Henry Brogan is an elite assassin who becomes the target of a mysterious operative who can seemingly predict his every move. To his horror, he soon learns that the man who's trying to kill him is a younger, faster, cloned version of himself.
When you go think of Will Smith movies, it's usually a safe bet that the film will be pretty good. He has been riding the wave of adoration in the film industry ever since the mid-90s with Independence Day, Bad Boys, and Men in Black. Eventually, there comes a point in time when you have to start pushing the nostalgia to the side and really look at these films from a really objective standpoint. Gemini Man is the straw that broke this camel's back.
As would be expected from a movie starring Will Smith, the production quality is good. It is the script and the characters that are not quite so up to scratch. The screenplay was written and rewritten by several different writers (Billy Ray, Darren Lemke, David Benioff, Andrew Niccol, Brian Helgeland, Jonathan Hensleigh, Stephen J. Rivele and Christopher Wilkinson) since its inception in 1997, and as the proverb goes, too many chefs spoil the broth.
The basic premise is an incredibly common one that has been done again and again in modern cinema. The twist that makes Gemini Man more unique doesn't come from the script. It comes from the visual techniques in play, which means if you are not likely to find the film visually impressive, you are going to find the experience rather blasé. The characters are either unnecessary or completely one-dimensional. Most of the protagonists fall under the role of being present to allow exposition to be provided, or to provide access to a vehicle or information. Literally, Will Smith could do this on his own to a greater effect (granted it may come off as a cheap imitation of The Bourne Identity.
With regards to the special visual techniques, Gemini Man showcases two main technologies; shooting at 120 frames per second, and "de-ageing" technology. The de-ageing is not actually de-ageing like we have seen on Samuel L. Jackson in Captain Marvel, what Gemini Man is actually utilising is simply motion capture, not unlike what was done to the characters of Grand Moff Tarkin (whose actor had passed away) and Princess Leia Organa (whose actress has obviously aged since the original trilogy was released) in Rogue One. The creation of a young Will Smith does still look pretty damn good. This is helped by the really dark colour palette used for much of the film, which serves to obscure any deficiencies in the CGI (while the detail is fascinating, it looks incredibly fake during scenes with a lot of lighting).
The second visual technique of shooting at the extra-high frame rate of 120 frames per second is an interesting choice, considering most films are shot at around 24fps. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was a controversial because of Peter Jackson's decision to film at 48fps, but 120fps is so much higher. This effectively smooths out the really fast action creating a very clear movement rather than what would normally come across as a blur. For the majority of the film, this frame rate makes little difference at all, as most of the story is at a normal pace. During certain scenes, however, certain characters unleash an unnatural amount of speed, that looks supernatural at that framerate. It can quite easily take you out of the film, as it loses its gritty grounded vibe, and turns into an episode of The Flash.
The action scenes are reasonably well done, with a really exciting sequence involving bikes, but it still fails to really engage with the audience. There is some nice but unnecessary slow-motion shots, and action sequence followed by exposition, followed by action sequence, followed by more exposition. The exposition is frustratingly repetitive, however, due to the script having no substance at all. The film fails to explore the motivations deeply, and thanks to the marketing of the film, the reveal is already known before the film starts, which means there is no sense of mystery at all.
If you cross Deadshot from Suicide Squad with Polar, then you get Gemini Man. It's a story we've seen before, with far less action than one would really expect and uses transitions that remove any tension that had been built up. There is some great fight choreography, but it is obscured by dark settings and tight camera work that prevents the audience from being able to fully appreciate the work that has gone into it.
Despite its numerous flaws, Gemini Man is an adequate film. You can definitely feel the 117-minute runtime, but it meets the minimum requirements to satisfy the casual moviegoer. There is definitely not enough to keep your interest on a second viewing, but for a one-off, Gemini Man is passable.