Infinite
By Jeffrey Anderson,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Incomprehensible, emotionless sci-fi/action nonsense.
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Infinite
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What's the Story?
In INFINITE, Evan Michaels (Mark Wahlberg), who's been diagnosed with schizophrenia, has trouble finding a job. He gets the medications he needs by making beautiful swords and trading them to shady drug dealers. During one trade, something goes wrong, and Evan finds himself in custody, questioned by the mysterious Theodore Murray (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Tammy McCauley (Sophie Cookson) rescues Evan and reveals to him that he's not schizophrenic but is, in fact, an "infinite": a rare being that can remember past lives and retain the skills learned in them. Murray is also an infinite, but one who intends to destroy the entire human race to end his own reincarnation cycle. Evan holds a secret that could either doom humanity or save it -- but first he must remember who he is.
Is It Any Good?
Stuck with an incomprehensible, half-baked idea and carried out with stale writing, mechanical acting, and relentless chase scenes and explosions, this sci-fi action movie is an almost total failure. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, Infinite opens with expository narration about how some infinites (the "Believers") want to use their gifts for good, while others (the "Nihilists") want to destroy everything. About 20 minutes later, a character repeats this information, almost verbatim. But despite all that, the movie doesn't show how reincarnation works -- a character who seemingly died not long ago somehow becomes a 50-year-old Mark Wahlberg -- and only vaguely manages to explain why the villain wants to kill everyone.
If it's nearly impossible to figure out the point of it all, then it follows that the actors have no choice but to read their poorly written lines like robots and that Fuqua must fill the running time with as many meaningless stunts and car crashes as possible. Sometimes those things can be fun, but only if the movie itself has a sense of fun -- or a sense of its own dim-wittedness -- and Infinite has neither of those things. It plays as if everyone involved is just trying to get through it with as little effort as possible. The technical work (e.g., visual effects, sound, etc.) is all fine, but this dud suggests that Fuqua ought to stick to working with Denzel Washington (Training Day, The Equalizer 1 and 2, The Magnificent Seven, etc.).
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Infinite's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect?
If you were an "infinite," would you be a "Believer" or a "Nihilist"? What's the difference?
If you were an infinite, what skills would you like to perfect? How would you help humankind?
How are characters of color represented in the film? Did you notice any stereotypes?
How are women represented? Are they strong? Are they shown only in relation to men, or do they have agency?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: June 10, 2021
- Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sophie Cookson
- Director: Antoine Fuqua
- Inclusion Information: Black directors, Black actors
- Studio: Paramount+
- Genre: Science Fiction
- Topics: Book Characters
- Run time: 106 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG-13
- MPAA explanation: sequences of strong violence, some bloody images, strong language and brief drug use
- Last updated: November 18, 2022
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