THE 6TH DAY

Tom Meek

Imagine the thespian prospect of having two Arnolds on the screen at once? "I'll be back." "No, I'll be back." In this near-future sci-fi thriller, Schwarzenegger plays a family man trying to regain his life after a clone has bumped him from his domestic roost. The how and why of Arnold's genetic jam has to do with his day job as an eXtreme hele-skiing pilot (his futuristic chopper is one hell of an air bounce), a rogue activist, and a case of mistaken DNA. Sitting atop the convoluted goo is an eccentric biotech entrepreneur (Tony Goldwyn) and his chief scientist (Robert Duvall giving the film's one emotionally deep performance), who despite "6th Day" laws that prohibit the cloning of humans (though lost pets have triggered a commercial "repetting" boom) regularly resurrect CEOs and star quarterbacks from the flesh scrapyard. The baddie in this case is not the clone but a relentless trio of corporate hit men (Michael Rooker, Rodney Rowland, and the sexy, sleek Sarah Wynter) out to reduce the Arnie count to one. In the hands of director Roger Spottiswoode (Tomorrow Never Dies and Under Fire), The 6th Day begins plausibly and looks handsome, but it quickly reduces to a series of pedantic crash-bang encounters. The real thrills come from the freaky talking Franken-dolls (called "simpals") and the literal play on the phrase "Go fuck yourself."