In the near future, human beings need no longer leave their homes: mechanical surrogates, similar in appearance (but younger looking, fitter, with fewer wrinkles and more hair) can move about in the world on the user's behalf, following commands and absorbing physical wear and tear. A cop (Bruce Willis) begins investigating a mystifying case of a user who died when his surrogate got blasted by a fancy ray-gun in the street--that's a definite violation of the company guarantee.

In the course of a trim, sub-90-minute running time, the Willis character himself is forced to enter the mean streets in his own flesh-and-blood version, not his surrogate, a move that puzzles both his wife (Rosamund Pike) and partner (Radha Mitchell).

In the movie's scheme of perfect surrogates and digitally-smoothed faces, the grizzled humanity of Bruce Willis comes blazing through; what a relief to see a battered human in the midst of the beautiful people.

Director Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3) gets the world right, but one waits in vain for a fuller picture of the effects of this surrogate population, or a deeper study of the creator (James Cromwell) of the technology, or a reason to get involved in the rebel leader (Ving Rhames in a fright wig) and his reservation populated by defiant non-surrogates. Sprinting along as it does, Surrogates doesn't find time for these presumably crucial details, and the result feels just a little skin-deep. --Robert Horton

The movie stars Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt, both in divergent roles than what they usually play, and both putting on stellar performances. Willis has been sent from the future to figure out a cause and a solution to the worldwide epidemic that hits the Earth and forces humanity to live underground. Pitt is the son of a powerful and wealthy man, and also happens to be more than a bit insane. The two characters meet in the psych ward, setting off a sequence of events that will cause everything to come full circle.

What's so great about the 12 Monkeys Special Edition DVD is that you get the great, epic film with all of the special features. It will keep you busy for quite some time, and you better believe that seeing the movie just once isn't going to cut it. There's far too much going on, far too many angles at play. So pick up your copy of the special edition 12 Monkeys DVD and get to work unraveling the truth behind the mayhem and madness.