Watch the trailer
Written by: Lisa Joy
Directed by: Lisa Joy
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson, Thandiwe Newton, Cliff Curtis, Daniel Wu
Rated: PG-13
Plot
Nick Bannister, a private investigator of the mind, navigates the alluring world of the past when his life is changed by new client Mae. A simple case becomes an obsession after she disappears and he fights to learn the truth about her.
Verdict
This is an amalgamation of a few different genres. It's hard boiled detective meets sci-fi and conspiracy genres. The plot feels forced with everything tying together just right, making the ultimate conspiracy too convenient. The villain is bad because he's rich, we don't know much past that. The idea of exploring the mind is used just to create reveals as to whether the character is in reality or a memory. With the world this builds in the beginning I expected to see an exploration in how the ability to relive memories could be harmful.
It depends.
Review
These idea of being able to explore memories has been explored in the Black Mirror episode The Entire History of You and The Final Cut (2004). The movie leaps between conscious and unconscious, feeling a bit like Inception as we wonder what level we're on. This creates a world where the sea level has risen and the wage disparity is even greater. Nick (Hugh Jackman) is an old school private investigator that wouldn't feel out of place in a film noir, but he's in the future and he investigates memories. This only builds the world with a few scenes, but it's effective. I was hoping it would do more with the world.
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| Hugh Jackman and Rebecca Ferguson play Nick and Mae. |
The voice-over is bit heavy handed but it's establishing this movie's roots. This is a hard boiled detective story set in the future. Nick and Watts (Thandiwe Newton) help people relive good memories or find their lost keys.
Nick is searching for Mae (Rebecca Ferguson), his girlfriend that disappeared without a trace. Mae is the dame of this detective movie. Nick relives the memories of Mae while searching for her in the present. The movie has a few reveals where we think we're in reality but it's actually a memory. There's a question of what's real. It's easy to get lost in what state we're seeing, but the movie doesn't play with that as much as I expected. Mae had a few secrets, and the way Nick gets leads feels too easy.
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| Thandiwe Newton, Hugh Jackman play Watts, Nick. |
This movie definitely has some style. There are great looking shots. The concept is fun, but the plot is too convenient. This doesn't think through how this technology would affect the world. Instead it's a plot device to push the pacing. Everything connects perfectly for the last act. Nearly everyone Nick has interacted with is integral to the plot that wraps up with a nice bow.
Nick's plight exists seemingly to reveal the crimes and conspiracies of the elite. It's a conspiracy so perfect it has to be a movie plot. The villain has no impact. They're bad, but we only know what the movie tells us about the villain. What does it matter in the end? Nick indirectly uncovered everything, though it wasn't his goal. His girlfriend was connected to the conspiracy as was Nick, unwittingly. This feels inspired by Chinatown (1974). Instead of feeling surprise at the end, the plot just feels like a vehicle for the idea.
The conclusion hints at the danger of being able to probe memories and how it can become an obsession. Overall the movie is more style over substance. I want it to do more. This is a detective story that's using technology to shift the genre, but the technology doesn't really do anything. It's just a crutch for the plot. There's a metaphor about Orpheus and Eurydice that ties into the ability to explore memories, but it feels like the movie is stretching as there are no consequences for the use of technology. In this case the tech helps commit the crime and solve it.
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