There's at least one idea out there for a thoughtful, provocative movie on the subject of human cloning. Unfortunately, "Godsend" isn't it. Not by a long shot . . .
Instead, what you get is a dramatic thriller at odds with itself. At times, it appears the filmmakers are trying to examine some of the ethical and moral arguments regarding cloning.
At others, they're content to fall back on cliched, contrived plot devices and character developments that make little sense and may prompt more laughter than serious discussion. (That includes the supposedly studio-imposed ending.)
Greg Kinnear and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos star as Paul and Jessie Duncan, a Vermont couple trying to recover from the death of their son, Adam (Cameron Bright), who was killed in a freak auto accident.
Enter Richard Wells (Robert De Niro), a former professor of Jessie's who has a proposal for them: He's employed by a clinic that is illicitly working on human cloning, and he offers them a chance to get their son back, using the boy's DNA to regenerate him.
Paul is skeptical and hesitant. But Jessie talks him into it. At first everything seems fine — she gives birth to a child that is the spitting image of their late son.
However, once the cloned boy — whom they've also named Adam — reaches the fateful age of 8 (when he originally died), he starts exhibiting odd behavior. His "night terrors" begin manifesting themselves in unpredictable and dangerous ways.
Among the film's more serious problems is a plot twist near the end that's fairly easy to predict. It's also ludicrous and unbelievable.
Credit the cast for keeping straight faces, especially youngster Bright. Kinnear is quite believable as a morally conflicted father, though he and Romijn-Stamos aren't convincing as a couple.
On the supporting side, De Niro's increasingly hammy performance is a tip-off about what's coming next.
"Godsend" is rated PG-13 for scenes of violence (vehicular and bludgeonings), scattered use of strong profanity, a brief sex scene, vulgar sex talk, brief gore and brief drug content (references to drug use). Running time: 102 minutes.
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