“We can’t control what we can’t see. We require persistent identity.”
Josef Kenik
Writer-director Andrew Niccol’s science fiction projects use their individual conceits to explore modern societal issues but they tend to be overshadowed by his astonishing debut, Gattaca. Although his script has intriguing ideas about privacy, Anon is closer to the unfulfilled potential of In Time. Set in a near future of pervasive augmented reality and surveillance where everyone’s vision is recorded and stored, a detective finds himself investigating a series of murders by a hacker who has found a way to conceal themselves and hijack what others see. The augmented reality visuals are stylishly subdued with text overlays that will be familiar to those who have played Watch Dogs. Coupled with Amir Mokri’s cold cinematography in a world that feels sparsely populated, the stylistic choices distance the audience from the characters on screen — this was occasionally effective in heightening the voyeurism of looking through another person’s eyes but it was largely disengaging, similar to my criticism of Sharper. Ultimately Anon works as a brief and efficient thriller, but it does not have a great deal to say about privacy and surveillance beyond the inevitable tension between the individual and those in control.
5/10
