Last night was another opportunity to make the most of my Cineworld Unlimited Card so I checked the new movie, Reminiscence, from writer/director/producer Lisa Joy and starring Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson and Thandiwe Newton.
Nick Bannister (Jackman), a private investigator of the mind, navigates the darkly alluring world of the past by helping his clients access lost memories. Living on the fringes of the sunken Miami coast, his life is forever changed when he takes on a new client, Mae (Ferguson). A simple matter of lost and found becomes a dangerous obsession. As Bannister fights to find the truth about Mae’s disappearance, he uncovers a violent conspiracy, and must ultimately answer the question: how far would you go to hold on to the ones you love?
Memories are never forgotten in Reminiscence
I didn’t really know that much about Reminiscence when I went into the cinema to see the film, only from what I had seen from the trailer and from the synopsis above, but from the look of the trailer I was intrigued how the film would play out and I do like films with that modern-day but also futuristic feel.
The idea of delving into the mind of others was something that I was keen to see how it worked and I have to say that I did find myself being pulled into the mystery of Reminiscence after a somewhat slow start, but this is one of those films that doesn’t really give anything away. It does try to keep you guessing on what is happening and who is the antagonist in the story.
Hugh Jackman and Thandiwe Newton work well together on the screen and you do feel that the characters have some history together as the film unfolds and we find out more about them. As we delve deeper into the mystery of Ferguson’s character things don’t become too clear, if anything the slight curveball that is thrown in takes you in a different direction. But this worked to keep the story flowing at a steady pace.
I loved the idea of Miami being flooded and it has that A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) feel as the high building are flooded in the lower floors, with certain areas having flood walls to hold the water back, there is also that Blade Runner look of a future that we will no doubt be heading to with the waters of the world rising.
There are some really nice looking shots and special effects in the film that help it along, especially the setup for Nick (Jackman) to view the memories in the form of a large holographic platform, I can imagine that if that was in 3D it would have looked stunning.
One scene that really stood out for me though is a moment with an old concert hall that is submerged, the colour tones and look of the scene really popped for me.
Reminiscence is one of those films that is more of a romantic film with a twist of Sci-Fi thrown in for good measure, it works, but the problem for me is that it could have had a slightly shorter running time, there were moments that it started to drag in its almost 2hours of runtime.
If you are a fan of Hugh Jackman then this is a film you may want to check out, but if you are expecting all-out action and adventure then you will be disappointed, there are some fight scenes that give you those moments of excitement, but what we get with Reminiscence is more of a detective story that will have you working out the clues as the film progresses.
Alongside Oscar nominee Jackman (“Les Misérables,” “The Greatest Showman”), Ferguson (upcoming “Dune,” the “Mission: Impossible” films) and Newton, (“Solo: A Star Wars Story”), the film stars Cliff Curtis (“The Meg,” “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw”), Oscar nominee Marina de Tavira (“Roma”), Daniel Wu (TV’s “Into the Badlands,” “Warcraft”), Mojean Aria (TV’s “See” and “Dead Lucky”), Brett Cullen (“Joker”), Natalie Martinez (“The Stand” and “The Fugitive” series), Angela Sarafyan (“Westworld”) and Nico Parker (“Dumbo”).
Joy (“Westworld”) makes her feature film directing debut with “Reminiscence,” and directs from her own original screenplay. The film is produced by Joy, Jonathan Nolan, Michael De Luca and Aaron Ryder. The executive producers are Athena Wickham, Elishia Holmes and Scott Lumpkin.
Joy’s creative team includes several of her “Westworld” collaborators, including director of photography Paul Cameron, production designer Howard Cummings, editor Mark Yoshikawa and composer Ramin Djawadi, along with costume designer Jennifer Starzyk (“Bill & Ted Face the Music”).
Don't Look Back
Movie title: Reminiscence
Movie description: 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.
Date published: August 21, 2021
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 56min
Director(s): Lisa Joy
Actor(s): Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson, Thandiwe Newton
Genre: Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi
Summary
If you are a fan of Hugh Jackman then this is a film you may want to check out.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
