his "doubling" upgrade in the elevator in Bejing, can safely handle only 160 gigs. But, he needs the money, takes the chance.Over in newark he teams up with Jane (pretty Dina Meyer), who is a bouncer but suffers from NAS. There are lots of bad guys trying to get Johnny's head (literally) for the implant, and some good guy hackers, part of the LoTeks, who are trying to help with a download even though they don't have access to the complete security code. Help comes from an intelligent "fish" in a tank, looks like a stylized porpoise. Meanwhile Johnny and Jane fall in love.In the end they are successful, the download is broadcast for all to benefit, presumably Jane gets cured, she and Johnny live happily ever after.Not a particularly good movie, but I give it "6" partly because of the great special effects simulating the uploads and downloads inside the brain.
Truly innovative. Dolph Lundgren plays a particularly bad guy ("come to Jesus" with a knife in his hand). Ice-T plays a good guy. The future world, only 20 years away now, looks dark and dirty, a mix of devastation and high-tech weapons. Too much of a "one-trick" movie, avoid the bad guys and save the world.

too stupid for anybody

Reeves is carrying something in his head that he needs to deliver and there is some stupid plot about dolphins. Ice- T and Dolph Lundgren are along for this hellride and that is saying a lot. This is a grade c sci-fi hybrid that tries to go for the techno angle but winds up acoustic. Johnny Mnemonic is a terrible movie that offers no thrills or anything new that you haven't seen. *

*bluuuurch*

The only movie I have almost walked out on. And I paid to see Wild Orchid II. What stopped me? Well a guy getting filleted in half with a laser rope. What made me realize that even THAT shouldn't have kept me in the theatre? Mankind's savior is not Ted Theodore Logan, esq. Nope. It is a dolphin. A rubber dolphin. In a fish tank. With a hat on. I wish I could have vomited on command! C'mon people!

this awful movie violated me!

this movie is pure junk. this is a awful, awful, terrible movie. most hollywood sci-fi crud doesn't bother me anymore, i just don't watch it. but the short story Johnny Mnemonic along with the rest of burning chrome is one of my favorite books. so i had to eventually see it. the special effects and costumes are miserable. ice-t as "J-BONE"(?!why not just call him ice-t) is himself (what else does he do) as the leader of the loteks. who in this movie are now the same new-wave/hip-hop/punk-rock kids that he worked with in the movie "breakin". the sets look like all the other awful movies that are sopposed to look cyber punk (strange days, etc.) the only interesting part in the movie is street preacher played by dolph lundgren. i didn't even recognize him until i read somewhere that he was in this movie and i watched it again. watched it again? yes i did, on cable. the batteries in my remote where dead. i tried to convince myself that mabey if i lowered my expectations a little and just tried to enjoy the flick, it couldn't be that bad. it was.

What's the problem?

It has to be said that when they open the annals of the worlds most underrated movies this will be at the top of the list. Keanu is well cast as JMn - some would say bereft of personality but I think that's missing the point, he's cool and professional, just as he should be. Ice-T plays the beleagured yet passionate freedom fighter with gusto and Dolph Lundengrundenhousen...en...whatever...is excellent as a twisted cyborg with a religious fixation. Everyone else is more than adequate in their roles. The plot is more subtle than the instant, intense visuals let on (and this is where a lot of people seem to trip up as they do not see past the cheese) and the movie stands up well to multiple viewings which is what you want from a video. All in all, a great package for any sci-fi fan and a must for Gibsonette's. Buy.

Johnny Mnemonic is a great Movie from a great short story!

The movie has a different argument than the short story, but it's great too!

It's cyberpunk classic.

Long life and prosper to William Gibson.

Decent film, now a bit out of date, but still a great movie from the mid-90's fearing the new century

A number of good movies came out in the early to mid 90's that showed fear about the technical advances being made at that time and what today might be like. Movies like strange days, Free jack, and even the Crow to a certain extent. Johnny Mnemonic was one of Keanu Reeves first big leading roles, and in a way a preview of another one if his future role, neo in the matrix. Keanu plays Johnny, A courier/smuggler of information jacked directly into his brain to avoid detection by athouraties. Well, he ends up taking on one last trip and gets more than he bagined for. Overloaded with data now threatening to seep into and damage the rest of his mind, He sets off to find his buyer in the streets of future Neward New Jersey. He will die if the information is not taken out of him quickly, and what he finds out soon the world littereally is resting between his shoulders. Unfortunately, his information is valuable, and the original owners have hired a gang to get it back...intacted. They want his head. Check it out, kinda cheesy, but a great movie from that genere, worth buying.

