On_Line (2002)

38% of critics liked it
(39 reviews)
25% of users liked it
(12 ratings)

Set in Manhattan's cybersex industry, "On_Line" at first appears to be about people getting off without ever touching (if you've never done it you'll learn, from one explosively directed sequence, precisely how such a thing might happen). But the film, directed by Jed Weintrob - a digital junkie… More Set in Manhattan's cybersex industry, "On_Line" at first appears to be about people getting off without ever touching (if you've never done it you'll learn, from one explosively directed sequence, precisely how such a thing might happen). But the film, directed by Jed Weintrob - a digital junkie from the early days of interactive entertainment - has a lot more on its mind than just sex. John Roth (Josh Hamilton) runs a live erotic Website called Intercon-X. Though profitable, the site, which he owns with his roommate Moe (Harold Perrineau), keeps John at home in a state of perpetual frustration. We get the sense that John likes living this way: he works between shots of peppermint schnapps and webcam diary entries in which he pines for his ex-fiancée. Built around revealing and often funny streaming video sessions with net-izens like "man-on-man" host Al Fleming (John Fleck), Internet fantasy girl Jordan Nash (Vanessa Ferlito), self-destructive artist Moira Ingalls (Isabel Gillies) and Ohio innocent Ed Simone (Eric Millegan), "On_Line" uses a groundbreaking mix of new technology and romantic narrative to tell a classic New York story.

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 26 min.
Directed By: Jed Weintrob
Written By: Andrew Osborne, Jed Weintrob
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Jun 27, 2003 Wide
On DVD: Feb 24, 2004
Studio: Indican Pictures

Critic Reviews

Bill Muller, Arizona Republic
Amateurish drivel, which is headed for Skinemax in a hurry.
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
The youthful cast is lively enough to make the enterprise almost work, presenting a time capsule of cyber- communication that should be more interesting 20 years from now.
Janice Page, Boston Globe
Weintrob's stylish visuals mimic Web technologies, which succeed in making his characters seem all the more removed from reality. Now if someone would find a way to equip theater seats with a 'delete' key, we could be rid of them completely.
Desson Thomson, Washington Post
There's something so familiar and commonplace about this story and its characters -- and maybe that has something to do with how much the Internet is a part of our everyday lives -- it's hard to get particularly thrilled.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
It does a good job of portraying the day-to-day life of these online obsessives, but we realize eventually that they are more interesting because they are online.
Robert K. Elder, Chicago Tribune
If you like scenes of characters sticking hands down their pants, this is the film for you.
Andrew Wright, Portland Mercury
A [reasonably] compelling, refreshingly non-judgmental look at the newest phase of one-handed clapping.
Brian Mckay, eFilmCritic.com
Although far-fetched at times, On Line gives us likable enough characters and several laugh out loud moments. Director Jed Weintrob has a distinct visual flair.
Ryan Cracknell, Movie Views
With a fearlessness for being honest, the situations the characters find themselves in are embarrassing and laugh-out-loud funny.
Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Daily News
A 90-minute hairy-palm horror show, one that will strike terror into the heart of anyone who shares a keyboard with a lonely, Web-crazed roommate.
Brandon Judell, PopcornQ
A pleasant, small comedy that will have you smiling.
Doris Toumarkine, Film Journal International
Doomed by Weintrob's passion for the Web, his passionless characters are little more than manipulated 'bots' -- and audiences, absenting possible hipster appeal, may vote more zeroes than ones for this digital tale.
Laine Ewen, Premiere Magazine
At its heart, On_Line is just an old-fashioned movie about people, relationships and making connections in an isolated world. And in this sense, the movie is very successful.