Movie Review ~ Restore Point

Traditionally, futuristic sci-fi has been ruled by the works (and overarching influence) of writer Philip K. Dick. It’s hard to think of any film set in the not-too-distant future that isn’t based on one of Dick’s novels or short stories or which hasn’t taken a thread of an idea he introduced and expanded on it, for better or worse.  Classics like Blade Runner (and its dynamite, undervalued sequel), Minority Report, and Total Recall exist because a screenwriter adapted what Dick had envisioned decades earlier. His ability to predict the technology that’s commonplace today was astounding, and it’s why most of the films have been so unique and how the writing feels fresh even now.

Explorations of time, identity, and the consequences of manipulating both are common themes from the author, and that’s a hurdle the new film Restore Point has to jump over before it can begin to establish itself as an original work that isn’t attempting to be a pointless retread of what audiences have seen before. Shot in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland, the international feature is from first-time director Robert Hloz, a Czech auteur who cut his teeth on a series of visually appealing shorts before graduating into this full-length endeavor.

Taking place in 2041, when the advancement of technology has enabled citizens who have died an unnatural death to be brought back to life via a neural implant that triggers a “restore point,” Hloz has delivered an entertaining, absorbing bit of sci-fi that feels like it could have been made from a script rejected by a Hollywood studio.

Detective Emma Trochinowska (Andrea Mohylová) is a rising star in her department, even if her superior looks down on her tendency to rush headfirst into danger rather than wait for backup. Not fully coping with the death of her husband months earlier, Emma strongly opposes the technology that allows people to be revived if they perish and return to a pivotal moment in their lives. It challenges her belief system, and while she knows the science is not for her, she can’t sit idly by while a terrorist group standing in dissent rises in power. A double murder sparks an investigation that puts Emma in the crosshairs of a conspiracy that some will go to great lengths to conceal.

Merging the sci-fi genre with a few layers from the psychological thriller canon, Hloz starts the film at a breathless pace and manages to keep things at a low simmer for much of the 115-minute run time. I think the film loses some steam around the middle half when Emma’s investigation leads her outside the city, and the screenplay from Hloz, Tomislav Cecka, and Zdenek Jecelin begins to run out of new curveballs to throw. It helps that Mohylová is a convincingly feisty lead, unwilling to blink first when challenged and pitched with the right amount of passion, so you know the character is acting from an emotional core, not from a screenwriter’s pen.

Joining Emma on the investigation (and on the run from those who wish them silenced) is David Kurlstat (Matěj Hádek), the developer of the technology that resurrects the dead, a process we see carried out in true old-school science fiction style. While there is ample use of well-rendered CGI, Hloz doesn’t shy away from a handful of practical effects that prove that in-camera work (and the cinematography in general is striking) can be just as effective as post-production magic. Standing in the way of Emma and David is Agent Mansfeld (Václav Neužil), a colleague on the force who may be out to help them but could be an enigma to be wary of.

Something to note. While I watched the film in a dubbed version, there is a version available in the original language, and I suggest finding that one, if available. I appreciate the accessibility dubbing may provide for some, but there’s a mismatching of voices here that can strike the wrong tone between the actors and action, which I found distracting. That’s not a knock against the film itself or the performances, just of the opportunity for total immersion lost in translation.

Restore Point burrowed into my brain more than most of the forward-thinking sci-fi films I’ve seen recently. Its central idea doesn’t seek to clone or create a replica of someone but gives them back a life cut short for reasons they have no control over, letting them live out the rest of their years as was their right. Watching this from outside in the real world, when disease and tragedy take people before their time regularly and unfairly, resonated with me on a personal level. Wrapping it up in a good-looking, atmospheric sci-fi mystery with a strong eye for detail is like icing on an already tasty cake.