Not every identity-theft case can appear in a witty Citibank commercial. Sometimes the result of a theft isn't a leather bustier, but something more dangerous.
The 1995 film "The Net" began toying with the "what-ifs" of glitches, viruses and electronic identity theft via computers, which are currently as extinct as the dinosaurs compared to how technologically savvy society currently is.
Angela Bennet (played by Sandra Bullock) is a computer programmer, paid to debug systems all out of the comfort of her own home. The closest thing to intimate relations and friendships she has are through an Internet chat room and occasional visits to her mother at the nursing home.
Angela finally chooses to brace the outdoors with a trip to Cozumel, Mexico in her first vacation in six years. On the eve of this trip she is asked to take a look at a program which has a peculiar glitch. It's one of those moments where predicting the future could be useful. The coworker she is supposed to be working with ends up crashing his plane during the night. However, Angela goes on with her vacation as planned. Once again, predicting the future could have been helpful.
In Mexico, she meets Jack Devlin (Jeremy Northam) and goes from having the most wonderful date possible to the one-night stand from hell. The program turns out to be the one weak spot in Devlin's employers' evil master plan. Now the only enemy — the number one target — is Angela. This group does more than just steal Angela's identity; they begin to erase her entire existence.
Angela's fingerprints, Social Security number and history say that she is Ruth Marx. Her home is completely cleared out and someone is posing as her. Angela is now on the run from the shadowy group and the cops.
Whoever she tries to get to help her ends up dead, such as her ex-lover and ex-psychiatrist Dr. Alan Champion (Dennis Miller) who dies from an allergic reaction to penicillin. The only person she can depend on is herself. Angela will pull out all the stops in order to take her life back and stop whoever is in her way.
The question most identity-theft victims would ask is, "why me?" Angela is no different. The answer in her case, however, is it was just by chance — and it makes for a good storyline.
While being put through hell, the character Angela is strong and always thinking. Without being quick on her feet or without possessing superior computer skills, she would have had to succumb to defeat, which would most likely mean death.
There is no other actress that could have portrayed Angela as well as Bullock. Although she is now known for movies like "Miss Congeniality," Bullock is neurotic enough, serious enough and paranoid enough to pull off the role.
After 10 years, "The Net" is still a worthwhile and interesting movie, although parts of it can be a bit cheesy and out-of-date.
This article was published in The Marquette Tribune on September 22, 2005.