Replicas Blu-ray Review

It's like a low budget prequel to I, Robot, 15 years too late.

by Casimir Harlow
Movies & TV Shows Review

2

Replicas Blu-ray Review
MSRP: £12.00

Replicas Film Review

Distinctly Asimov-lite, Keanu Reeves' sci-fi drama Replicas struggles to escape its poor effects, bloated script and tonal imbalance.

Originally one of the early releases in our 30 Movies for 2019 list, any hope of this turning out to be another sci-fi gem were dashed pretty-much as soon as it became apparent that it was no longer getting a cinema release. It is understandably hard to predict how a film will turn out at the end of its production, but this could have easily worked as a pretty familiar cautionary tale on advances in technology, following a neuroscientist who takes drastic steps to rectify the tragic loss of his family. Somehow, somewhere, something went very wrong along the way, however.

Reeves is somewhat dubiously cast as the scientist protagonist, working on uploading the human brains of recently deceased war veterans into the digital brains of robots, finding the project increasingly derailed by the Robocop 2 factor, whereby the human simply cannot accept the dramatic change to robot form, and rebels against it in a distinctly self-destructive fashion. The death of his family, however, makes the problem personal, propelling him to find a solution or lose everybody he ever loved.

The film may have worked 15-20 years ago

There are some great ideas in Replicas, from the initial human brained robots going crazy angle, to the cloning, to the fact that there aren't enough resources to save all of the children. But there are also too many ideas, throwing in the fact that this is all improbably going on in somebody's basement, accelerated growth 'science', odd attempts to try to bring the family back to life and seamlessly integrated into their lives as if they hadn't died, and final act threats to lives which appear designed purely to add some random action into this otherwise quirky sci-fi drama.

A more epic approach, replete with a commensurate budget, may have pulled all of this off, but Replicas goes distinctly limited budget instead and buckles under the weight. It also has a really odd tone to it, not least thanks to the presence of comedian Thomas Middleditch as Reeves' comic foil, frequently turning serious Frankenstein's monster situations into odd sources of comic timing and sapping much of the tension out of a drama which soon instead becomes merely uncomfortable to watch.

Clearly nobody was interested in spending any significant money on the effects either, which look I, Robot quality at best, and distinctly dated in the modern age. Indeed, the film may have worked 15-20 years ago, stripping out a few extraneous story arcs, keeping the tone consistent (i.e. playing it straight), and leaving the audience likely more forgiving as to what would have been then-cutting edge CG. Unfortunately, it's instead yet another Reeves movie that has got buried on the straight-to-DVD circuit (although nowhere near as appalling as Siberia); the star just doesn't seem to be able to catch a break when it comes to capitalising on his John Wick comeback. Ah well, on to Parabellum.

Replicas Blu-ray Picture

Replicas
Replicas comes to Region B-locked UK Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Home Entertainment, affording it a strong enough 1080p/AVC-encoded High Definition video presentation in its original aspect ratio of 2.4:1 widescreen, leaving the visuals more limited by their inherent lack of finesse, than by anything technically restrictive in what is a competent, frequently very nice presentation indeed.

It's a very good video presentation let down mostly by the limitations of the effects which can't help but hobble it

Detail remains often excellent, lapping up skin textures and bringing background flourishes to the fore, working well to integrate the holo-display tech (think: Minority Report) in with the rest of the live action elements, even if the CG robots stand out like a sore thumb, clunky to the point of looking like unfinished effects work. Certainly, the film looks glossy and decent in terms of production value, even if the effects don't, and this makes for a more pleasing presentation, affording some vibrant tones across the colour palette, played out against strong black levels which deliver in the infrequent night sequences. It's a very good video presentation let down mostly by the limitations of the effects which can't help but hobble it.

Replicas Blu-ray Sound

Replicas
A decent enough track

The accompanying DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track also gets the job done, delivering dialogue, effects and score with commensurate priority. There's nothing striking or bombastic at all, and the score is utterly and frequently painfully generic, but it's all fuel for the fire, with tech noises and electronic robot movements captured well enough, dialogue given decent spread across the frontal channels, and the score bringing a more expansive feel to the surrounds. A random car chase and shootout or two in the final act are the only things to spice things up, offering a certain amount of gusto despite being a little at odds with the rest of the feature. It's a decent enough track, technically, hardly demo but again that's down to the content.

Replicas Blu-ray Extras

Replicas
There's a surprising selection of extras; hardly extensive but still covering all the key bases

There's a surprising selection of extras; hardly extensive but still covering all the key bases, headlined by an Audio Commentary from the Director and Executive Producer, which is supported by a reasonable, if slightly EPK, Featurette, "Imprint Complete: The Making of Replicas". There are also a selection of Deleted Scenes, most of which come with unfinished effects work.

Conclusion

Replicas Blu-ray Review

Replicas
Reeves just doesn't seem to be able to catch a break when it comes to capitalising on his John Wick comeback

Replicas is hardly offensive, nor unwatchable, merely disappointing. Perhaps if it were released around the time of I, Robot, it would have been cut a little more slack, particularly in the effects department, although it still has fundamental flaws that will likely prove unforgivable for some (whether in terms of tonal inconsistency, or just the overabundance of sub-plots and ideas).

Lionsgate's UK Blu-ray release, which marries up to its preceding US release, affords the straight-to-DVD film decent enough video and audio, and a few additional extras to complete a healthy package for fans of the feature. Certainly, reframing your views of it as a straight-to-DVD film may leave you less likely to be so utterly disappointed.

Scores

Movie

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.
.
.
5

Picture Quality

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8

Sound Quality

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8

Extras

.
.
.
.
6

Overall

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6
6
AVForumsSCORE
OUT OF
10

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