“Zero Contact”

Susan Granger’s review of “Zero Contact” (Lionsgate/Grindstone/Enderby Entertainment)

 

As an avid Anthony Hopkins fan, I’ll see any of his movies BUT here’s an oddity: “Zero Contact.”

Reportedly produced remotely in 17 different countries during the 2020 global pandemic, it’s intended to be a high-tech, sci-fi thriller.

Making his directing debut, producer Rick Dugdale focuses on widower Finley Hart (Hopkins) a mysterious billionaire who is, allegedly, dead from kidney failure. That doesn’t stop the tech entrepreneur from masterminding what passes for a plot by Cam Cannon (“Deadlock”).

From the netherworld, Finley is intent on reinstating something he left unfinished called the “Quantinuum Initiative,” involving teleportation before a global disaster occurs – which requires the use of a “machine that runs on dark matter reactor.”

That precipitates a boring Hart Enterprises video conference call, involving Finley’s estranged son Sam (Chris Brochu), German lawyer Veronica (Veronica Ferres), Japanese innovation expert Riku (TJ Kayama), Board Chairman Hakan (Martin Stenmark) and a computer hacker (Aleks Gaunovic).

Each of Finley’s minions is supposed to input a secret code to activate the Quantinuum Initiative.  But since they  don’t understand what’s happening (nor do we), they’re somewhat reluctant. Rather predictably, there’s an uninvited, unwanted intruder who is up to no good. All of this Zoom-recorded derring-do is punctuated by a barrage of technobabble, signifying nothing.

Most disturbing of all, when the callers are placed ‘on-hold,’ we’re forced to repeatedly listen to “The Pina Colada Song”…that is, when the electronic score by Anders Niska and Klas Wahl isn’t providing distraction.

Anthony Hopkins always oozes charisma, inviting viewers into his Southern California home, where he delivers mind-melding monologues. He ruminates about art and science, in addition to playing one of his own musical compositions on the piano. But that’s not enough to save this cinematic waste of time.

Originally released as “the world’s first star-powered feature film NFT,” it’s unknown whether anyone ever purchased it.  

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Zero Contact” musters a barely coherent, tedious 2, available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime, Vudu and Apple ^TV.

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