‘Bionic’ Netflix Movie Review - A Disaster On Every Level

Bionic is apparently written by four writers - Josephina Trotta, Afonso Poyart (he also serves as the director), Cris Cera, and Victor Navas. This is the most shocking thing about this action adventure sci-fi, and it makes you wonder if technology (read: ChatGPT) was used to generate the script of this film. Don't bother making sense out of the story. Things happen because they are written in the script. There is no other motivation. The filmmakers don't see sci-fi as an opportunity to create something other-worldly. They are not interested in offering a dazzling experience through directorial choices, writing, editing, or cinematography. Bionic is made by a team who considers their task a chore that must be completed on time. No one attempts to be creative or seems to be having fun doing their job on or behind the screen. Poyart seems to be half-asleep while directing. He points the camera towards the actors and tells them to deliver their lines with affected solemnity. The editor, on the other hand, constantly cuts between different angles to lend an air of artificial urgency to the narrative. The cuts are motivated by the thought, "Don't let the audience take their eyes off the screen." This is why every cut feels equivalent to someone holding your collar and forcing you to look up and down, left and right.

Bionic desperately tries to hijack your attention, but the images it throws at you are utterly ugly. The world of Bionic comes across as a copy of a copy of a copy of a Blade Runner aesthetic. The hologram advertisements on the buildings don't fill you with awe. Poyart, too, merely uses them for foreshadowing. A hologram jumps from one building to another. Later, a character jumps from one building to another. What this means is that Bionic is tightly conceived. Every element just drives the plot forward, leaving no space for freedom, imagination, or spontaneity. We are told that bionic prosthetics are worn by athletes who run in Bionic Games, which seem to be taking place all the time. The runners make long jumps by wearing a robotic leg. The audience is so fascinated by these bionic athletes that they no longer watch human runners. As a result, sports involving normal humans have been terminated. But it's never made clear whether the bionic prosthetics are used in other departments. What about football or basketball? Do those sportsmen also wear bionic legs? During the opening scene of the film, a man commits robbery by wearing a prosthetic arm. So, are these arms used in sports like golf, hockey, or handball? Besides sports, is there any other arena where bionic products have replaced normal humans? How many companies manufacture bionic products? How do they compete with one another?

The movie doesn't answer these questions because its main character is a runner, which is why the story confines itself to legs. I am talking about Maria (Jessica Córes). She wants to be as memorable as her mother, but after the whole bionic thing, her dreams get shattered. Her sister, Gabi (Gabz), however, has a bionic prosthetic and continues breaking records. Maria, expectedly, feels jealous and, at one point, makes a grand speech criticizing the people for preferring bionic athletes over humans. This speech is hollow, and the movie, through a line, underlines the hollowness. Maria criticizes bionic athletes and then enjoys being one after an accident. She basically wants to help Heitor (Bruno Gagliasso) accomplish his mission. Heitor is first shown as a revolutionary and then converted into a villain. Maria and Gabi initially are jealous of each other but then later become friends. An athlete is not allowed to jump due to his unstable NIM, but Gabi is not stopped from jumping when her NIM dips and it becomes clear that the jump could prove fatal. Finally, a man calls the police before causing an accident. I have listed these things to tell you that all these events occur to only move the movie to its destination. There is no sound logic behind them. Poyart has made this film to impress us with slow motions. He slows down time when Maria or Gabi jump so that he can infuse this action with a sense of grandness. I was never impressed. I found this trick ostentatious. The filmmakers, of course, don't care. If they did, they wouldn't have made something so bland.

Final Score- [2.5/10]
Reviewed by - Vikas Yadav
Follow @vikasonorous on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times