Audience Member
This movie was a big undertaking. We follow the main character, Cassie, through confusing shifts in reality, as she (and we) slowly piece together what is happening to her. With a very large budget, very good actors, and a much better director, this movie could have worked. Unfortunately, this movie didn't have any of those.
I enjoy movies like this, like the Borne Identity, which unravels a complicated plot and draws us into the star's life. But this movie didn't have that "it" factor. It's subject matter being so complicated, we needed a believable cast and realistic decisions that didn't confuse the audience, since it is hard to follow the timeline and the scientific explanations. The confusion really increased as the movie came to an end, and to be honest, I'm probably going to have to watch the movie several times in order to follow the entire sequence of events. Again, to be honest, I'm not going to watch it again because it wasn't that good.
The movie was very poorly directed, and the actors seemed to be confused as how they should react in many scenes. In one scene in particular, Cassie's father runs across the room, desperate to stop her from destroying an item, but doesn't make it to her before she does so. His reaction is so incredibly unorthodox; he responds as if she has just told him that she forgot milk at the store!
Why are there criptic notes in all the places Cassie goes to, in her own handwriting? Who else is reading these notes that they have to say the same thing and be such a short phrase? An entire personal letter could have been left on the bathroom mirror, but only 3 words were ever written! The smartest person since Einstein also smokes pot and drops acid, and she changes the world by writing her thesis. Yes, a thesis! For her masters degree! Other questions: How did this brilliant student get mixed up with a 2-bit auto mechanic and thug? How did her other love interest know everything that was supposed to happen with each time shift? And just how, pray tell, did Cassie change the entire world by running a computer program on her laptop, from inside a cheap hotel room?
With the selected negatives out of the way, I will admit that I watched the entire movie. It wasn't so bad that you want to turn it off, because the subject matter was interesting. So it's not turn-it-off bad. It's also not foul-mouthed like a lot of movies these days. There were also a few ideas about Cassie that was forced by the need to give information to the audience. What was the choice? Cassie is a vlogger, and is vlogging all about her experiments online, so that anyone can see and hear. Let's just hope all the other Cassie's aren't doing the same things.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/03/23
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Audience Member
Inferior time loop movie that unfolds at a tortuous pace. Lead actress Courtney Hope as a physicist extraordinaire comes off as an angst-ridden harpy battling her inner demons along with just about everyone in her personal life. She seems incapable of having a civil conversation and proves her toughness, notwithstanding her gender, with profanity laden tirades though this, of course, serves as a façade for her sensitive inner self. The supporting cast is apparently here to serve as whipping boys and girls throughout this irritating yawn. The storyline is obtuse and tedious and anyone interested in time travel would be better served staring at a clock and watching one's life tick away.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
01/17/23
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Audience Member
Hear the name Brian said about 500 times by the same actress.
Rated 0.5/5 Stars •
Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars
02/18/23
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Audience Member
ehhh...could've been better
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
01/13/23
Full Review
Audience Member
"A Triumph of Independent Filmmaking! Don't miss it!"
In an ideal world everyone you know would be talking about how intellectually stimulating and emotionally powerful DISPLACEMENT is, along with how it deserves a best-picture nomination far more than a certain incredibly over-hyped and over-rated movie last year that expected us to believe (as a fundamental requirement of enjoying the movie) the "profound" and "scientific" concept that all a person has to do to see into the future is to learn the proper foreign language! (Personally I found it far easier to believe that Lisa could see through time after eating Apu's extremely spicy cooking.)
Alas, we live in a time where the movies that most people see are those with advertising budgets of millions upon millions of dollars, and the establishment (from professional reviewers to amateur bloggers) tends to overlook how nonsensical many such movies are are for fear of offending the famous "auteur" directors (or powerful production company/studios) behind them. Rather, the establishment instead tends to take out its frustration on modest-budget independent films, where it can blow out of all proportion the scientific flaws they contain with little danger of retribution.
To paraphrase Shakespeare's Anthony, "So let it be with DISPLACEMENT!" But unlike him, I will admit from the outset that I come to praise this movie, which slowly builds from its scientific/thriller foundation to a highly dramatic and emotional catharsis whose power you don't see coming -- and which few movies these days, regardless of production or marketing budget, can match.
And yet (as we discover along the way) this scene flows naturally from the fundamental plot of the movie, which is a result of main character Cassie's deep need to spend just a few more minutes with her late mother, and help her fulfill her dying wish. As someone who lost the most important person of his life a few years ago, I can certainly understand how Cassie feels. If you can't relate to this desire (to do almost anything to get a few final minutes with a deeply loved one who died too soon), then I suspect that you are either young or extremely fortunate. (Though it occurs to me that such fortune comes at the price of having had a lesser experience of what life is truly all about.)
In any case, if you don't like the science, ignore it. (Even I found a moment here and there a bit much.) For it doesn't really matter, as virtually all of us have long accepted the idea of time-travel in movies (including the idea that things often go wrong), and the scientific specifics delved into in this film to justify it (for those "nerdy" types who are interested in it), while not really necessary, are no worse (in fact better than) most films.
My only significant criticism of the movie is how difficult it is the first time through to follow the first twenty minutes or so. But it's important to note that this is NOT (as is the case with many movies) because of any flaw in the story per se, but simply because -- in addition to following Cassie's trips through time -- the movie also cuts to scenes involving what might be called (I'm trying to not be too spoilery here) Cassie Prime, without adequately orienting us first.
Thus my fear is that some will be so confused by the beginning that they will give up on the movie. Which would be a shame, for the second time around virtually everything makes sense and, as I said before, the movie builds to an emotional climax that is well worth the time and effort even if you do have to watch the movie a second time before fully experiencing it.
I also love how, at the end of the movie, on one level everything is reset to how it once was, and yet on some metaphysical level Cassie's character has been changed -- as shown (amongst other things) by her radically different attitude toward her dad.
In sum, whether of budget great or small, this is the best movie I've seen in a long time. Don't miss it.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/26/23
Full Review
Audience Member
I've been following the development of this film for a while and I'm glad to be able to say it was worth the wait. I saw the Chicago premiere last night and it really delivers on it's promises of being a sci-fi thriller. The time travel quantum mechanics is address in a very approachable and entertaining way. There's drama, twist and turns right up to the last scene. The casting was phenomenal for a low-budget indie. Not just the many established stars delivering great performances but the up and coming lead of the film, Courtney Hope is going to be a star. The directing is top notch. The look of the film seems like a MUCH bigger budgeted film. I can see why it won so many awards. In other words, I highly recommend this film not just to the sci-fi fans but to film fans who like to be entertained.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/12/23
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