The film features an all-star cast and will land in theaters and on HBO later this Summer.
The trailer for HBO”s latest action-thriller ‘Reminiscence’ was officially released last Thursday.
The film’s directed and written by Lisa Joy, creator of ‘Westworld,’ and follows Nick Bannister (Hugh Jackman), a private investigator of the mind, navigates the darkly alluring world of the past by helping his clients access lost memories. Living on the fringes of the sunken Miami coast, his life is forever changed when he takes on a new client, Mae (Rebecca Ferguson). A simple matter of lost and found becomes a dangerous obsession. As Bannister fights to find the truth about Mae’s disappearance, he uncovers a violent conspiracy, and must ultimately answer the question: how far would you go to hold on to the ones you love?
HBO held a private virtual screener of the trailer followed by an exclusive panel. Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson, Thandiwe Newton, and Daniel Wu all attended along with Joy.
Joy spoke greatly to the major themes at play in the film. She admits that at the forefront of it all is dreams and discovery. Nick Bannister provides the chance at reminiscing on what once was and dreaming for a brighter future. That’s when he finds Mae who eventually becomes a part of his dream until she takes the form of a nightmare. “Bannister’s character in this is chasing perhaps a dream. Then, he doesn’t know anymore who this woman is. Watts at one point chastises Bannister for only seeing the things he wanted to see. For desiring something that he didn’t truly comprehend and chasing a dream he didn’t truly know,” said Joy.
Jackman also reflected on portraying Bannister as a man who’s broken. His heart and head are in battle. Jackman admitted Bannister’s “intrigued and mesmerized and increasingly becomes obsessed with her [Mae].” When events turn though, Bannister becomes deluded therefore creating a whirlwind of emotions. “He needs to discover what has happened because he knows in his heart that something bad has happened to Mae. He just won’t accept any other version of the events and goes on this great Odyssey and through the darkest places of Miami,” said Jackman.
Yet, Bannister is not the only character that suffers. Wu spoke about how his character Saint Joe faces a number of adversaries. After a war, the rich and poor become divided; leaving the poor in greater agony. Saint Joe, however, provides them a chance at escape, but at a cost. Wu described St. Joe as a refreshing take on the “villain” trope. “I played villains before but not a villain like this where he’s so three-dimensional and so human, but at the same time, evil so it was a lot of fun.”
Ferguson’s Mae is arguably one of the most fascinating characters in the film. With a bleak and mysterious past, she brings an element of suspense that can be felt throughout the trailer. Ferguson deemed the character as the perfect “femme fatale” and expressed her excitement at the viewers watching such an interesting world unfold before their eyes. Ferguson said, It is really a sort of life imitating art and art imitating life, which throws us in an environment where the pressure, the consequences are quite high as well.
‘Reminiscence’ lands in theaters and on HBO Max on August 20
