In Central Europe in 2041, scientists have in place an insurance scheme that allows anyone who has suffered an unjust death, the right to be restored. “Restore Point” concentrates on creating a world where science and technology are extremely advanced. With the creation of a data and cell backup, should you be murdered, you can simply be brought back to life. There are no replicas of human creation like in Blade Runner. Neither are there horror-infused repercussions of reanimating the dead like in The Lazurus Effect and Flatliners. The title is also known as Bod Obnovy, a Czech language film that will be distributed by Umbrella Entertainment in Australia and XYZ Films in the USA.
Gone are the days when violent crime and being shot down on the street will result in an early burial. The government issue and essentially free insurance policy’s only catch is that a backup is in place that is no older than 48 hours. In director Robert Hlozs’ science fiction universe, no one is dying before their time. Fantasia International Film Festival showed the title on 25th July 2023.
Restore Point Technology
But like with any technology that begins mucking around with the deals life offers, a small faction known as River of Life throws a spanner into the works. River of Life embarks on a crusade against Restore Point technology. To draw attention to their cause, this group of terrorists began killing a large number of people. Do all the people they snuff out have valid Restore Points? No, and subsequently a bunch of people that would otherwise be alive and well are unable to be brought back to life.
One such victim in a long line of innocent lives lost is the husband of a virulent law enforcer Em (Andrea Mohylová.) Detective Em sets about hunting down those responsible, no matter who or what gets in the way.
Once the stage has been set and the background for Restore Point meticulously laid out, the title takes on a police investigation setting. Fueled by Em’s need to figure out who and why her husband was killed, the story soon takes on a more mundane police drama route. Instead of diving head-first into the consequences of such technology and settling into some of the more interesting aspects of a story like this, politics, and greed led by the Restore Institutes founders to make themselves some cash through privatization become its central focus.
Science Fiction Gets A Reboot
With only momentary snippets of what a world would look like, Em runs around the city tracking down her husband’s killers. The overall design, concepts, and sleek and stylish backdrop of Restore Point is a feather in first-time director Hlozs’ cap. There is no lack of attention paid to any of the smaller details within the film’s structure. Holographic figures, solar farming, and self-driving cars are all present in this sterile world. Even if the plausibility behind its design is a little shaky, there is no denying Restore Point is a cool-looking cinematic experience.
Despite all of the positive aspects of a title like this, the weight of the lengthy sections of dialogue can’t be overlooked. If you are waiting for something that includes grand explosions and intense police chases to happen, you’ll be sorely disappointed. Perhaps even a little bored with it all after a while. But that’s not to say Restore Point isn’t worthy of watching. It’s an interesting take on a modernized human reanimation track.
And while there are no zombies or messed-up versions of people crawling out of graves, there is certainly a lot here that will keep you occupied enough to think about it afterward. For another movie that has a story about abusing science watch The Fix or for a B-Movie horror comedy, The Mutation.
Restore Point is rated
3.5 seedy bars where people shoot each other out of 5
