Films about reincarnation and the ideologies around it are not exactly something that I feel drawn to, but when other concepts that I find interesting are mixed with them, it can get me interested in them. I found yet another film like this, and, after a few minutes into the film, I felt like I had finally found another sci-fi movie to indulge myself in. I couldn't help but draw parallels between it and a different film that I had seen before, however.
I found a familiar face in this film. I had known the face for mostly comic films, so I was a bit sceptical about whether the film would be something I would really enjoy, as I wasn't exactly interested in laughing at the time I found it. I rescinded that notion quickly enough when I realised that it actually had the potential to be a good one.
The 2021 film Infinite starts with a rather engaging introductory story that further increased my interest in the film, and then continues with some pretty entertaining first scenes. The introductory story, however, felt like something that I had heard before, so I only hoped that the entire film wouldn't be some remake.
In 1985, Heinrich Treadway steals a powerful object called "the Egg" from a powerfully dangerous man named Bathurst. Fast forward to the year 2020, and Evan McCauley discovers his past lives, a conflict between two groups of immortals, and that he is Treadway's reincarnation.
Treadway belongs to the group of immortals that want to keep the ability to reincarnate going, while Bathurst wants it all to end, leading the Nihilists. The Egg has the power to destroy the world and every living thing on it, and Bathurst wants it for his evil intentions, but only Treadway knows where the egg is. As Even regains his memories and those of Treadway, he joins the Believers to stop Bathurst.
With a run-time of 1 hour, I would say that I had a pretty exhilarating experience with the film, and it was because of certain concepts and a peculiarity of acting that I found in an actor. Some other things in the film didn't exactly feel great to me.
You see, I had heard this particular concept of people living through generations and in different bodies yet having memories of their past lives. The same idea was what I had experienced in Altered Carbon, so it didn't exactly feel novel to me. What's worse, in fact, was that there wasn't a satisfactory explanation as to how this concept came to be—just something ordinary.
What seemed to compensate for the lack of novelity in the film's concept was the action and entertaining dialogues between the main character and the others. Accolades to Mark Wahlberg for being a natural with comedy. And to think that "I wasn't exactly interested in laughing at the time I found it." That turned out to save most of the emptiness I felt in some parts of the film.
Now, although the storyline seemed a bit familiar to me, it had pretty interesting twists to it. One side of it had fascinating tales in history tied to one man, and another side was about the life of a rather special man struggling to get by, yet his fate was intertwined with something greater. The overlap was something I looked forward to in the film, and it was enthralling to see what followed afterwards.
The fight scenes in this film are rather interesting. They are not all that different from what we have seen in countless films, especially Altered Carbon, but I didn't quite mind as they were just alright regardless, although they were mostly entertaining.
If this film had been a series, I guess there would have been more time and opportunities for it to expand and become something more than it was just a movie that ran for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Rather, what we have is something more fast-paced. And because of that, many things lacked depth, particularly the characters.
If Mark Wahlberg, the actor for the main character, and his impeccable acting dexterity were taken away from the film, I think the film would have been a little less than what it was for me. The film may just pass for the active action drama it had and its interesting cinematographic work.
This film sufficed for exactly what I needed it for: to pass time. For times when I long for more depth and complexity in storyline and depth, I would rather watch something else. Nonetheless, it's a film that would appeal to most people in its genre.
I'll give it a rating of 6.5/10.