Science fiction, romantic obsession, and classic film noir come together in this mystery set in the near future. Hugh Jackman plays private detective Nick Bannister, whose specialty is the human mind: he helps clients recover lost memories or revisit happier days with the help of a device that projects memories in a holographic replay. Into the shabby business, he runs with his platonic partner Watts (Thandiwe Newton) walks the glamorous Mae (Rebecca Ferguson), a chanteuse with sad eyes and a shady past.
Nick, haunted by his own grief, loses himself in her memories and tries to piece together her story when she disappears. His quest takes him to a corrupt cop (Cliff Curtis) and a conspiracy involving a gangster (Daniel Wu) with clues to Mae's past.
It's the feature-directing debut of Lisa Joy, who (with Jonathan Nolan) created and produced the acclaimed HBO series Westworld, and the world-building skills she displays in the show are front and center here. It is a beautifully realized vision of a world suffering from the effects of climate change; Miami is largely underwater, the days are so hot that life has become a nocturnal activity, and the divide between the rich and everyone else is starkly delineated. It is evocative of Blade Runner in production design and its self-conscious channeling of classic private-eye movies and film noir style.
The script, however, is less engaging than the imagery and texture of the film. The plot is a series of familiar crime thriller tropes, complete with a shabby private detective and an alluring femme fatale whose motives are hidden behind her seductive look and manner. Jackman's character narrates with a wistful romanticism and he idealizes the enigmatic Mae.
Unfortunately, the film has little to say about this addiction to remembrance and has no surprises in its mystery. Jackman is committed to his role as the wounded romantic, Ferguson is even better at suggesting a complex emotional life behind a guarded mask, and Newton fills in the blanks of a role without many dimensions. The actors and the sleek style will be enough for some viewers.
Ultimately, however, the film lacks depth or dramatic power, leaving the viewer with a lushly imagined science fiction noir that becomes, like the memories that Nick helps his customers relive, a hollow echo of the movies that inspired it. The DVD and Blu-ray releases include four production featurettes and a music video. An optional necessary purchase for film collections in public libraries.