Swan Song

It might not withstand the most intense logical scrutiny about the intricacies of human cloning, but Swan Song packs an emotional punch that validates buying into its science-fiction concept.

Anchored by a powerfully understated performance by Oscar winner Mahershala Ali (Moonlight), this bittersweet drama thoughtfully examines a moral dilemma about playing God with the human life cycle that feels more sincere than gimmicky.

The film is set in an undefined near future, when Ali plays Cameron, an advertising artist who lives in the Pacific Northwest with his British wife, Poppy (Naomie Harris), and their preteen son.

Cameron has been diagnosed with a terminal illness that he’s managed to shield from Poppy, who is still grieving the death of her brother in an accident months earlier. So he turns to an experimental method to keep the family intact.

He visits a doctor (Glenn Close) who specializes in high-tech, top-secret cloning procedures. In other words, his DNA would be used to create an exact replica — distinguished only by a single freckle — to take his place without wife and child ever knowing the difference. “This will be as common as a heart transplant within a few years,” the doctor tells him.

As his condition worsens, Cameron is obviously torn by the choice. He visits with one of two patients (Awkwafina) who have undergone the procedure before him to determine how best to let go, before it’s too late.

Swan Song strikes a balance between confronting the moral implications of Cameron’s decision, exploring the broader ramifications of the science itself, and providing an incisive glimpse into the psychology of memories and legacies.

The multilayered screenplay by Irish director Benjamin Cleary — making an ambitious feature debut — finds a fresh way to explore familiar themes within an intriguing futuristic landscape that’s more than just cool gadgets and colorful urban streetscapes.

Some of the film’s context becomes lost in a fragmented maze of jarring transitions and flashback snippets that detail the family’s ups and downs, perhaps in an ill-conceived attempt to make the excessively deliberate pace livelier.

However, Ali’s committed portrayal in a challenging dual role keeps the provocative what-if scenario grounded. The film effectively preserves its final twist without turning manipulative, convincing us to shelve its view on mortality as a conversation for another day.

Rated R, 112 minutes.