Awake: True Detective Lite

John Rhys Meyers and Francesca Eastwood star in Awake, a film about a man with amnesia who may or may not be a serial killer. When John Doe (Rhys Meyers) comes under the care of Eastwood’s nurse, he finds his way out of the hospital – and away from the pursuit of FBI agent Frank Ward (Malik Yoba) and Sheriff Roger Bower (William Forsythe). But will her belief in his innocence and their quest for the truth matter in the long run?

Russian director Aleksandr Chernyaev uses rookie screenwriter Elana Zeltser’s script to put his cast through the paces, but the film focuses on mood rather than plot development. Moody music and handheld camera shots take precedent over developing who the characters are, even while some loosely-dangled clues might give away the whodunit before the film intends for the audience to know.

The best comparison would probably be True Detective but it’s a little too obvious to make the cut. That’s a shame, because Yoba and Rhys Meyers probably deserve better. Stylistically, it has it’s moments but the plot just doesn’t pay off.