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Half-Life

Play trailer Poster for Half-Life 2008 1h 56m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 4 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Troubling signs of the apocalypse appear while a brother and sister react to their father's desertion.

Critics Reviews

View All (4) Critics Reviews
Justin Chang Variety A precocious if rather precious debut feature for writer-director Jennifer Phang. Jan 31, 2008 Full Review Stephen Farber Hollywood Reporter Marks the debut of a promising, truly independent film artist. Jan 24, 2008 Full Review Brandy McDonnell The Oklahoman Phang chocks the movie so full of family melodrama, social commentary and abused-child escapist fantasy that it sometimes simmers but can't come to a full boil. Rated: 2/4 Aug 8, 2018 Full Review Don Willmott Filmcritic.com A healthy serving of Californian suburban angst is topped with a drizzle of existential angst Rated: 3.5/5 Oct 15, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (31) audience reviews
Audience Member A poetic movie about the incomprehensible world of adults seen through the eyes of a child An original movie about a mother trying to maintain her family whole while escaping loneliness A creative movie about how the environment/context affects our lives An ambitious movie ... with too many facets to chew. Furthermore, its estranged dialogues and backgroundless personages keep us at a distance Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Enigmatic, slow-moving. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member I don't understand nothing !!! So bad !!! Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review Audience Member Appreciated this artistic independent film of an apocalyptic scenario. Narrated with intelligence and depth through visual layers and tonal variations that span fantasy and real human drama. Thoughtful casting. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member Hopeless... a waste of time... Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Let's play a game of Cosmic Whack-a-Mole! Every time a character appears, strike it on the head so it delivers lines from a concussed state where it is so confused that banal lines take on some sort of meaning. I found very few credible performances here. As I joke, it seemed like every performer had a concussion. Everything appealing about the movie had nothing to do with the plot. The backdrop of global disasters delivered through various media. A visually appealing anime style that was a welcome distraction from drudge. Every good shot that I saw was one without any character in it. Yet I see a lot of critical gushing over another film fest baby. To me it's another example of how desperate we are as a viewing public for anything truly artistic that somebody can easily push buttons and make them all agog. Fundamentalist cardboard cutout parents in denial with a gay son. His lover, a teacher, that gets fired for being gay. An apathetic young lady and her dissociative brother who are troubled by a parental breakup. The frustrated mother and her lover. All of them flat and two dimensional at best. What is the point? Find hope despite a looming apocalypse? Where? In fractured relationships? Apathy? Flights of fantasy? The flip side of a half-life is half-dead. If I was forced to endure more "brilliant" cinema like this as a routine I would also hope for the Sun to explode and kill us all. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Half-Life

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Troubling signs of the apocalypse appear while a brother and sister react to their father's desertion.
Director
Jennifer Phang
Producer
Alan T. Chan, Mark E. Lee, Reuben Lim, Robert Zimmer Jr.
Screenwriter
Jennifer Phang
Production Co
Fade to Blue Films, Mark E. Lee Productions
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (DVD)
Jan 5, 2010
Runtime
1h 56m