"First off, GATTACA...you already ran Joe's review of it, but I felt there were some other things worth mentioning about it. For starters, it's memorable for probably having less special effects than almost any science fiction movie I can think of. All of the technology (computers, etc.) is 1997 hardware; we never really see the spaceships that figure in the plot. Everyone drives electric cars, which look like bulky 1940s sedans. Set design was done by the woman who designed Sally Potter's ORLANDO, if you can remember that movie you can imagine how lush it looks.
The script was written by the director, Andrew Niccol, and it's really well thought-through and researched, as Joe said. I didn't think it was anywhere near as slow as he did, though...maybe he was thrown off 'cause he was expecting a typical FX-heavy science fiction film. Character development takes precedence over plot, which also might have fucked with Joe's expectations.
The murder mystery aspect isn't that much of a mystery (to the audience, anyway) which may annoy some people--but that's sort of the point: Ethan is the prime suspect because of the kneejerk prejudice against normal, non-genetically-tampered superfolks. No other reason (this is not a spoiler, really-the murder happens at the very beginning of the movie). Ethan Hawke is very good, but Uma is only lukewarm. Brit Guy Jude Law is really incredible, though, playing a tortured, bitter guy whose character shows us that being a perfect person ain't all it's cracked up to be. If the movie is successful, I could easily see him getting a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nom. Loren Dean is very good as a character real similar to the one he plays in THE END OF VIOLENCE.
I didn't think the ending was as hokey as Joe did, because it plays into the theme of the potential of regular humans vs. those who have been built to be the best. It didn't seem anywhere near as cheezy as he said it was.
The movie is a little slow and it may disappoint people who think that science fiction equals wall-to-wall effects and explosions, but there's a lot of imagination on the screen. It's pretty easy to get drawn into, and it's certainly one of the best-looking movies I've seen this year.
