Ang Lee's 'Gemini Man' (Will Smith)

[Kane52630]

They're playing a 60fps/3D version at my theater. I guess that'll do.

 

[kguillou]

Oof this is getting pummeled on RT. Eh, i could tell from the very first trailer that this was probably going to be a mid level B movie with a decent gimmick. I had a feeling this wasnt going to get good reviews but it looks like a dumb fun Will smith movie and I miss Will being fun again. Lol

 

[terry78]

I mean you're going for the spectacle of an old Will fighting a young Will, that's it. There is no deep rooted psychodrama happening here, it's a 90s movie and I am fine with that. Already used that A-List to see the HFR screening in Chicago.

 

[MadVillainy]

Oof this is getting pummeled on RT. Eh, i could tell from the very first trailer that this was probably going to be a mid level B movie with a decent gimmick. I had a feeling this wasnt going to get good reviews but it looks like a dumb fun Will smith movie and I miss Will being fun again. Lol

Yeah from the trailer I could tell that this wouldn't be anything crazy. I might check it out now that I have AMC A List. Need to get my money's worth. But otherwise this looks like a wait for streaming movie.

They really should've gone hard sci fi with this. Set it in the far future.

 

[terry78]

Just got out of the hfr showing downtown. It's a very serviceable action flick. The dialogue is very cheese ball 90s at times but it works due to how long it's been in development. The HFR takes getting used to at first but it's crazy, some scenes it's like you're right there in the same space with them and the fights are kinda surreal. The plot was cliche and the reveal isn't a shock but it's a lean two hours, never drags.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Two Razzies

Big Willie is still the trend setter

 

[Kane52630]

Just got out of the hfr showing downtown. It's a very serviceable action flick. The dialogue is very cheese ball 90s at times but it works due to how long it's been in development. The HFR takes getting used to at first but it's crazy, some scenes it's like you're right there in the same space with them and the fights are kinda surreal. The plot was cliche and the reveal isn't a shock but it's a lean two hours, never drags.

Pretty much the same. The HFR 3D was so incredibly well done. You do feel like you're apart of the movie and the effect never wears off like a lot of 3D movies. I honestly haven't had a 3D experience like this since Avatar. The Hobbit tried to do it with their higher frame rate, but it ended up looking like a bad soap opera. And the action and fights were great.

As for the plot... it's some bad science fiction from the late 90s.

 

[Pennywise]

Watch Director Joe Carnahan’s Sizzle Reel for ‘Gemini Man’ Starring Clint Eastwood

This could have been a great 'what if'.

 

[Kane52630]

The concept for Gemini Man—an aging government assassin is hunted by a younger clone of himself—originated with Darren Lemke in 1997

 

[DarkKnight88]

Watch Director Joe Carnahan’s Sizzle Reel for ‘Gemini Man’ Starring Clint Eastwood

This could have been a great 'what if'.

Yup. Eastwood would’ve definitely added more gravitas and a bigger visual gap between himself and Junior.

 

[Schlosser85]

Can we admit Will Smith really isn’t a very good actor?

 

[terry78]

I kinda disagree, he can do good when the subject matter calls for it, like Ali. He's an action star and often they are just required to play themselves.

 

[Mysteryman]

Can we admit Will Smith really isn’t a very good actor?

We can admit that EVERY actor or actress can occasionally make a bad movie or a serviceable movie that doesn’t connect with audiences.

 

[Stringer]

Yeah no, I can't imagine anyone that isn't a very good actor successfully carry a film like I Am Legend for 2/3rd's of the movie on their own.

 

[kguillou]

My personal favorite Will performance was Pursuit of Happiness. His acting was incredible in that movie.

 

[Schlosser85]

We can admit that EVERY actor or actress can occasionally make a bad movie or a serviceable movie that doesn’t connect with audiences.

Not what I was talking about but okay.

 

[MadVillainy]

Will Smith is a good actor. I think he does have his limits. He's in that same bucket I put Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, George Clooney by that I mean, while I like them a lot, they're pretty much just themselves every movie. Or at least a vast majority of the time nowadays. Which can and does work, but is also very limited.

He's not DDL. Or even Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt, but in no way do I think he "isn't that good of an actor"

He hasn't made a movie I like in a while though. I do think he needs to challenge himself. He signed on to play Nicky Barnes which could be interesting. He needs his "Training Day" or whatever.

 

[MadVillainy]

Yeah no, I can't imagine anyone that isn't a very good actor successfully carry a film like I Am Legend for 2/3rd's of the movie on their own.

Looking at his filmography, I think that's the last film by him I liked

 

[Blitzkrieg]

He signed on to play Nicky Barnes which could be interesting. He needs his "Training Day" or whatever.

He will probably be among the best actor front-runners in 2020 for the King Richard movie he is doing for WB.

 

[Lasirius]

Two Razzies

Big Willie is still the trend setter

I dislike Will Smith (other than in Independence Day and Bad Boys); I can't quite put my finger on it. But this tweet is harsh. I chuckled.

 

[Stringer]

I really enjoyed MEW in this. Smart, capable, and grounded without any need for hero shots or gratuitous ways to point out her awesomeness. I welcomed that. Also the chase scene is one of the best action sequences of the year. Top 3 at minimum.

 

[terry78]

Yeah she was low-key badass. She had always had that Winnie from Wonder Years appeal to me, just very comfortable coming home to that face every day.

 

[Stringer]

She has this perpetual "I got this" look that's understated and irresistible.

 

[writer0327]

Saw this last night. I wish there was more to it outside of the effects and de-aging tech, but there isn't. Just a tired old leaky script that had no evenness in tone, the action was cartoonish, the acting was barely salvageable, hilariously boring and awful dialog, but all beautifully shot. Films like Gemini Man rely on the premise, which we already knew from the trailers, so there was little more to it after that. Maybe if they kept Lil Will a secret and revealed it as some sort of twist, and made this a deep dive character study where we delve into the mind of an aged assassin and how the corrupting influences of his life have created this inner turmoil that's rotting him from the inside, and maybe he sees a chance to fix his travails through his clone, or something along those lines, maybe this might've worked. But as is, its just dumb and derivative, not even fun and dumb, just dumb and same ol, same ol. But it looked amazing, so silver linings and all that.

4.5/10

 

[jolldan]

This was better than I expected but still not great.

Highs
1. The action set pieces (especially the one in Colombia)
2. Smith's portrayal of his older version of himself
3. Clive Owen makes a fun OTT villain

Lows
1. I don't know if down to frame rate but every time young and old Will fought it borderline looked like a PS2 game.
2. Young will beating old Will up with the motorbike was comical.
3. The final threat of the movies CGI was so bad it looked like it wasn't even done.

5.5/10