Remember how confused you used to feel while watching Westworld?
Well, imagine that level of confusion but in a less exciting narrative featuring The Greatest Showman fan fiction where P.T. Barnum and Jenny Lind make out a lot. And then you have Lisa Joy’s dystopian neo-noir, Reminiscence.
The film follows Nick (Hugh Jackman), an investigator of the past, who offers clients the chance to relive any memory they choose. However, everything changes when he uncovers a violent conspiracy involving the mysterious woman (Rebecca Ferguson) he has fallen in love with.
I admit, I REALLY wanted to be surprised with Joy’s directorial debut. And based on the initial concepts introduced in the trailer, I was intrigued. So despite the negative reviews, I took a chance.
Oof. I wish I listened to y’all.
Despite its ambitious narrative and strong leads, Reminiscence is a forgettable hodgepodge of stronger science fiction pieces with lackluster writing and cringeworthy voiceover narration that not even charismatic Jackman could salvage.
As the mystery progresses, it sadly grows stale, jumbled, and uninteresting.
I spent most of the runtime question how the film wastes such a fantastic cast and wishing I chose to watch Blade Runner or Inception instead.
Final Thoughts: Reminiscence is a film not worth having in your memory banks.
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