A new drug on the streets, causing obscure and mystical effects, will make two paramedics from New Orleans reevaluate life.
The trippy, otherworldly, and oneiric opening sequence pins you down and gets your undivided attention. Steve (Anthony Mackie) and Dennis (Jamie Dornan) become immediately relatable from the get-go while you try to establish how everything is connected. As the incidents increase, the plot’s mystery and intricacy are accompanied by an equally dramatic subplot. Both unfold together on Jimmy LaValle’s amazing soundtrack, which expresses the characters’ psychosynthesis.
In my humble opinion, though, the film reaches its peak with the heartbreaking sequence of Steve’s dog, Hawking – honestly, I couldn’t breathe properly. Steve realises how the drug works and, from then on, it becomes too explanatory too fast for my taste, disillusioning too early an experience that stops raising questions anymore. Having said that, please don’t let it discourage you. Watch it, as it is a great low-budget, indie sci-fi, and both Mackie and Dornan do a great job in front of the camera.
Behind the camera, writers/directors/producers/cinematographers/editors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead prove once more their unquestionable talent. From Resolution (2012) to Spring (2014), to The Endless (2017), to Synchronic, they constantly prove that filmmakers don’t need millions of dollars to bring to life something innovative, something that follows certain rules, breaks others, and, ultimately, still manages to be groundbreaking, didactic, and entertaining. Christopher Nolan started on small budgets twenty years ago, and then the world became his oyster. As Steven Spielberg did thirty years before him. It seems that the filmmaking partners Benson and Moorhead are gradually being given more and more funding. If they stick to their unique point of view – and don’t get sucked by Hollywood – they will keep performing cinematic miracles.
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Solidarity for all the innocent lives who suffer the atrocities of war!
Stay safe!
