Wild Palms (1993)

Set in a futuristic Los Angeles (filmed in 1993 but set in 2007), a patent attorney (James Belushi) finds himself seduced by a right wing media mogul (Robert Loggia) into working for him. The mogul has plans for creating a TV network that will bring virtual reality programming into U.S. homes but it won't end there. He has more sinister plans. With a near five hour running time (originally shown over several nights on ABC) and four different directors (Kathryn Bigelow, Keith Gordon, Phil Janou, Peter Hewitt), this science fiction mixture of paranoia and conspiracy theory (Oliver Stone is an executive producer) is amazingly compelling in spite of flaws in its narrative. The movie's surreal tone and Japanese influence can't help but recall Lynch's TWIN PEAKS and BLADE RUNNER. Its storyline is often confusing (you're sometimes not sure where you are) but it's engrossing enough for you remain riveted until the very end. Alas, it concludes with a whimper rather than a bang. But if the final destination is disappointing, the journey isn't. Its eerie parallels to the last four years didn't go unnoticed. The large cast are all very good including Angie Dickinson (pure evil), Kim Cattrall, David Warner, Robert Morse, Brad Dourif, Dana Delany, Bebe Neuwirth, Ernie Hudson, Bob Gunton, Nick Mancuso, Ben Savage and Kathryn Bigelow.