Foe

Finding a new angle to explore the proliferation of artificial intelligence, Foe is the latest dystopian science-fiction saga to envision a bleak future for humans and robots alike.

Confined almost exclusively to a single location with three characters, this muddled relationship drama explores the value of home and family, of holding on to the past versus getting a fresh start.

However, the evocative result is ponderous and gimmicky, contrasting the intimacy of a couple clinging to the past with the vastness of our place in the cosmos.

The story is set in the year 2065, more specifically in a rustic 19th century Midwestern farm house shared by Junior (Paul Mescal) and Henna (Saoirse Ronan). Plumes of smoke rising in the distance indicate something ominous, but more specific contextual details are vague.

We learn that rural life has been decimated, perhaps by climate change or other factors, making Junior and Henna literally part of a dying breed. He works at a chicken factory to provide for them.

Then a knock on the door introduces them to Terrance (Aaron Pierre), a stranger who frames his business as an opportunity more than an obligation.

He’s drafting Junior to work for months on a massive infrastructure project to colonize an inhabitable space station that provides the key to sustaining human life amid the desolation. “It’s time to move on,” he explains cryptically. “Soon most of us won’t be able to live here.”

Henna will be left behind with a clone of Junior while he’s gone, a “self-determining life form,” as Terrance describes it. She’s curious but he’s more cynical about the plan, which begins with Terrance gathering data to replicate Junior’s feelings and mannerisms.

Meanwhile, the idea of the couple’s impending separation triggers a downward spiral enhanced by Terrance’s awkwardly persistent presence in their house.

Fully committed performances give a sharply observed edge to the characters as tension builds beneath the surface while they’re torn between a troubled past and an uncertain future.

Yet as the screenplay by Australian director Garth Davis (Lion) and novelist Iain Reed examines devotion, fulfillment, and isolation, it too often emphasizes manipulation over meaningful exposition.

Meanwhile, Foe bogs down in clumsy symbolism and heavy-handed melodrama as it funnels toward its big twist, becoming more tedious than provocative.

Rated R, 110 minutes.