Mercury Rising (1998)

Very disappointing...

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Art Jeffries is an undercover FBI agent who has crossed his superiors and been given jobs that might be considered beneath somebody of his experience. Simon Lynch is a nine-year old autistic boy with a talent for puzzles; one day Simon solves a puzzle and calls the number encoded within it. The puzzle is a test of an 'unbreakable' code, known as 'Mercury', crucial to the protection of key US assets and those behind it will go to any measure to hide the fact that it can be cracked... including murder. Simon's parents are killed and he is reported missing; Agent Jeffries is called in and finds Simon hiding. The murder is made to look like murder-suicide but he is unconvinced; soon it becomes apparent that Simon is still in danger although at this point Jeffries has no idea why. If he is to protect Simon he will have to uncover why is being hunted and by whom.While this isn't Bruce Willis's best action thriller it is still pretty solid. There are plenty of exciting action set pieces and a decent central story. It does require some suspension of disbelief... not only the idea that Simon could crack a modern code just by looking at it but also that somebody would commit murder to 'protect America' when Simon's actions don't pose a threat; they merely show the code wasn't as good as everybody thought. This isn't too much of a problem though as the story moves at a good pace and it is only when it is over one thinks of such matters. Films of this type often have an unnecessary romance and I thought this might too but that cliché was nicely avoided. Bruce Willis does a fine job as agent Art Jeffries and Alec Baldwin is suitably villainous as bad-guy Nick Kudrow. The stand out performance comes from young Miko Hughes who gives a great performance as Simon. Overall I wouldn't call this a must see but it is still well worth watching if you are a fan of the genre.

How professionals in the industry could concoct such an unconvincing film is completely beyond me! Nothing in this film makes sense. A billion-dollar code hidden in a Puzzle magazine for kids - come on!! The things the characters do in the film is so pathetically dumb. There were just so many flaws and terrible coincidences that I would write a short story if I were to highlight them all, so enough said! This was simply awful!

Bruce Willis provides his usual excellent performance and Alec Baldwin pulls out all the stops in his role as the villain, but Miko Hughes is the one who gets MY Academy Award for his portrayal of the autistic boy, Simon Lynch.His portrayal is profoundly accurate in every detail from his lack of eye contact to his attention to the tiniest details of life (eg: refusal to step on cracks on the ground). The chemistry between Hughes and Willis is heartwarming, and is the foundation upon which the movie is built.I don't know too much about the movie's premise; indeed, I find the premise difficult to believe; however, as with sci-fi, I took this with a grain of salt and gave it the "it is what it is" attitude and went with it, refusing to allow it to put a wedge between the movie and my enjoyment of it.I give it a 9 because although the premise may be hard to believe, the acting, direction, and rest of the story line are excellent, which makes the whole thing work very well. I understand critics tended to give this a thumbs down, refusing to deal with "heartwarming" and "action" in the same movie. I say the marriage of heartwarming and action work well in this movie, and therefore refuse to be a killjoy in that respect.If you have a mo, watch this movie; it's more than worth your time.

This was Bruce Willis at his finest. Although Mercury Rising was financially not well received, the film is a terrific thriller, solid acting, great story and just all around entertaining! One reviewer said this was more of a drama about autism and that's ludicrous. This is a thriller about a young boy who happens to have autism but to call this a drama or about autism at all is misleading. The film is part mystery, part thriller, part action and will entertain from beginning to end. Powerful performances from the lead cast make it worthwhile and riveting.Bruce Willis plays Art Jeffries and does a great job doing what he does best. No this isn't an award worthy performance or anything outstanding for Willis but he still carries the film well and Willis fans, like myself, will remember this. The star and stand out performance of this film is Miko Hughes who brilliantly plays autistic puzzle solver Simon. His performance is award worthy and I've always remembered it as one of my favorite performances. His chemistry with Willis is brilliant. Robert Stanton deserves mention in a small but pivotal role that I really enjoyed him in. Same could be said for Chi McBride who also does a good job. Alec Baldwin is good in his role as the villain. I would have liked a little more chemistry between him and Willis and I don't think he was outstanding in his role but he was definitely good. Kim Dickens is the female lead in the film and she does alright although I found her character very one dimensional for the most part.Harold Becker's direction is perhaps a little bland from time to time. It is true what some reviewers say that the film could have used just a little more action and some of the performances felt dry at times from Baldwin and Dickens, who are important to the entire film in many ways. Still the concept for the film is riveting and the story is delivered in a well paced, entertaining fashion. Anyone looking for a good thriller will not be steered wrong with this film. Its a movie that I watch from time to time again and again because I've always thought it was a great movie. Plenty of thrills, plenty of edge of your seat moments and a terrific performance from Hughes. 8.5/10