ALMOST AS BAD AS "EVEN COWGIRLS GET THE BLUES!"

Keanu looked great. The opening scene with him in black silk boxers in a king-sized bed with black satin sheets was worth the rental price for me. But good looking actors and above average special effects don't make a bad movie into a good movie; there has to be a plot! The plot is completely unbelievable and boring. Why would anyone want to put "life saving, priceless information of any kind" into someone's brain to deliver it top secret? Kill the guy and that solves the problem! It would be easier and more effective to just save it on a disk and ship it UPS!

I give it one star for Keanu's and Dina Myer's performances (she is also great in Dragonheart with Dennis Quaid by the way!) and the other star is for the special effects.

A movie has to have an acceptable premise or it will flounder. Unfortunately, this movie did just that.

A innovative classic .... A must see (just so you know what you are talking about)

You are all silly ... all of you!!! This is a great movie, a classic, just like BladeRunner.I don't understand how can anybody miss that!!! I watch this movie like 30 times each year. Easier now when computers easily hold a DVD movie.My favorite movies: Johny Mnemonic, The Right Stuff, Contact, Matrix I, Starwars II, Titanic, Alexander, Gladiator, Back Room Window, Memoirs Of A Geisha, Howard The Duck, The Hidden, Alien I, Predator, 2001 Space Odyssey, Saw IV, Gettysburg, X files series, Twin Peaks series ..... and so on But definitely this movie, might not be the greatest, but just as revolutionary as BladeRunner. And just as Bladerunner no later movie has built on the BladeRunner, Johny Mnemonic or Total Recall, or Operation Outland and so on, simply because their stories didn't allow any sequel. But still, they could have been built upon but it has not happened.I don't plan to go through all reviews, but to not give this movie more than a seven .... it just proves how lost some people are and that they don't get that jolt, kick, or whatever that tells them this movie is special. In fact the movie is very special, innovative, and just glimmers there all alone by itself on the movie star sky .....Also, some people don't like Reeves acting. Well, I think it worked well even if he was into this movie or not. Johny had to remove "a chunk of long term memory" ... "a chunk of what?" .... "my childhood" ... "your childhood?!?" ... "what a weird ass thing to do!"... "I needed the space for the job".... Simply, Johnny is depressed. Removing such a big part of your identity, the foundation of your identity should make your soul hollow, should cause psychological problems. And the mess he ends up in this movie he is simply very frustrated. He is also a very intelligent very focused computer hacker and that is probably why he don't break down completely and sit down crying. The frustration and the anger is whats left that drives him. In any way he is easily irritated.He probably is paid extremely well, but because of the psychological problems, and even social problems (since he don't remember his family,childhood, friends, just a big hole there), make him addicted to drugs which is often the case. And drugs can be of any type, alcohol, narcotics, shopping, distract you with computer games, gambling, hookers, clothes. So he earn a lot but probably burns the money just as fast.So I am sorry for those who didn't get a character to identify with, or someone who is pretty and glowing and vibrant. Instead you got this angry introvert shallow self absorbed depressed character on screen. Reeves acting, intensional or not, and the story, worked well together.It may be low budget, I don't know, but it sure is special. I am a Johny Mnemonic Junkie .... if that has escaped anybody .....Also I don't rate movies after their budget or visual effects, I always look between the lines and fill in the gaps myself ... and that is why books are the best and why you usually get irritated when you watch movies made from books. If the book was great the movie can only fail. But by working on the story and make changes you can make bad books great as movies. movies are for people who are lazy and I am lazy.

Not Johnny Moronic

It's a given thing that people are automatically gonna hate a movie if it has Keanu Reeves in it. Yet he's still one of the most bankable A-List stars. According to some, he's done a lot of turkeys and this is one of them.

OK, I'll be the first admit it's not one of his best, and that's coming from a major Keanu Reeves fan. (Check out his worst: The Last Time I Committed Suicide) But it's got the gorgeous, still beefed-up-from-Speed, Keanu in it. How can you possibly go wrong?

Very. Sometimes I think a short stories shouldn't be made into movies, as there's a serious amount of padding in the movie, with stuff that really doesn't relate to the rest of the movie. Some of J-Bone's crew for example, have a couple of minutes of screen time talking, when they really do nothing!

