I really wish I could lie to all of you and say, ‘Oh, I knew I was going to love Gemini Man from the trailer!” but alas, I cannot. When I first saw the Will Smith sci-fi flick being advertised, I though, “Man, get out of here. I already saw Looper.” It wasn’t until after my childhood friend, Jimmy wouldn’t stop ranting about it that I garnered any interested in see this one.
Sadly, I still protested because…well…I’m a Middle Eastern man, and frankly, we’re quite stubborn. However, when Paramount announced the 4K Ulta HD home release was becoming available, I decided to give Gemini Man a try and honestly, I should have listened to Jimmy and gone to the press screening. It was a movie that I could just escape into and not over analyze by how similar it was to Looper or in this instance, clones going after the original version that they are supposed to be the ultimate improvement.
Yes, Clive Owen’s villain was one dimensional and yes, Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s character could have done more, but none of that mattered until the credits rolled because I was lost in the story. In reality, just like Eddie Murphy, Will Smith is back.
When I did take a bathroom or water break, I would instantly think, “I hate you Jimmy,” in my best Eric Cartman impression that sounds amazing in my head, but really, I had to thank Jimmy for convincing me to sit through this film. I did not notice that Gemini Man was two hours long and that, in my book is what made it a good movie. There’s action, there’s science fiction and to be frank, it reminded me far more of Assassins with Antonio Banderas and Sylvester Stallone (a 1990s classic that I absolutely loved, thank-you-very-much) than it did Loopers.
It really is a shame that other critics panned this film, it really was a sleeper and let’s hope it finds interest for home viewers than it did in the theater.
Gemini Man is available now on 4K Ulta HD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital today. Looks like I’m going to have to start listening to Jimmy more often.
BONUS FEATURES ON 4K ULTRA HD COMBO, BLU-RAY COMBO & DIGITAL**
- Alternate Opening
- Deleted Scenes
- The Genesis of Gemini Man
- Facing Your Younger Self
- The Future Is Now
- Setting the Action
- Next Level Detail
- The Vision of Ang Lee
ONLY AVAILABLE ON 4K ULTRA HD DISC
- Visual Effects Progression presented by WETA—In 60FPS, Ultra HD and High Dynamic Range
The Gemini Man DVD includes the feature film in standard definition.
