Reminiscence is a film that blends the genres of mystery, romance and sci-fi with an adept premise. It has all the fundamentals to be spellbinding, but it tries too hard to make the suspenseful situations even more so, and the film becomes messy and fragmented as it progresses.
 

Reminiscence is set in New Orleans and Miami. The main character, played by Hugh Jackman, is Nick Bannister, a unique type of private investigator who uses brain activity software to help people sort through their memories and revisit past portions of their lives. His clients are in a tank with a brain-therapy attachment, and Nick can visually see their memories. Nick’s assistant is Emily ‘Watts’ Sanders, played by Thandiwe Newton.

Life changes for Nick as he becomes obsessed about former client Mae, played by Rebecca Ferguson. Nick revisits his own memories to try to track Mae down, which soon leads on a dark path of disturbing secrets, gangs, and allies that endanger Nick’s life, and maybe even Mae’s.

Unfortunately, when Nick starts on his quest to find Mae, the film just gets confusing. Reminiscence jumps weird hurdles of different past and present moments between Nick and Mae, some with Nick individually and some with Mae individually. The disorganized, non-chronological puzzle was not appealing, and I found myself wondering whether a particular scene had happened yet or not, and how certain events were relevant.

Director Lisa Joy does get credit for the futuristic setting of Reminiscence. She previously wrote, produced, and directed Westworld for HBO, which was more intriguing than Reminiscence. But again, the scenery as well as the choice of locations in Reminiscence was excellent. 

Reminiscence has a careful, steady pace in the beginning, but as the film goes deeper the storyline is just out of focus, the confusion begins, and the plot also becomes dry. The futuristic aspect is intriguing, but the film could have been much stronger. I give Reminiscence 2.5 stars.

Chicago fans of horror films will be into Candyman because it was filmed in downtown Chicago. They will also be into it if they are up for unexpected gory violence mixed with supernatural elements. Unfortunately, Candyman is also predictable and repetitive, and even somewhat boring at times.

Candyman centers on Anthony McCoy, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Anthony is an artist who moves into a loft apartment and soon meets a man named William Burke, played by Colman Domingo. Burke tells Anthony the story of Candyman, and the horror soon ensues. Anthony’s dark past also comes into play.

Candyman is a sequel from the 1992 Candyman, but it has a spiritual aspect that wasn’t present in the 1992 film. Despite this addition, I didn’t feel anything much different or more harrowing with this new Candyman film. And some of the dialogue in this new film is actually rather funny at times, especially when the phrase “Candyman, Candyman, Candyman” is repeated many times.

Overall, Candyman is just an average horror flick. I felt at times that it was trying to be like the It films, but it isn’t nearly as mortifying as those films. I give Candymana solid 2.5 stars.

Now this is the type of suspense film I’m talking about! Beckett is one hell of a ride where one tragedy leads to an unexpected and amazing number of misunderstandings, twists, and danger. John David Washington delivers his best performances since BlackKkKlansman (2018) and is almost as brilliant as his father, Denzel Washington.

Beckett had me on the edge of my seat, and not just for the suspense, but also for the emotions it evokes. Director Ferdinando Cito Filomarino really stepped up his game in his directorial debut for Netflix. Beckett is one of the best action-packed films ever to stream on Netflix.

Washington plays Beckett, who is vacationing in Greece with his girlfriend April, played by Alicia Vikander. After a car accident Beckett finds himself in a conspiracy. He cannot trust the local authorities, and his only hope is to reach the United States embassy. But the more he runs, the more the corrupt political tide rises around him. Beckett uses his limited resources to try to figure out what is going on with April, and to piece together why he is the target of a conspiracy.

I loved this movie. I’ve always been a sucker for films set in foreign countries where someone is fighting to survive. And Washington’s performance was simply astonishing. There are many captivating scenes involving jumping, collisions, disasters, protesters, and lots of political corruption. There is certainly nothing predictable about the film.

Beckett is a must-watch on Netflix. It leaves a trail of misconceptions that is enthralling, and It was done in a calculated and intriguing way. I cannot think of a thriller that I have enjoyed more. Four stars for Beckett.