Some 12 years after its initial release, I finally got around to watching this from start to finish. I have to say it is quite impressive. A rich, sometimes oppressive sensory experience, not unlike Moulin Rouge, but also hard-edged and violent and contemporary in so many ways. While it is not the world we passed by, or currently live in, it expresses the many fears of what we are becoming, which in America means polarized along any number of lines, whether racial, ethnic, economic, political or cultural. Then again, I don't believe in the good old days. While the characters in this film are colorful and exaggerated, I found myself sucked in and fiercely attached to their situations and outcome. I saw new sides to Ralph Fiennes, usually associated with stoic evil or intensity, but in this he is humanized, flawed, often at cross purposes with himself. Very compelling. Angela Bassett as well, a simmering moral core, exhibiting fierce toughness but also a certain vulnerability that makes her even more attractive than usual. I also enjoy the multiple references and derivatives of Blade Runner that run amok in this film. While I would never accuse 'Strange Days' of being perfect or entirely believable, it is an interesting voyage, a nightmarish vision and overall gripping experience.