Mercy is a slick, near future thriller where surveillance is king, privacy is dead, and one man’s fate is decided under an all seeing digital eye. Chris Pratt finds himself trapped in a system that doesn’t just watch you, it judges you. With AI oversight, moral dilemmas, and a ticking clock, the film sets out to explore guilt, justice, and whether technology should ever get the final say.
Runtime check? A tight 100 minutes. No fluff, no overstay, we love a film that knows when to clock out.
Chris Pratt does what Chris Pratt does best: charismatic, likeable, occasionally funny… maybe too funny. His humour lands, but this is one of those films where a fully serious tone would’ve hit harder. The theme is heavy, the stakes are high, and sometimes the quips slightly undercut the tension.
Rebecca Ferguson voices the AI presence, and while she’s perfectly serviceable, there’s nothing here that screams “career highlight.” Also why does the AI smile so much? I don’t trust anything digital that smiles without lips. That said, the back-and-forth between her and Pratt does keep the tension humming nicely.
No bad performances. Just no standout ones either.
It’s filmed for IMAX and 3D and honestly? It didn’t need to be. Visually, there’s nothing happening that benefits from the extra scale. No jaw dropping set pieces, no visual spectacle begging for the biggest screen possible.
Now, audio wise, IMAX does its thing. The sound design is crisp, immersive, and tense when it needs to be. But visually? This could’ve been watched at home, in pyjamas, with snacks and lost nothing.
The surveillance framing, wide scopes, and constant “you’re being watched” aesthetic does work well though. It smartly reinforces the theme and helps sell how the mystery slowly unravels.
Here’s the thing: I didn’t hate it. Not even close.
Mercy has a concept I genuinely liked. The idea of justice filtered through total surveillance is compelling, and the film does a solid job showing how information is pieced together, manipulated, and weaponised. The reveals are decent, slightly predictable, sure but still satisfying.
The tension stays high thanks to the psychological chess match between Pratt and Ferguson’s AI. Their verbal sparring keeps things engaging, even when the story beats feel familiar.
That said, this is very much a streaming recommendation. You don’t need the cinema. You don’t need IMAX. You just need a quiet evening and mild curiosity.
Short, clean, mildly thought-provoking, and perfectly fine. Mercy is a film that works… it just never truly wows.
A solid concept, decent tension, and a runtime that respects your time. Mercy is good, not great. Stream it, don’t rush it, and definitely don’t expect visual fireworks.
