Benjamin Cleary

In this future-set drama, Mahershala Ali plays an ailing father who decides whether or not to clone himself for the sake of his family.Cloning is such an unsettling and outlandish prospect that it naturally lends itself to sinister adventures (and sometimes farce). But “Swan Song,” a science-fiction drama written and directed by Benjamin Cleary, posits a scenario of doubling that’s just as much about acquiring emotional intelligence as it is about reckoning with existential and practical ramifications.Cameron (Mahershala Ali) is an ailing graphic designer who doesn’t have long to live. Loathe to abandon his wife, Poppy (Naomie Harris), and their young son, he secretly undertakes a procedure that will create a replica of himself — physically identical, possessing his memories, yet healthy. But will the double really be Cameron in any meaningful sense, or will he simply be fulfilling Cameron’s role in life? Will his family even notice? And is Cameron OK with that?After an especially scary fainting episode, the switch is set to happen in a secluded compound on a lake, where the caring-but-firm scientist (Glenn Close) assures Cameron that this sort of thing will soon be common. We get a sense of the time period’s science-fiction parameters through a mix of banal and mildly “Black Mirror” details: driverless cars are a rule, talking droids serve snacks on trains, and contact lenses can record and transmit what you see.Cleary’s story walks us through the steps of Cameron’s transition. He meets his new doppelgänger in the flesh — temporarily named Jack — and uploads his memories. Mild comic relief comes from Cameron’s hangouts with a recently transitioned person (Awkwafina) at the compound. We get glimpses of Cameron’s family life and its strains, as well as a flashback to his meet-cute with Poppy, all of it suggesting how grief, belief and love might take on unfamiliar forms with new technological possibilities.But any mind-bending conceit or special effect pales before Ali’s incredibly fine-tuned talents. Playing opposite a digital replica of oneself almost doesn’t merit comment anymore, but Cameron and Jack are an entrancing study in the subtlest shifts in energy and feeling. When Cameron first meets his clone, the welter of apprehension, curiosity and concern is apparent on Cameron’s face, but Ali’s crowning touch is Jack’s faint expression of sympathy toward the man he will replace.Ali’s focus and presence makes us believe that both of these men are equally alive and feeling the brunt of this deeply uncanny predicament. This is less a conceptual thumbsucker than a tightly focused, almost miniaturist drama about moving on. Whenever something goes awry, we worry less about Pandora’s box dystopia than about the psychological toll of Cameron’s limbo. Perhaps more so than any film that’s received the tagline, it’s effectively about being true to yourself.Swan SongRated R for heated language. Running time: 1 hour 52 minutes. In theaters and on Apple TV+. More