Replicas (2018)

Director: Jeffrey Nachmanoff

Writers:  Chad St. John (screenplay by), Stephen Hamel (story by)

Stars: Keanu Reeves, Alice Eve, Thomas Middleditch, John Ortiz, Emjay Anthony

Replicas is a new sci-fi drama from director Jeffrey Nachmanoff, which features Keanu Reeves who makes a return to the genre with mixed results.

Following a car accident in which his wife and kids are killed, synthetic biologist Will Foster (Keanu Reeves) decides to use his research to bring them back to life, by transferring there subconscious into synthetic clones. Knowing he has to keep the project a secret he enlists the help of his colleague Ed Whittle (Thomas Middleditch) to help obtain the relevant equipment from the lab so he is able to create the clones in his basement. Although the procedure will enable Will to bring his family back to life
he has to make some tough decisions in the process. Behind the lies and deception he knows things will never be the same and as it isn’t long before things start to unravel very quickly.

The concept for Replicas is a great idea. It incorporates a sci-fi element with the technology and cloning, whilst also adding a more weightier moral dilemma with Will playing god by bringing the dead back to life. Incorporating Keanu Reeves into the process who is currently on trend with the John Wick series and is looks as though you have a winning formula.

When it comes to the execution however it feels as though the filmmakers have tried to do too much with the film and in the process have left some massive plot holes in the story which leaves it feeling unbalanced. The film works well dealing with the emotional turmoil of Will’s loss and morality of his actions creating the emotional drama and tension. Unfortunately this is lost as the film unfolds with an implausibility which means it is difficult to take the film too seriously.

With the technology which looks to bend the laws of science such as transferring the subconscious, we can easily accept as part of the sci-fi genre. However, when a scientist is able to remove multi-million-pound equipment including huge incubator vessels used to create the clones from a secure government facility – that becomes a little bit more difficult to ignore. With that being said we are a generation who has popularised a Sharknado series which has had five sequels. So, even though some of the concepts may be unrealistic, you can understand why writers may be expecting the spoon fed audiences to overlook these areas. If you can it is actually a good thing, because despite some of the more questionable moments the film overall is actually entertaining.

Replicas has some good performances in the film including Thomas Middleditch as fellow biologist Ed Whittle and Alice Eve who portrays an emotional delivery as Will’s wife Mona Foster. If anything I think her character could have been explored more, especially as it suggests something may not be quite right. It however Keanu Reeves who really stands out in the film making the most of his time on screen. Despite not being the most versatile actor Keanu Reeves is on top form once again and is surprisingly well suited to the role. Some may argue that it is still playing Keanu Reeves with the occasional Ted from Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) thrown into the mix. Yet as he has proven in the past it is a formula that works and once again creates a character whe audience is rooting for.

The effects in the film look good considering the budget to give some of the technology a more futuristic feel, even though the events in film seem to be taking place more in the present. With the designs however, Sci-fi fans may spot some similarities with both the robots and the touch screen technology used by Will, as these reminded me of I Robot (2004) and Minority Report (2002) respectively.  

The film plays it fairly safe regarding the twists so you can see most of the issues coming, but credit to the team they do add a few nice ideas towards the later part of the story. Replicas is far from a perfect film which is mainly let down by the unrealistic plot holes, but if you can look part these factors the balance of action and drama work surprisingly well. It would be best described like a Nicholas Cage film with his continuous straight to VOD output in recent years. If you are willing to switch off from reality and avoid asking questions you can enjoy it for what it should be, a thrilling sci-fi.

Replicas is available on digital download now and will be available on Blu Ray and DVD from 29th April,

Philip Rogers

Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!