Have Your Say: CRIMES OF THE FUTURE, New David Cronenberg

Managing Editor; Dallas, Texas (@peteramartin)

Opening today in North American movie theaters, Crimes of the Future is a new film by David "Mr. Canada" Cronenberg. In celebration, we've been looking back at his distinguished career this week.

Shelagh Rowan-Legg reviewed the film last week, in connection with its worldwide debut at the Cannes Film Festival:

"There's a reason why Cronenberg is the first name in body horror - his, ahem, body of work, spanning several decades, has evolved from arguably the more exploitative (Shivers, The Brood), to the more Romantic and deeply rich psychological/body horror of the late 80s and 90s, he's been a (mostly) consistent force, with certain themes developed over his oeuvre. With his latest film, he returns somewhat to what I would call his middle period, which (for me) is the height of his talent. ...

"Crimes of the Future keeps within Cronenberg's web of ideas, while creating some new strands of thought. An update to his contemplation of the body and the horror in the 21st century, in a world where we are all on display, where our bodies (and our world) are increasingly artificial, and how this transformation, or mutilation, changes the nature of humans."

As you might expect if you've ever visited our site in the past, Cronenberg's newest film stirred visceral reactions from our writers and editors. Click through the gallery below to read just a few reactions from those who've seen the film at advanced screenings, and then enjoy three official videos published by Neon.

Visit the official site for more information.


Dustin Chang, Kurt Halfyard and Mel Valentin contributed to this story.

Dustin Chang
Lead Critic
Brooklyn, New York

Watching Crimes of the Future immediately reminded me of the famed painting by Rembrandt: "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp."

In it, spectators surround a recently deceased corpse and Dr. Tulp is explaining the denuded musculature of the corpse's left forearm. Yet, the spectators' attention is not with the corpse but elsewhere and they are not even noticing the inaccurate arm -- it's the right hand depicted instead of the left.

Rembrandt was commenting on the inadequacy of seeking knowledge and truth in the human body. And this is the point Cronenberg has been making all his career: our futile quests for answers in what makes us humans, in our bodies which are the most personal, tangible things that each of us possesses, and not finding it there. And pursuing so hard to find something in all the blood and guts, you lose sight of whatever the humanity that's left in us.

In a way, Cronenberg is going back to the basics, to the flesh, after more cerebral musings in searching for the soul (A Dangerous Method, Cosmopolis). Crimes of the Future is less kitschy and much less an over-the-top parody like A History of Violence or Maps to the Stars. And its general mood is closer to Spider and Dead Ringers.

Nonetheless, it's undeniably Cronenbergian, and great.

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