ENEMY OF THE STATE

ENEMY OF THE STATE. Tony Scott. dir. USA: Scott Free Productions, Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Touchstone Pictures (prod.) / Buena Vista Pictures (dist.), 1998. Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight. Lisa Bonet, Regina King, featured players.

In our time, "A lawyer becomes a target by a corrupt politician and his NSA [National Security Agency] goons when he accidently receives key evidence to a serious politically motivated crime" (IMdB Plot Outline). Significant here for continuing motif of surveillance from F. F. Coppola's 1974 film, The Conversation, except the technology is two decades more advanced and the film-making more action/adventure. See also for image of the NSA operatives as young computer geeks, contrasting with Harry Caul (age 44) et al. in The Conversation, and, arguably the esthetic proportion Conversation/Enemy of the State/ = moderate modern/moderate po-mo. (RDE, 05/12/98)