"It’s in the water," someone says early on in this directorial debut feature from Juel Taylor (co-writer of Creed 2). Mashing up Groundhog Day with Get Out, They Live, Sorry to Bother You, Westworld, A Clockwork Orange, blaxploitation films, "X-Files shit", and more, They Cloned Tyrone is a race-conscious conspiracy caper at heart, spruced up with some zippy patter and a razor-sharp cast. Although the plotting could have used some sharpening, too, credit Taylor with this: he almost pulls off his ambitious, multi-referential clone job.
John Boyega plays Fontaine, a dealer who suspects something’s up when he’s shot dead but returns to life. More mysteries abound: why does everyone who eats Got Damn! fried chicken laugh so much? Why does the local church preach a gospel of acquiescence? And why won’t Fontaine’s mum leave her room? Working with sex worker Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris) and ‘1995 Pimp of the Year’ Slick Charles (Jamie Foxx), Fontaine’s Scooby Doo-ish investigation steers him to a trap house, where a secret elevator leads to a murky basement full of revelations. And, erm, familiar faces…
Well, it leads there eventually. Taking half an hour to get moving, They Cloned Tyrone throws out clues to its conundrums early but repeats itself once too often. Redeeming virtues include the dialogue, which zings with allusive pop-culture wit, and leads who know how to own it. The show-stealer is Parris, who rises to the wordplay marvelously and relishes every exchange with Charles; Foxx leans gamely into the stereotype of the narcissistic pimp, too.
Boyega has a tougher job selling Fontaine but that’s hardly his fault, given that Taylor keeps him at one remove, as if to withhold certain secrets not cheekily revealed by the film title. Some of these are obvious, especially if you’ve seen any of the films Taylor draws on. The main villain is a flatly monologuing dullard straight out of the Negan school of bores, too: even if that’s the point, he saps the film’s energy whenever he prattles.
But the lead trio’s journey is laced with retro-sharp stylings, a killer soundtrack, and a batch of witty, resonant twists about nefarious ‘governmental shit’. Some undeveloped but teasing ideas about self-determination emerge, too, especially as Fontaine’s story reaches its end stretch. Homages aside, Taylor’s promising entrance finds its own footing.
They Cloned Tyrone is on Netflix from July 21. For what else to watch, here's our guide to the best Netflix movies and the best Netflix shows currently available.
