Nemesis gets off to a dodgy start. As a private jet flies through the sky, the familiar tones of an action – or possibly espionage – movie can be heard. A look inside the plane finds an ageing man and his well kept wife chatting away. The song keeps teasing an exciting chase or maybe a cool explosion, but the plane lands uneventfully. This pretty much sums up the entire film.
The story is about an old gangster named John Morgan (Billy Murray) who is considering retirement. On a trip back to London, Morgan’s family and past collide. Everything culminates in a violent family dinner. Nemesis constantly teases things without delivering. The cat and mouse between a determined cop and a wily gangster? Not really. A London gangland battle? Nope. Fast paced action and adventure? Besides the music, not quite.
So what does the audience get? The most gratuitous nude scene this side of a 1980s comedy or horror movie. (On the plus side, kudos for objectifying a full figured woman in her 40s.) Predictable and bad dialogue. Poor editing. As one character says, “Yap, yap, yap, yap, yap, yap.” Nemesis does a number of things, but none of them are interesting or even mean anything in the grand scheme of things. The first act sets up a number of plot threads that are never revisited.
The one thing Nemesis does not tease is its odd change to a home invasion thriller. There is tension to the third act, but it is not a product of the writing; it is a question on how the plot got to this point. One theme the film really wants to get across is the idea of family over everything. This includes Morgan’s family forgiving the patriarch for some pretty heinous crimes. This may be resolved by a silly final shot that furthers the idea the movie had no idea what it was striving for.
Nemesis opens July 30
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