Backtrace (2018)
Backtrace is a crime thriller that explores memory, violence, and the consequences of greed. The film centers on MacDonald “Mac” Porter, a hardened criminal who survives a disastrous armored truck robbery that leaves his entire crew dead. During the escape, Mac suffers a severe gunshot wound to the head, causing total amnesia. Although he survives, he forgets everything about the crime—including where the stolen $20 million is hidden.
Mac is incarcerated in a high-security mental institution, heavily guarded by law enforcement. Authorities believe that if his memory can be restored, the stolen money can finally be recovered. Leading the case is veteran detective Sykes, a tough, cynical officer obsessed with closing the case before corruption and criminal interference derail justice.
Inside the institution, Mac undergoes experimental drug treatments designed to trigger memory recovery. The therapy causes violent flashbacks—fragments of the robbery, betrayal among the crew, and bloody gunfights—but still no clear recollection of the money’s location. As his memories slowly return, so does his violent criminal nature, making him increasingly unstable and dangerous.
Outside the facility, multiple forces converge. Corrupt officials, former associates, and hired mercenaries all want access to Mac, believing they can force the truth out of him. Their competing interests explode into chaos when a brutal assault is launched on the mental institution. Gunfire, explosions, and betrayal turn the hospital into a war zone.
During the attack, Mac escapes custody and flees into the desert. Detective Sykes pursues him relentlessly, while criminal factions hunt Mac with the intent to kill him once the money is revealed. As the pressure intensifies, Mac’s memory finally returns in full. He remembers that the robbery was doomed by internal betrayal and that the stolen money became the reason his crew turned on one another.
In the final confrontation, Mac is forced to face the consequences of his past. Detective Sykes catches up to him, not driven by greed, but by a need for closure and justice. The truth about the money is revealed, but it offers no redemption—only the realization that the pursuit of wealth destroyed every life it touched.
Backtrace ends on a grim note, emphasizing that forgetting the past does not erase guilt. Memory may fade, but accountability does not.
Backtrace is a dark, violent thriller about how the past always resurfaces—and how some crimes leave scars that time cannot heal.
