‘LX 2048’ not science fiction by the numbers
It’s always fun when a little film comes out of nowhere that has the ability to surprise. Such is the case with director/writer Guy Moshe’s “LX 2048,” a low-budget, indie sciencefiction film about identity, purpose and clinging to one’s humanity.
Adam Bird (a really good James D’arcy, “Broadchurch”) is a man at odds with his world. He lives in our future — far enough ahead for clones to be a part of daily life, close enough to the present that Adam can drive an early 21st-century Mercedes Benz — but he is old school and insists on doing things the way he always has.
Because of the toxicity and the broiling heat of the outdoor environment, humanity has been driven indoors, squandering its existence on designer drugs and virtual reality. Clones, resistant to what has turned humans into high-tech cave dwellers, do the dirty work of keeping society going.
But Bird, dressed like a hazmat worker, still insists on going to his office where he works for a virtual-reality company. Aside from working alone, he lives a lonely life. Separated from his wife (Anna Brewster, “Versailles”) and not allowed to see his three sons, things couldn’t
seem to get any worse. Until they do. He’s diagnosed (by a clone, of course) with an irreparable heart malfunction that will slowly kill him.
Where the story goes from there manages to keep the viewer guessing. Just know that it also includes an entertaining
appearance from the always welcome Delroy Lindo, seen earlier this year in Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods.”
There’s no action in the talky “LX 2048,” so the film’s appeal is based on the story’s twists and the solid cast, especially Bird, who has to carry the movie
and is in nearly every frame. If nothing else, “LX 2048” is just more proof that ambition beats budget.
Running time: 103 minutes
Rating: Unrated
cary.darling@chron.com