But if anyone notices, both Keanu's (Johnny) and Dina Meyer's (Jane) characters are never given last names. So what do they become? John & Jane. At least in the USA, a John or Jane Doe is used where no first and/or last name is not known in a hospitalized patient or corpse brought to the coroners office. Am I the only one that picked up on this?

To me, Johnny came out with some very funny lines in this! My favourite line of all has to be when he & Jane are in the landfill, just after a burning car is nearly dropped on them! He comes out with an extremely quotable line: "Listen. You listen to me. You see that city over there? THAT'S where I'm supposed to be. Not down here with the dogs, and the garbage, and the f**king last month's newspapers blowing *back* and *forth*. I've had it with them, I've had it with you, I've had it with ALL THIS -- *I want ROOM SERVICE*! I want the club sandwich, I want the cold Mexican beer, I want a $10,000-a-night hooker! I want my shirts laundered... like they do... at the Imperial Hotel... in Tokyo." That scene always makes me laugh, he's practically dancing on top of the rubbish.

Dolph Lundgren plays a scarily OTT street preacher, which results in a very horrible death. This scene used to scare me, but funnily enough, I'm used to it now. Imagine if we still had scratch and sniff TV though?! Eurgh!

The book goes into more detail about Johnny and his life, so if you want to watch the movie, hate it, read the book. Maybe you'll like it/understand it more. I have a copy if anyone wants a loan!

The WORST movie I have EVER seen! A Stupid, Pointless Bore That Put Me to SLEEP!!

I saw this AWFUL excuse for a movie in the theater in the Spring of 1995, and to this day I consider it one of the WORST movies I have ever seen (to date) and an ABSOLUTE waste of the cost of the ticket.

I don't even remember now (it being over a decade later) why I even went to see it.

But I do remember how stupid and boring it was and how I kept dozing off throughout this sorry excuse for a film.


Looking at some of the other reviews I can see that there are others who consider Johnny Mnemonic one of Keanu Reeves's biggest flops.


I like Keanu Reeves, but he should br embarrassed for being part of such a waste of people's money and time!

If I could give this movie NO STARS, or NEGATIVE STARS, I would. But I can't on this site, so I'm giving it 1 star, though it deserves much less!

1 STAR!!!!!!!

The Future Looks Disappointing...

The fact that Keanu Reeves' success in the "Matrix" trilogy has eclipsed all past missteps in his career surely makes bearing the burden of having starred in "Johnny Mnemonic" easier for him...but even now, there's no denying that it's one really silly movie.

This failed "cyberpunk" thriller tells the tale of a "mnemonic carrier" - a man with the ability to hold encrypted digital data inside of his head (Reeves) - being hunted down for carrying a particularly touchy bit of information inside of his mind; running from an evil corporation, the Yakuza, and a delusional and deadly preacher (Dolph Lundgren, "Universal Soldier") in a drug-laced dystopian future, he hooks up with a beautiful bodyguard Jane (Dina Meyer, "The Movie Hero") and the two of them begin a race against time to extract the information from his head.

My most immediate beef with the film is that Keanu Reeves cannot act in it to save his life. Dynamics and an archetypal character helped him cover this up in films like "Speed" and "The Matrix", but from jokish contemplative scenes to a guffaw-inducing rant, "Mnemonic" is not at all Reeves' best vehicle. Then again, he can't touch Henry "Spider" Rollins, who almost steals the picture with his atrocious performance. Even fans of Dolph Lundgren will find their hero in less than top-form (after getting over the comedy of seeing him in an overgrown beard and haircut and wearing a robe).
I hate to say it, but Ice-T is the best actor in this whole film.

With a brainiac story and no acting to speak of to fall back on, the movie even fails when it comes to compelling action: what's there is poorly thought-out and choreographed, with no kung fu and only the blandest of gunfights to occupy yourself with. In addition, there's some questionable logic to try and sort out - like, why did Jane save Johnny in the first place? Why did the Yakuza kill Ralphie? Why are the Lowteks armed only with crossbows when they have all sorts of other technology at their disposal? Why is Dolph, featured minimally, listed as a starring role? I don't know - all logic disappears when it's found out that dolphins wearing techno-gear are used to decipher codes in the future.

Eventually, "Johnny Mnemonic" is a lopsided mess: I can't decide whether the filmmakers were trying to be too carefree or too serious with the script, but combined with imperfect actors and some poorly-executed scenarios, there are few upsides to this movie.
It's no surprise to me that director Robert Longo has yet to make another feature...

