Clone Cops Film Review: Twisted Sci-Fi Humor

Clone Cops combines action and humor with social commentary, making for a unique if unfocused experience.

The story is set in the far future, where everything, including the police force, is commodified. The infamous NefariCorp controls all means of production as the nefarious mad scientist Frank (Henry Haggard) sends out his army of clone cops (all played by Phillip Cordell) to do his bidding. They come across a group of heist criminals planning one big job and shoot the leader Fara (Quinnlan Ashe). However, in the aftermath of this, the criminals discover a secret which could upend the entire NefariCorp operation, and the job now becomes about exposing the operation. 

Director Danny Dones amplifies Clone Cops through his erratic style of direction. His use of pastel colors, fast editing, and wonky sets makes the whole thing feel more surreal. The jokes all land because of how exaggerated and cartoonish the scenario is already, making the laughs come even harder. Dones seems to be making a live-action cartoon, and this takes the best elements of cartooning and translates them well. 

In spite of being a silly comedy, Clone Cops manages to have just a small bit of intelligence by tying its humor to modern social commentary. The whole enterprise of Nefaricorp is broadcast like a series on streaming. Every aspect of the main character’s heist is broadcast for the world to see. Social media influencers interrupt the movie like a Greek Chorus. This is a movie made for the social media generation, and it shows how distractions and interruptions can affect the viewing of a story. There are no clear good guys, which serves to highlight the disjointed, amoral nature of this futuristic world. 

Some problems arise from how the storytelling is presented and the disjointed narrative of its presentation. Since the film goes so far as to interrupt itself for fake commercial breaks, it can be hard to tell which parts are relevant to the broader narrative. It does feel like an Instagram Reel with how certain scenes come and go while not having any clear cohesion or narrative structure. Given how the show markets its entire premise as part of a streaming service, it is clear there is an unreliable narrator at play, but which part is unreliable will depend on the viewer. 

Clone Cops is certain to be a future midnight movie staple, with many iconic lines and over the top scenes keeping you laughing. It is in many ways the ideal embodiment of an indie film, doing whatever the director wants with no regards for focus groups or studio mandates. It will make you laugh, and then make you think afterward. The story could have used a bit more polish to get its message across, but the final product is satisfactory enough to make it a worthy watch with friends. It does not re-invent action comedy as a genre, but at the same time it is not supposed to try.

Clone Cops will be released in theaters in Los Angeles, New York City and Nashville, and on digital and on demand, on January 31, 2025.