Effects-heavy sci-fi movies at a film festival are always a concern because they often can’t pull off the look they want with the budget they have. Director Robert Hloz’s film, Restore Point, manages to deliver on the sci-fi aesthetics consistently in this competently made take on a familiar sci-fi idea. This film exists in the year 2041, and due to scientific advances, doctors can bring victims of a violent crime back to life by backing up their brains every 2 days. The film follows a detective (Andrea Mohylová) who has to investigate the murder of two people initially thought unrestorable – but there are deeper issues at play.
The visuals in this film are definitely a major highlight. From the blue piano with white keys to the holographic images seen on newspapers, the look of the film is both impressive and memorable. There is one moment where we see the outside of a building covered in scrolling text information, and the part that stood out the most was in the bottom left-hand corner, where some guy’s hoodie also had scrolling text. This attention to detail and world-building is present throughout and seems like something you’d get from a studio blockbuster, more so than a film at a festival. Futuristic science fiction benefits from the style – Blade Runner being an obvious prime example – and this movie truly makes that happen.
Thematically, the film deals with social status. The process of restoring people in the film is attempting to become privatized, which will remove the 48-hour self-backup and replace it with real-time backups. When the story begins, everyone has access to the service if they want it – but they have to remember to back up their mind. This element, of course, paints a bigger picture of wealth, as privatization will limit who can be restored. The ramifications of being able to be restored are shown in a few scenes, where people take major risks with their lives, knowing that they can just be brought back.
I found Restore Point to be quite impactful. The performances are solid, and the story – while familiar – is relevant, and well-structured. There are a few clunky scenes of exposition necessary to explain the elements of the story. While the story is original, there are clear influences from sci-fi history, like Frankenstein and Blade Runner. The universality of themes also justifies the continued conversation about them in new media, and Restore Point certainly wants the audience to consider the aspects in the film.
Restore Point is playing at Fantasia International Film Festival.
Rating: Not Quite Golden, Ponyboy
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