Johnny Mnemonic (film)

Johnny Mnemonic
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Robert Longo
Screenplay by	William Gibson
Based on	Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson
Produced by	Don Carmody
Starring	Keanu Reeves Dolph Lundgren Takeshi Kitano Ice-T Dina Meyer
Cinematography	François Protat
Edited by	Ronald Sanders[1]
Music by	Brad Fiedel Mychael Danna (Japanese release)
Production company	Johnny Mnemonic Productions[2]
Distributed by	Alliance Communications[3] (Canada) TriStar Pictures[2] (US)
Release dates	April 15, 1995 (1995-04-15) (Japan) May 26, 1995 (1995-05-26) (United States)
Running time	96 minutes[4]
Countries	Canada[2] United States[2]
Language	English[2]
Budget	$26 million[5]
Box office	$19 million (US)[5]

Johnny Mnemonic is a 1995 cyberpunk action film^[6] directed by Robert Longo in his feature directorial debut. William Gibson, who wrote the 1981 short story, wrote the screenplay. The film, set in 2021, portrays a dystopian future racked by a tech-induced plague, awash with conspiracies, and dominated by megacorporations and organized crime. Keanu Reeves plays Johnny, a data courier with an overloaded brain implant designed to securely store confidential information. Takeshi Kitano portrays a yakuza affiliated with a megacorporation attempting to suppress the data; he hires a psychopathic assassin played by Dolph Lundgren to do so. Ice-T and Dina Meyer co-star as Johnny's allies, a freedom fighter and a bodyguard, respectively.

It was shot in Canada; Toronto and Montreal filled in for Newark and Beijing. The project was difficult for Gibson and Longo. After they struggled for years to finance a low-budget adaptation of Gibson's story, Sony greenlit Johnny Mnemonic with a $26 million budget. When Reeves' previous film, Speed, unexpectedly became a major hit, Sony attempted to retool Johnny Mnemonic as a blockbuster. Longo experienced extensive creative differences with the studio, who forced casting choices and script rewrites on him. The film was ultimately recut without Longo's involvement, resulting in a version that he felt did not reflect his artistic vision. Described by Longo and Gibson as originally full of irony, it was edited into a mainstream action film and received negative reviews from critics.

A longer version (103 mins) of the film premiered in Japan on April 15, 1995, featuring a score by Mychael Danna and more scenes involving Kitano. The film was released in the United States on May 26, 1995. In 2022, a black-and-white edition of the film, titled Johnny Mnemonic: In Black and White was released, which Gibson characterized as closer to his original vision.^[7]