Mercy sounded like it might be interesting but given the topic was AI, I wondered if it would be too similar to Minority Report and other science fiction stories I’d already read. While it was similar to those ideas, the AI was an interesting change with engaging performances.
Mercy is a science fiction action thriller film directed by Timur Bekmambetov, written by Marco Van Belle and produced by Charles Roven and Bekmambetov. The film is about an alternate future Los Angeles plagued by heavy crime and death among the police force. In order to prevent crime, the city has instituted a court presided over by an AI judge Maddox (Rebecca Ferguson) who gives defendants an opportunity to present their case or be put to death. The detective who advocated the AI court, Chris Raven (Chris Pratt) finds himself on trial for the murder of his wife, Nichole (Annabelle Wallis) and must find a way to prove his innocence in 90 minutes or less with the help of his partner Jaq (Kali Reis), his daughter Britt (Kylie Rogers) and his AA sponsor Rob Nelson (Chris Sullivan). But things aren’t as they seem and Chris may not be able to find the truth in time.
I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about this film, especially as I’m not a super big fan of 3D movies but I found it surprisingly engaging, especially the performances. The AI depiction was interesting, especially how it was presented, when given data that didn’t match what it expected. There was a definite message invoked about AI in the storyline which is that nothing is perfect, not machines or humans. I liked the ideas around that and that the story became very much about revenge versus justice at the end.
I found it very interesting how the use of social media, digital files, phone records and emails were all used to unveil the truth about the death of Nichole. The idea that everything might be synchronized and accessible by law enforcement or an AI was a bit scary but that knowledge is already out there and it was intriguing how that created the reveal including using police cameras and drones to aid in telling the story.
As I mentioned, the performances were especially engaging. I found Rebecca Ferguson the most skilled in her portrayal of the AI judge Maddox as she gave a believable performance of the AI learning and growing beyond her rules and boundaries. Chris Pratt did a decent job with his role but it was similar to other performances I have seen before. However, Chris Sullivan as Rob Nelson, Kali Reis as Jaq and Kylie Rogers as Britt were as outstanding as Rebecca. Their performances were emotional and compelling, keeping me engaged with the unfolding story.
What I found did not work was the 3D presentation. While this film does have action, none of it was big enough to require the use of 3D and while the 3D was some of the best technology I’ve seen yet, it just wasn’t necessary to tell the story. Using it like a prop to bring up digital files and for the AI was a very unimaginative use for the technology as well.
In addition, while I did like the AI, the idea was not new and really didn’t bring much more to the original concept than I’ve seen in other stories and films. The idea of a police state is certainly not new or the idea of justice being circumvented by computers. The way the truth was unveiled was different enough to keep me entertained especially because of the strong engaging performances by Rebecca Ferguson and the rest of the cast.
If you like Chris Pratt or you like the idea of the concept of an AI judge, you might like seeing this one. It is a solid mystery if a bit predictable and the use of technology in the unveiling of who killed Raven’s wife is interesting. The performances are engaging and I did find the film fun. I’m not sure I’d recommend the need to see it in theaters unless you truly love 3D films but I would still recommend it as a fun film to see.
Rating: 3.5 digital files out of 5.
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