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Mercy is the latest from screenlife mastermind Timur Bekmambetov
Photo: Justin Lubin/Amazon MGM StudiosSign in to your Polygon account
Director Timur Bekmambetov has had a fascinating career, first as a spectacle director in Russia then as the eye behind conventional Hollywood blockbusters like Wanted and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. But along the way, Bekmambetov emerged as a pioneer for the “screenlife” format — a found-footage variant in which stories were told across iPhones, tablets, and other everyday devices. Hits like Unfriended and Searching paved the way for the subgenre, which has become such a part of Bekmambetov’s identity that he’s penned books on screenlife as a film philosophy.
His next experiment: Mercy.
Set in the near future, the new thriller stars Chris Pratt as a detective accused of murdering his wife — an act of violence he swears he did not commit. But in this dystopia, prisoners are guilty until proven innocent, and Pratt has 90 minutes to make his case to an A.I. Judge played by Rebecca Ferguson. There are worse ways to go than being sentenced to death by the star of Silo and Dune.
Trailers for Mercy teased a slightly expanded version of Bekmambetov’s screenlife mode, but the tenets are there — an actor in the hotseat, glimpses of footage zipping like an upgraded spin on Minority Report. Kali Reis of True Detective: Night Country fame costars as a cop who is not constrained to a chair, so expect a little movement.
Ahead of Mercy’s Jan. 23 theatrical release date, Polygon is offering readers a chance to attend the premiere in New York City alongside the stars. Sign up via this form before Jan. 14 for a chance to win two tickets to the screening on Tuesday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. Winners will receive confirmation from Polygon in the days leading up to the premiere. We promise the seats will be much more comfortable than the ones Chris Pratt has to sit in in Mercy.
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