A nice effort, but falls short of interesting
The Premise – From writer/director Lisa Joy (HBO’s
Westworld), Reminiscence is set in a future where climate change has caused the
oceans to rise, leaving the rich living on dry ground and the poor up to their
knees in water all the time. Nick Bannister (Hugh Jackman) is a private investigator
of memories, using machines that allow him to watch as his clients relive past
moments. One day, a woman named Mae (Rebecca Ferguson) comes into Nick’s office
wanting help to find her lost set of keys. Nick and Mae soon start a
relationship. But when Mae disappears, Nick cannot forget her. He starts
looking into what happened and finds that Mae was not who he thought she was.
The 100 Words – Joy creates a fascinating world, which I enjoyed
exploring, and the script has a nice 30-minute section near the end where all
the clues Nick has found along the way come together with some surprising
twists. But, the path to that ending is tedious and unsatisfying. The film’s
constant shift from memories to reality can be jarring and is a sci-fi gimmick
that has been explored in more interesting ways. We also needed to care more
about Nick and Mae’s relationship to take this journey. While Joy may have mostly
missed here, I’m eager to see where she goes next.
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