The Thirteenth Floor (M) PRESENTED IN 35MM FILM

The Thirteenth Floor (M, 1999) Presented in 35mm Film by The Revival House Perth

Computer scientist Hannon Fuller (Armin Mueller-Stahl) has developed a revolutionary virtual reality simulation of 1937 Los Angeles, so sophisticated that its inhabitants believe they're living genuine, conscious lives, unaware they exist within a computer program. When Fuller is murdered under mysterious circumstances shortly after leaving a cryptic message hinting at a shattering discovery, his protégé Douglas Hall (Craig Bierko) becomes the prime suspect and must enter the simulation himself to uncover the truth behind his mentor's death. As Douglas descends deeper into the layered simulation, uncovering evidence that challenges his own understanding of reality, he confronts a mind-bending revelation about the nature of existence itself, one that calls into question whether his own world might be far less real than he's ever imagined.

Director Josef Rusnak crafts an ambitious, philosophically minded science fiction thriller that explores questions of consciousness, simulated reality, and nested layers of existence, released amid a wave of similarly themed millennium-era films. Craig Bierko anchors the film's increasingly disorienting mystery with grounded conviction, while the production's meticulous recreation of both 1930s period detail and late-90s technological aesthetic creates a visually distinctive world straddling two eras. The film's noir-inflected mystery plot, combined with its genuine philosophical curiosity about simulated consciousness and the nature of reality, offers a thoughtful, if commercially overshadowed, entry into the era's fascination with virtual reality and existential science fiction. Though often overlooked in favour of contemporaneous films exploring similar themes, The Thirteenth Floor remains a genuinely intriguing curiosity for fans of philosophical science fiction.

Original format and audio experience of this film faithfully reproduced by The Revival House. Presented in 35mm film unless noted otherwise.

When: Sunday, November 1st at 7:00PM
Where: The Revival House at the Como Theatre
Rating: M (Medium level violence, Medium level coarse language)

Rusnak's philosophically ambitious sci-fi thriller questions the nature of reality itself—experience this overlooked millennium-era curiosity on 35mm film.