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When it comes to time and nostalgia, “Reminiscence” is a moody, slow-moving mix of noir and science fiction that is overflowing with similarly indistinct wisdoms. “The past can haunt a man,” is the first superficially melancholy line that gets muttered in the film. It does, however, serve to set the tone for “Westworld” co-creator Lisa Joy’s narrative feature directorial debut, which she also wrote and directed. A futuristic film noir set somewhere along the Miami coast—now ravaged by climate change and partly submerged, with a modified version of life still surviving on its belt at night because the days are simply too hot—”Reminiscence” aspires to something existential within the framework of a well-known film noir template. The result is an unconvincing, vaguely pessimistic dystopia at best, one that liberally references recognizable Hitchcock films and neo-noirs while drowning their time-honored spirits in murky waters.
As a result, you’ll recognize references to films like “Chinatown,” “Blade Runner,” “Strange Days,” and even “Minority Report” sprinkled throughout Joy’s genre entry, which culminates in an eerily familiar atmosphere. And while that straightforward approachability isn’t necessarily a bad thing, “Reminiscence” manages to achieve little that’s new or homage-y with its eclectic mix. “Vertigo”-style visual cues are telegraphed to the audience for no narrative or aesthetic reason in Joy’s film, which features body doubles and a dizzying spiral staircase that serve no purpose other than to frustrate the viewer with their generic and second-hand feel.
Nick Bannister, played by Hugh Jackman, is the murmurer of the aforesaid line about the past’s haunting powers, which occurs in the film. He delivers it through a melancholy voiceover (one of the many grating overindulgences of “Reminiscence”), which serves to introduce the audience to his unusual profession in the film’s opening minutes. Nick works as a private investigator, which means he gets to delve into the depths of his clients’ memories—sometimes to find the answer to a simple question, but more often to allow them to relive some of their most treasured memories from the past. Thadiwe Newton plays Watts, an ex-military business partner who is more emotionally affecting than her one-note role can handle. In a world where the future offers no hope and the past is the only avenue that has jolts of optimism buried within it, he and Watts appear to be doing well for themselves. The memory machine, which consists of a cocoon bed and a wired headpiece that plays and projects any memory the client chooses from stashes of discs as a 3D hologram, is a source of income for the duo, despite the fact that they frequently give freebies to repeat customers. It’s all about the romance, but it’s also about empowerment and peace. Everyone will find something to their liking.
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It’s no surprise, then, that when the resident femme fatale of “Reminiscence,” played by Rebecca Ferguson’s sultry and markedly sad jazz singer Mae, arrives in a spectacular, body-conscious crimson-red gown that could disarm any lethal human in its presence, you know she’s up to no good. Mae insists on popping into the machine for a brief period of time after the facility’s closing time, complete with misty Lauren Bacall-esque demeanor. It turns out that she’s misplaced her keys, and she hopes that Watts and Bannister will be able to recover them with a quick peek into her subconscious. Please excuse this attempt to find real-world logic within a fantasy, but this request appears to run counter to everything that “Reminiscence” claims to have established about how the human mind creates and stores memories in the first place. Assuming Mae wasn’t paying attention to the exact moment she misplaced her keys and is unable to recall their location, how could she possibly have a memory of that moment in her mind? And shouldn’t Nick Bannister be alarmed at the prospect of such a suspicious request?
Reminiscence Quiz
Let’s put it down to that red gown (as well as the various other stunning evening gowns Ferguson wears throughout “Reminiscence”) for diverting his attention. She manages to locate her keys, and the two soon find themselves in the midst of a hot and steamy romance, which follows a legitimately erotic sex scene that Joy pulls off with artistic finesse. Then, months later, Mae vanishes into thin air, leaving Nick and Watts with nothing but a handful of clues and memories they can cling onto in order to keep their heads above water in a sunken labyrinth of bigwig criminals, corrupt cops, and barons who have plotted their survival on dry land.
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Bringing back several of her artisan collaborators from “Westworld,” Joy renders this hope-starved near-future world with a heavy use of neon lights and shadows, achieving a melancholy quality that is at times mesmerizing, despite the film’s heavy reliance on computer-generated imagery (CGI). You can’t help but feel that “Reminiscence” chokes on an excess of cheaply made atmosphere at times, particularly during its bloated third act, which features various overcrowded storylines of side characters, including Cliff Curtis’ corrupt police officer Cyrus Boothe and Daniel Wu’s drug lord Saint Joe.
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Perhaps the most egregious crime committed by “Reminiscence” is the ease with which it wastes the collective appeal of its A-list ensemble. The actor who played Bannister will likely be forgotten in the aftermath, as will the actor who played Bannister’s wife, who was played by an unremarkable newcomer. We can only hope that Joy continues to take risks and make feature-length films because she has a plethora of stylistic and thematic ideas to draw from, but this particular rumination on a variety of genres falls victim to its own weight and is ultimately disappointing.
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The film is currently playing in theaters and will be available on HBO Max for the next 30 days.
For more personality quizzes check this: Boogie Quiz.
