Gemini Man

In terms of visuals, this is a terrific film and the young version of Will Smith is convincing. The action is sweet and takes place in great locations (I keep coming across Konstanz this year). Ang Lee is brilliant. Unfortunately, the story is a classic from the nineties, celebrating its thirtieth anniversary next year. And all it needs is for Henry not to be a nice hit man. Owen is underused and the Smiths play standard roles, but Mary Elizabeth is unbelievably great. She doesn't need anyone, nothing surprises her much and she has clear professional ambitions. Gemini Man is not revolutionary; it's just a good action film. (19/10/2019)

An art director and a renowned screenwriter have put together a very modern actioner with a 1990s theme. The digitally rejuvenated Smith has the same problem as De Niro in The Irishman, or the eyes tell all. The digital faces still aren't top notch, but kudos to the filmmakers who aren't afraid to experiment with new things. Thanks to them, cinema is moving forward and digital technology is one of the alternative futures of where to go. I’ll ignore the story, it stops being interesting after 30 minutes, which unfortunately should have been the "wow" moment. Smith can still swing fantastically, even though he’s pushing fifty already. Overall, Lee nailed the action scenes and they look very impressive, which is also the only reason to watch this film. (11/01/2020)

The advertisement for Gemini Man in 3D HFR format lured me to the cinema and I was curious to see what a rejuvenated Will Smith would look like "in real life". More than once during the plot, I felt a certain genre confusion and wasn't entirely sure if the film itself knew what it wanted to be. What we're dealing with here is an action-packed sci-fi about human cloning, peppered with the odd quip and romantic reference here and there, while at times superficially trying to be something better within the sci-fi genre. As far as the action sequences are concerned, I have no complaints, the motorcycle chase, the duel among the skulls and the final fight were flawless – though I must point out that at times it looked a little too artificial due to the picture quality, but I'm still glad I decided to go to the cinema to see this particular format. The visuals of the rejuvenated Smith were indeed impressive, I was a little put off by the small space for Benedict Wong and puzzled by the rather bland ending. It's certainly not a wasted two hours in the cinema, but at the same time it's a one-off affair that will fade from your mind within a week. (13/10/2019)

Oscar-winning Ang Lee delivers a 90's style actioner, and even though the critics are grumbling, I think it's great. Will Smith is the ultimate assassin and he's just about to retire, but before he does he has to face his own younger clone who wants to take him out without hesitation. The story is interesting, but doesn't dazzle that much, which in this case I don't mind because the action scenes are almost revolutionary and technically precise. The intense music, the amazing cinematography, the utmost professionalism and precision of the two Wills captivated me with every moment and the scene with the motorbikes is one of the best I've seen in the cinema this year, but the fight in the catacombs or the rotating machine gun with lasers is also great. The acting, the action and the technical aspects of the film are impeccable and if that's enough for you, you'll be royally entertained like me. 80% (15/10/2019)

For how seriously it takes itself, Gemini Man isn't a particularly sophisticated spectacle, and though I secretly wished it would, the third corner of the Will Smith cinematic triangle of I Am Legend + I, Robot + ? certainly didn't come into being. Aside from the strange script, which seemed to set the stage for a surprising twist several times but ultimately let it go, the gimmicks were also strange. I don't mean the rejuvenated Will Smith, who is really perfect (What's next? Can we look forward to Buster Keaton slapstick?), but as for the rest – a lot of the shots look so disturbingly digital... The motorbike chase is fine, but sometimes something catches the eyes (you just have to wonder what it would be like with a stunt madman like Tom Cruise with no need for digital doubles and motorbikes), the man-on-man fights look more like robot-on-robot fights... And any directorial ideas? When I remember how originally Ang Lee once envisioned the comic book Hulk(yes, I really likedit), here I have to say: no glory. (12/10/2019)