Gemini Man

Gemini Man

Starring Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, Benedict Wong

Directed by Ang Lee

The Story:
Henry Brogan (Will Smith) is the best sniper in the business, and decides to retire after his last hit almost goes terribly wrong.  He begins to live a nice retired life - boating, talking with the new boat rental manager Danni (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), visiting old friends - until he finds out his last target wasn't who he thought he was.  Soon he's hunted down by his own government, led by black ops leader Clay Verris (Clive Owen), and goes on the run with Dani (who is actually an agent sent to watch over him), and his old friend Baron (Benedict Wong).  Unable to kill him, Clay enacts his Gemini project, and sends out his best operative - Junior (Will Smith) - who's a clone of Henry's.  As the two men come into contact with one another, they battle each other but also struggle inside with who they are and what it really means to be human.

The Synopsis:
Ang Lee is one of the most forward-thinking directors of our time, providing unique films like "Brokeback Mountain," "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," and "Life of Pi" and offering some truly awe-inspiring visuals.  Recently, however, he's managed to bumble his way through a few projects that were supposed to be great, including "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk," which was the first feature film using a high frame rate of 120 frames per second, but not even this advancement in technology provided anything due to the mind-numbing story and terrible acting.  Now he's released "Gemini Man," which also utilized his 120 frames per second style, and once again resulted in a dull, predictable, boring film that had some glimmers of genius but was bogged down by a simplistic script and odd editing choices.

The film focuses on elite sniper Henry Brogan, who chooses to retire after almost missing his last hit, and finds that the assassination wasn't on a typical terrorist.  He goes on the run from the government that's out to kill him, and unbeknownst to him has released their ultimate weapon - Junior, a younger, cloned version of Henry who has all his skills but none of his weaknesses.  As the two men come to blows, they both learn the secret behind their origin, and must decide whether to work together or kill each other.

If you're expecting a film filled with intense fighting sequences and mind-numbing action, then this film is right up your alley.  Will Smith plays both the elder Henry and the younger Junior (through facial de-aging process that sometimes works, and sometimes doesn't), and their fights are impressive enough - when you can actually see them.  Their first encounter occurs on bikes through the streets of Columbia, and is easily the best in the film, even if it's outlandish and totally unbelievable (then again, being chased by your clone doesn't make a lot of sense in the real world either).  As the two come to blows again and again, it occurs at night, and with the higher frame rate you can't tell who's kicking who's butt, but still it's fun to watch.

However, if you're expecting anything resembling a cohesive story, deep character arcs, or proper editing, then this is a huge disappointment.  There's several moments the film talks about events that we were probably supposed to see, but never get to, and only adds confusion if you care enough to think about it.  All the characters maintain their status quo: Smith's Henry is the elder statesman who tries to reason with his younger self.  Junior is head-strong but also questioning his own reality.  Mary Elizabeth Winstead's Danni exists merely because she's female and manages to hold her own in a fight, but we never really get to know anything more about her.  Benedict Wong again provides the comedic relief and best-friend sidekick role that he's most known for in "Doctor Strange," and Clive Owen plays the typical bad guy government agent who has questionable morals but also makes a little bit of sense if you think about it.  None of them step outside their wheelhouse, and the only reason the film seems to exist is to spotlight the fighting.

The script - written by three people including David Benioff (who many hold responsible for the terrible last season of "Game of Thrones") - is about as bare-bones as you can make it, where there's no deviation or twists to throw you for a loop, but instead is reminiscent of classic action films from the 80s.  You can pretty much predict what'll happen at any given time and you'd be exactly right, because that's how simplistic the story is.  Again, it seems like Ang Lee relied on his fast frame rate and action to deliver something impeccable, but ultimately just became serviceable.

The Summary:
Offering little in the realm of intriguing storytelling, "Gemini Man" is saved by some decent action sequences and seeing Will Smith fighting himself, but ultimately turns out hollow and simplistic.

The Score: B-