A big new trailer has been released for the sci-fi action thriller Mercy, which stars Chris Pratt in the hot seat opposite Rebecca Ferguson as an all-seeing AI judge. A near-future setting, a ticking real-time clock, and a man trying to outrun the system he helped build. Watch the trailer above and read more.
90 minutes left to live
Set in 2029, Marcy follows Detective John (Pratt), who is shackled in a high-tech room and arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife. His fate rests in the hands of Maddox, an advanced AI judge played by Ferguson. Maddox appears on a towering monitor and calmly interrogates him. He has 90 minutes to prove his innocence before a program built to act as judge, jury and executioner in capital cases carries out the sentence.
As the official synopsis states, the AI is “created to be the sole judge and executioner of those accused of capital offenses” and has access to all technologies used by the state and its people. In other words, John is working with and trying to defeat the systems built into almost everything around him.
This new trailer is a huge improvement over the first one. There’s more action, more tension, and the pacing is punchy without feeling spoiler-y. While some of the visual effects still look a little ropey, there’s enough tension and pulpy energy on display that it could end up being a fun flick. We’ll see if it approaches a throwaway January filler or a surprise sci-fi crowd-pleaser.
Filmed like a stage play, built like a countdown
According to Deadline, at New York Comic Con in October, Pratt spoke about how the film’s structure informed his performance. He revealed that the production was staged more like a play, with long stretches unfolding in that single interrogation space, with him literally strapped to a chair as seen in the trailer. The setting created a “natural claustrophobia,” he said.
Director Timur Bekmambetov (“Wanted,” “Nightwatch”) also attended Comic-Con. “Today we live in a world where AI knocks on the door, but we don’t have time to understand what happened,” Bekmambetov said. “AI can be our enemy, our friend, or our child. This ticking clock is a metaphor for the times we live in now.”
Oscar-winning producer Charles Roven (Oppenheimer, The Dark Knight) pointed out that the film’s conceit moved uncomfortably close to speculative very quickly. “I got a pitch from Marco[van Bell]the writer who wrote the script. When I first received the script, people were talking about AI, but it wasn’t happening yet,” he said. “When we started talking about this movie, suddenly companies were working on AI, and that future was never far away. Given the fact that this movie takes place in 2029, I think there are things that make our movie true every day, every week, every month.”
Bekmambetov also showed talent in production. Mercy was filmed in downtown Los Angeles, including a truck chase scene, and reportedly took six days to film. The director used body cameras, drones, and even a robot dog to film crowd scenes in addition to more traditional equipment, imprinting the narrative’s surveillance-heavy, technology-saturated atmosphere into the film’s physical filming method.
Cast and release date
In addition to Pratt and Ferguson, the cast of Mercy also includes Kari Reis, Annabelle Wallis, Chris Sullivan, and Kylie Rogers.
Mercy will be released in Australian cinemas on January 22nd and US cinemas on January 23rd.
Sony Pictures
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