Remember Me is memorable, but for all the wrong reasons. The opening scene of the film sets high expectations that the rest of the movie fails to meet. This scene is emotional, leaving the viewer to wonder about the state of humanity. The remainder of the film, however, is disjointed and, quite frankly, boring.
The film highlights several relationships, including those between a father and daughter, a father and son and a girl and boy. An hour into the movie, there is no sign of any source of conflict, yet the dynamic within each of the relationships changes without any sort of catalyst. Although there is no central conflict, the focus is on the central character, Tyler Hawkins, played by Robert Pattinson (Twilight, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), which leaves the parallel relationships weak and underdeveloped.
Remember Me only confirms Pattinson?s inability to act, as he once again plays a brooding romantic. As usual, he attempts to hide his British accent, and fails. As usual, he remains aloof, keeping secrets from Ally Craig, played by Emilie de Ravin (Lost, Public Enemies), the girl he is pursuing. In a film based so deeply on the Edward Cullen typecast, the appearance of Kirsten Stewart and a pack of werewolves at some point during Remember Me would not have been all that surprising.
Pattinson?s preteen fans, however, are going to be disappointed to see him straying from his perfect behavior. It is a relief to see that, unlike in previous movies, Pattinson?s character isn?t supposed to be perfect and suffers from an alcohol problem. While his performance was awful, Remember Me may allow Pattinson to find an older audience.
Pattison?s acting is not improved by the disengaging dialogue, which was filled with clich?s such as, “you think you know me, but you don?t.” There was no chemistry between Pattinson and de Ravin, and what was supposed to be witty banter is simply awkward conversation.
In addition to the overly-rehearsed dialogue, the characters themselves are shallow and unrealistic. Anyone who has taken a high school psychology course understands that the characters in this film do not mimic real people. Some of their reactions are overdramatic, while others are lacking in magnitude relative to the events around them. Each character is whiny and seems to be overwhelmed by a number of psychological problems. The main character, Tyler Hawkins, is comprised of generic traits for an uninteresting character: musical, plagued from family problems, poetic and hurting from an event from his past.
Despite these problems, Pierce Brosnan (Die Another Day, Mamma Mia!) realistically plays Tyler?s father, a workaholic, and successfully pulls off a credible Brooklyn accent. Ruby Jennings (Shutter Island, Nurse Jackie) also shines as Caroline Hawkins, Tyler?s younger sister and confidante. Unlike Pattison, Jennings portrays a multidimensional character, who is mature and vulnerable at the same time. The relationship between Caroline and her father is more engaging than the indented focus, the love story between Tyler and Allie.
The final scenes of the film are based off of a real event, which is just a last desperate attempt to evoke emotion from the audience. The inclusion of this event seems forced and disconnected from the rest of the movie. In another movie, the scene would have been dramatic and though provoking, but in Remember Me, it did not match the atmosphere of the preceding story line.
While Remember Me has its moments, overall, it lacks depth and drive. The main characters are shallow, and the film is missing a central source of conflict. The only promising aspect of the film is that there is no hope for a sequel.