Robert Zemeckis was once one of the top filmmakers in Hollywood. And for good reason. He had delivered hit film after hit film on a consistent basis, ranging from blockbusters like Back to the Future and Oscar-winners such as Forrest Gump.

But over the last decade, Zemeckis’ career has hit a bumpy road. His last universally beloved film was in 2012 with Flight. Since then, most of his movies have either not performed financially, not performed critically or, in most cases, both. Two years after his career low with his live-action Pinocchio film for Disney, Zemeckis once again teams up with Tom Hanks, this time bringing along two more of his collaborators from Forrest Gump, screenwriter Eric Roth, and actress Robin Wright, for Here.

Based on the comic strip and subsequent graphic novel by Richard McGuire, Here is a centuries-long odyssey all told from a singular location. We see this location in pre-colonial America as it tells the love story of a young Native American woman (Dannie McCallum) and man (Joel Oulette). We also get some familial drama as Benjamin Franklin’s son, William Franklin (Daniel Betts), bickers about his dad’s politics. The movie also chronicles the invention of the La-Z-Boy Recliner, an aspiring pilot, and a black family facing the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, it’s the Young family that sits at the very center of Here. Al (Paul Bettany) is a military veteran who has recently married the lovely Rose (Kelly Reilly), and it isn’t too long before they have their first child, Richard (Tom Hanks). 

At the age of 18, Richard introduces his family to his girlfriend Margaret (Robin Wright), and the two conceive a daughter, putting aside Richard’s dreams of becoming an artist. 

Zemeckis is no stranger to experimenting with technology in his films. He’s the kind of guy who has always wanted to be an innovator, from Who Framed Roger Rabbit to Beowolf, his more experimental films have always differed greatly in terms of quality. In Here, Zemeckis keeps the camera in one place and rarely moves it. Since the passage of time plays such a large part in the film, Zemeckis also implements AI technology to de-age many of the characters that we see on screen.

The whole de-aging trend has been a mixed bag. Very few movies have gotten it entirely right, without things looking too uncanny. There are moments when the de-aging effects in Here are noticeable, make no mistake about it, but it also never becomes too burdensome or distracting. Maybe that’s because the camera’s lack of movement prevents us from seeing these characters’ faces close-up. But it also could be because the performances truly elevate the material, particularly from Hanks, Wright, and most of all Bettany.

If Bettany were in a better movie, he almost certainly would be in the awards conversation, playing the morally gray patriarch of the Young family, Al. Throughout the film, Al goes from being a hard-ass drunk, to an ailing senior looking to make things right for his family. Here is fueled by emotional manipulation, but Al’s arc is the only storyline that truly draws you in.

The rest of the film becomes almost too reliant on its gimmicky nature, as it constantly jumps around through time. While the moments where the periods overlap are fascinating, they don’t happen frequently enough. In fact, they feel more like something that should have been implemented more, rather than some corny Dad-level jokes about US history.  

The real problem with Here is that it’s a movie that is built entirely on throwing every single thing at the wall to be as emotionally manipulative as it possibly can. Some of these aspects feel shoe-horned in or haphazardly executed, such as a sequence where a modern black family teaches their son about how to react when a police officer pulls him over. This is a scene that could have been effective, but it just never adds anything to the film, and feels jarring compared to everything else. Especially because this is the only time where race is even addressed in the film. 

Everyone who is not the Young family feels wildly underdeveloped. To the point where Here feels like it may have been better suited as a Netflix limited series, where the format would remain the same, but each time period would get more of a focus for each other. As a movie, Here feels like it’s trying to handle such a large scope in far too little time.

The only reason why some of the emotional beats of Here hit is because Zemeckis and Roth are reaching for the easiest targets, like Alzheimers. But most of the movie feels emotionally distant with its audience, and the far-off camera placement makes you struggle to connect with the characters and their struggles.

Regardless, there’s nothing aggressively bad about Here, but there isn’t anything truly great about it either. I’ve long rooted for Zemeckis to have a true return to form, but at this point, it’s hard to see that happening. At least this is better than his last couple movies.

Here will be in theaters nationwide on November 1.

OSCAR POTENTIAL:

• None.