Review: "Infinite"

Infinite is another in a long list of films that were delayed for theatrical release due to the Covid-19 pandemic only to find itself being digitially released on a streaming platform and features a rather impressive cast alongside a very accomplished director in Antoine Fuqua. While the film has a lot going for it in talent, the script and logic behind it is very frequently missing. The film does however feature some rather impressive action sequences but it lacks any real impact or weight among the audience.

The plot centers around Evan McCauley (Mark Wahlberg) who is haunted by memories of places he has never visited in his lifetime and chalks it all up to some sort of mental illness. He has picks up skills incredibly fast and is a very capable fighter with no training. He then finds out after being interrogated by a man named Bathurst (Chiwetel Ejiofor), that like himself, the two are what is known as Infinites. There are two opposing factions of Infinites, one known as the Believers and the opposite being the Nihilists. He also explains to Evan that he has these memories because he in fact is Harry Treadway, an old friend of his turned enemy and the leader of the Believers. Evan/Harry then begins a quest to defeat Bathurst once and for all as he seeks to end all life so he would stop being resurrected.

It is an interesting premise that has a lot of potential but the lapses of any kind of logical sense in the script and plot make it fall flat on it's face. Bathurst, for instance, wants to end life as we know it and in his quest along the way he kills people and wipes them from existence but if he is able to do that then why doesn't he just do it to himself? That is just one instance of the script failing out of many, many other instances. Beyond the script and the failures of it, the acting is rather questionable. Mark Wahlberg is a good actor, but seems a bit out of place here even if action is his typical genre. The character itself may have been better suited to a younger actor, which makes sense considering the studio and Fuqua originally wanted Chris Evans for the role and he accepted only to leave after reading the script. Chiwetel Ejiofor does his best attempt to uplift the material in a very cheesy and underdeveloped villain role. The only cast member that does decently well in his role would be Jason Mantzoukas as he plays an eccentric genius, as Mantzoukas has a tendency of doing so lately.

Antoine Fuqua is a celebrated director as he has directed great films such as Training Day, The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven and others but this will stick out as a big swing and a miss for the director. Looking at many of the films that have recently come out after long delays due to Covid it forces me to question whether or not films like this one have been rushed to release when they could have benefited from more time or possibly even reshoots. The normal quality of a Fuqua film is missing so it makes me truly wonder if something along those lines is at play.

Infinite's action scenes will be a draw for some but there is no connection between the characters and the audience making any kind of stakes at play not really matter. The faults on the page also have a tendency to make the film hard to follow scene to scene especially as the script really begins to fall in on itself. Some may enjoy a mindless action romp here, but those looking for something more may want to look elsewhere.