In & Sons Andrew tells his sons Richard (Johnny Flynn) and Jaime (George Mackay) that their half brother Andy (Noah Jupe) isn’t his ‘illegitimate’ son, Andy exists because a company made his clone.

Soft sci fi films are very fascinating and this film mostly has a good approach to what seems like an emerging subgenre. Sure, a lot of the scenes here have Jaime and Richard questioning and even denying Andrew’s shocking revelation. And as I wrote other reviews, filler scenes can be deadly even in movies almost two hours long. But as with many films, those filler scenes work as it captures character’s behaviours while within ‘familiar’ spaces. Jaime and Richard walk into their old rooms and dive onto dusty mattresses, spaces that feel lived in. But of course, Jaime and Richard have to talk to Andrew, and Andrew’s getting more convincing in time.

Despite of & Sons‘ kitchen sink dialogue, the cast works wonders while bringing their characters’ emotions to the screen. The wild cards here are Mackay and Jupe, the former looking more like Nighy than the latter does. But there’s actually something funny, hopefully intentionally about Jupe uncannily getting Nighy’s distinct tics in all his roles. The world is a terrible place right now but I hope Jupe is the first of many impersonators. And of course, he’s not just doing like a bit here, as he brings humanity in a clone. The dynamic scenes he has with Andrew’s ex wife Isabel (Imelda Staunton) are the best in the film.