The Net

The Net provides a whole lot more fun, thanks to the sprightly Brooke Langton, cast in Bullock's role as Angela Bennett, a free-lance computer fixer who one day receives a mystifying bit of electronic mail. [17 July 1998, p.E-12]

It's superior to the movie. Both were produced by veteran Irwin Winkler. Brooke Langton, inheriting the role played in the film by Sandra Bullock, is more attractive and is able to project what Bullock lacks: warmth and vulnerability. [18 July 1998, p.E01]

It ain't bad by basic cable standards. That is to say, Langton is a poised female lead, sufficiently alluring to make you forget the fact that what's going on is all pretty implausible. [13 July 1998, p.34]

Ms. Langton seems to be a good enough actress, but she doesn't have the lovable vulnerability that Ms. Bullock, at her post-"Speed" peak, brought to the movie role. And Ms. Langton doesn't exude the sexy spookiness of David Duchovny as Fox Mulder, the character who is clearly Angela's male counterpart. The show itself is inoffensive, if a little obvious, and could go either way.

While the series _ based on the 1995 Sandra Bullock film _ is more breathless than brainy, there's enough going on to make you want to stay tuned. [17 July 1998]

I like the idea of The Net as a series, with Angela living week to week in a Fugitive-type existence, trying to reclaim her identity and bring down the bad guys. If future scripts are clever enough, and viewers persevere past the first episode, this show could be a winner. [18 July 1998, p.7]

What is not so wonderful is the program itself, which takes the ill-received 1995 movie starring Sandra Bullock as its starting point but doesn't seem to venture much further than that entertainment's idea: Put a gal with a fetching smile, a Gap wardrobe and a hacker's aptitude on the run for her life. [17 July 1998, p.3]