Paranoia - D

Rated PG-13, 115 minutes

Slick thriller "Paranoia" lacks any shred of originality

Harrison Ford and Liam Hemsworth

The new thriller "Paranoia" should be fired for its lack of any good ideas and being a near complete waste of time. It's unfortunate since its handsome lead, two veteran actors and some handsome photography are all wasted. Adam Cassidy (Liam Hemsworth) is a young worker, whose prank jeopardizes his low-level job at a technology corporation. His superiors give him the chance to save his job if he agrees to an undercover corporate espionage assignment at a rival company. Soon he finds himself trapped between a war of two tycoons (Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman), on the leadership of the high-tech world. Climbing the ladder never seemed so dull and lifeless in "Paranoia," directed by Robert Luketic ("Legally Blonde") and based on a novel of the same name by Joseph Finder. You've seen "Paranoia" before, 20 years ago when it was called "The Firm" with Tom Cruise, whom the bland but attractive Hemsworth is clearly channeling. There are loads of problems with the film but letting it rest on Hemsworth's shoulders is the chief problem; Ford and Oldman are seen sporadically but not near enough. The next big thing wrong with the film is the lackluster, predictable direction from Luketic and a dull, unoriginal script whose major plot points seem mostly borrowed not from Finder's novel but from John Grisham. "Paranoia's" initial chapters work OK and peppered with a handful of mildly entertaining moments, but it all but falls apart in the last act under some ridiculous twists and turns. As for the veteran actors, Ford seems disinterested and Oldman is simply miscast and annoying. The dull, predictable "Paranoia" is not worth your time or movie dollar this weekend. If you really want to see it, do yourself a favor and wait for it to come to Redbox rentals. You won't have to wait long.

Wes's Grade: D