Replicas is one of many recent entries in the science fiction genre that attempts to examine the ethics behind cloning, artificial intelligence, and blind ambition towards scientific progress in general. Not that there’s anything wrong with that–it’s all fascinating subject matter and they are increasingly relevant topics. If it has nothing else going for it, Replicas does happen to boast a pretty great concept at its core.
Keanu Reeves plays Will, a scientist who is developing a method of transferring all the complexities of the human brain into a synthetic, computerized one. At the film’s beginning, Will is under the gun. Funding is about to be pulled from his research due to the little progress he’s made. He’s also neglecting his loving family—a wife, son, and two daughters. As the film repeatedly reminds us in its opening act, Will is losing sight of what is truly important and meaningful in life.
Tragedy quickly ensues, leaving Will the sole survivor of an auto accident that occurred during a full family outing. Luckily, Will just happens to know how to bring them back through the tools of his research. His trusty comedic sidekick (the affable Thomas Middleitch) aides him, sprouting endlessly clever moral arguments along the way.
The DNA taken from the family’s corpses is used to re-grow their bodies. Will then transfers their personalities and memories into the appropriate empty vessels—just like it never happened. The only catch is there isn’t enough material for all of them, and Will has to make the tough decision as to which member of his family he can’t bring back.
Replicas had the potential to do and say a great many things about the shortcomings and downfalls of endless technological advancements. Unfortunately, all of its bigger ideas are glazed over in favor of a predictable formula in which Will and his family have to survive against the heartless money-grubbers (headed by the always great but severely misused John Ortiz) who funded his research. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing if the film gave us any sort of humanity to latch onto with its characters.
Reeves is solid in spite of being miscast, doing his best with what he has to work with. The scenes with his family–which should be the heart of the movie–are dull, forced, and verging on painful to watch. Early on, Will’s wife (played with a constantly-pleasant flatline by Alice Eve) oh-so-lovingly berates him for not spending enough time with his family. Unfortunately, you can’t help but side with Will and wonder why he would would want to put himself through such a seemingly painful chore in the first place.
Director Jeffrey Nachmanoff presents some (at times) great VFX and some (at other times) rather wooden and unrefined VFX. The action sequences are executed with precision and talent, raising the potential of him helming some notable work in the future. He falters, however, in his dealings with his cast—who appeared to be working either without a net or for a director who was too nice to ask for a second take.
Nachmanoff’s greatest error is that he favors showing off the technology used to make the film over exploring the ideas of the technology presented within it. He simply puts too much focus on things we’ve already seen in other movies, and not nearly enough on the aspects that would make his audience care about them.
The film’s neatly packaged last act doesn’t fit with the ramifications of its bigger ideas—all of which are lost in the noise of the spectacle it’s trying so hard to be. If you squint, there’s some great stuff in there, but Replicas is ultimately a missed opportunity of a movie that doesn’t seem to understand it’s missing the fundamental aspect of any great science fiction story: the human element.
GRADE: C-
