Reminiscence

Sci-fi with one foot in the past. It's a surprisingly popular combination since they would appear to be popular opposites, but nostalgia sells, even when looking to the future. Reminiscence certainly isn't the worst of these films, but a promising setup finds itself hampered by a rather uninspiring finale.

Rampant floods have increased the gap between the rich and the poor. With little to look forward to, the poor use machines that allow them to relive memories from the past. Nick Bannister operates such a facility. When the love of his life stands him up, the memories of their time together threaten to drag him down.

The sci-fi premise is just there to give a new spin to a core romance plot with strong thriller elements. Performances are solid, the budget was there to do justice to the sci-fi and the near-future world of Reminiscence is fun to explore, but once the film has settled in and the plot takes over, Joy starts to show her weakness. The second hour is a bit dim, just a string of cookie cutter reveals that do little beyond dragging out the runtime.