A truly AMAZINGLY BAD film, props to everyone involved.

Keanu Reeves acting performance in this film was one of the worst ever in Hollywood HISTORY.This mindblowingly, disastrous film combines horrendous acting, horrible directing, horrible dialogue, horrible EVERYTHING. Johnny Mnemonic is worse than a B-movie. I remember wanting to see this in the theaters when I was a kid, I probably would have liked it back then. Having seen this recently, how was this even released in the theaters?I'm a fan of cheesy movie (and the early 90's was filled with cheese) so I was able to sit through this...I did enjoy it somewhat thanks to it being unintentionally funny. Let's not kid ourselves though--Johnny Mnemonic is one of THE worst movies of the 90's. Batman and Robin has company.btw, Ice-T is truly a no-talent a$$clown.

Entertaining, despite what others say

I remember seeing this movie back in '95 when it first came out in theatres. Hell, I got sneak preview tix and saw it for free.I've enjoyed this movie from day one. I've read the original short story too, (I like Gibson) and while this film is very different, it still sticks to the basic spirit of Gibson's works. It also helps that he wrote the script, so...however, if you have *no* familiarity at all with cyberpunk, don't see this film. You'll miss the point.I remember an old instructor of mine saying about "Beyond Rangoon"..."It's a fabulous film, but just when the lead character's not onscreen." This holds true for JM as well. All the other actors are doing their job, and doing it well. Keanu Reeves knocks this film down about half a dozen notches. Other than the classic speech in the junkyard, any two-bit actor from community theatre could have played this part with equal skill. I think the Matrix is the only film where he did a half-decent job of attempting to act. He's good looking though, so just as long as he doesn't talk, I let him slide. But I love Dolph Lundgren as the psycho preacher, if only because my friends and I used to run around and scream "Halt, sinners!!" (and other various quotes) at the street preachers on campus.The special effects are eye candy. The computer graphics are a little stale 6 years later, but everything else is pretty much seamless. Even the plates on the cars read "Free City of Newark." Nice touch. Actually, the way it was filmed and the way that it looked reminded me very much of a live-action anime, just without the bad dubbing.If you want something that's entertaining, and just entertaining, rent this. If you want sci-fi with a deep hidden message, try Bladerunner, The Day the Earth Stood Still, old Twilight Zones, etc etc. If you want to see a really *bad* movie, try Omega Code, Defcon 5, Brainscan, or anything of that ilk. This movie is worth the 99 cents for 5 nights.Cheers

An uninspired movie that gives us a very dark view on our near future.

I guess the best way to describe this movie is to call it a mix between Sci-Fi, a comic book and an action movie. Apparently this is also called a cyberpunk movie. I have to admit that I didn't really know that genre yet, but if this is what all the movies in this genre look like, than I'm not a fan of it.It's 2021 and everybody is connected by the Internet. But almost half of the world's population is suffering from the Nerve Attenuation Syndrome (NAS). Johnny Mnemonic is a data courier. To become a data courier, he had to give up some of his long term memory that contained all his childhood memories so a memory chip could be implanted into his brain. He now can store a large amount of data right into his brain, but when the maximum capacity is exceeded, he can't keep it in his head too long, or he will die.He has been ordered to carry 320 gigabytes of crucial information from Beijing to Newark. The information has been stolen from the Pharmacom company and is the cure for NAS. Of course the corporation wants to stop him and with the help of the yakuza they try to capture him alive, because they don't want to loose the information. But then he gets help from the Low-tech group led by J-Bone. This group helps him, because they want to spread the information about the cure for free, but first they will have to try to break the missing code to download the information.Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Sci-Fi, that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it. But than it needs more than only a good story. Good acting is an absolute must as well and that's where it goes wrong. While Dolf Lundgren is very interesting and sure must have had a lot of fun as the lunatic preacher, all the other actors aren't all that great. Keanu Reeves really doesn't give away a good performance and the other actors' performances aren't really mind blowing either.In the end this is a very uninspired and disappointing movie with a very dark view on our near future. I hope it won't be the way they show it, because then I guess it would be better for us to end it all right now. I give this movie a 4/10.

One problem with this movie...

It's not Keanu Reeves' acting, but rather that the screenplay was written by the author of the short story. And it just doesn't seem to be up to the quality of most of his work. It is disappointing because it could have been much better.