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Review: Sci-fi humanoid thriller ‘2307: Winter’s Dream’ plays like a parody

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There’s a point early on in “2307: Winter’s Dream” where you wonder if you’re actually watching a spoof of futuristic dystopian sci-thrillers — the sort that has rogue humanoids rising up against what’s left of mankind.

How else to explain all the tired sound bites from the post-apocalyptic movie playlist and parade of cliché-ridden characters uttering Philip K. Dick-wannabe dialogue like, “only liars wear smiles anymore.”

Alas, it soon becomes apparent that director and co-writer Joey Curtis is dead serious regarding this pretentious slog set during a 300-year cold snap in Phoenix (played by an especially snowy Buffalo, N.Y.) where the stoic Bishop (co-writer Paul Sidhu) heads a mission to the “Dead Zone” to hunt down and terminate the errant ’noid leader, ASH-393 (Branden Coles).

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Joining the veteran soldier on the quest is the tough-as-nails “Mein Kampf-quoting” Kix (Arielle Holmes) and a Jamaican jokester (Kelcey Watson), as they trudge their way through the icy tundra, foreboding voice-overs and echo-laden flashbacks.

Curtis, who was a co-writer on 2011’s acclaimed “Blue Valentine,” admittedly takes advantage of a record-breaking western New York snowfall to mood-setting effect, but all that smirk-inducing dialogue and the weightless performances inevitably take their toll.

With its arrival in theaters no doubt deliberately coinciding with that of the highly-anticipated “Blade Runner 2049,” the overstuffed production feels as tediously incessant as its endless winter.

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‘2307: Winter’s Dream’

Not rated

Running time: 1 hour, 41 minutes

Playing: AMC Orange; AMC Covina; also on VOD

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