PARALLEL | FILM REVIEW
Dir: Isaac Ezban (15, 104 mins)
A mind-bending sci-fi thriller with an existentialist hook and a very magic mirror that entertains whilst providing brain food. A tight group of four twentysomething friends are at a crossroads: three of them are tech nerds and there’s a rivalry between Amil Ameen’s Devin and Martin Wallstrom’s Noel, with Mark O’Brien’s Josh along for the ride. Rounding out the group is Georgia King’s Leena, who longs for a successful art career but deep down thinks she may not have the chops for it. She’s also Noel’s ex, and Devin holds a candle for her.
When their latest tech plan, for a rentable car parking spaces app, has to be provided in an impossible amount of time, their careers seem over. However, they discover a secret room in their house that has a weird periscope and a mirror that takes them into alternate dimensions. As you do. On finding this, they work out ways to use it to their advantage, exploiting the other worlds – which are very similar to ours, but with different creative advancements and inventions.
Initially, they use the time lag between worlds to create their app, but Noel soon gets a taste for more. As long as they don’t bump into their other selves, they should be fine and not break the whole multiverse, but greed, emotional complications and murder soon changes everything. What starts off as a fun romp descends into riveting character dynamics and moral dilemmas. Devin tries to find an alternate world where he can see his Dad again, Leena copies successful artwork from other alt-realities to fuel her own career and Noel becomes a mogul prepared to preserve his gains whatever the price.
Superbly and believably plotted by writer Scott Blaszak and given visual sense by director Ezban, this feels like a dimension-hopping Shallow Grave. The little-known cast are excellent, bringing believability and stakes to their group dynamic, while the ethical questions asked are also intriguing. What’s the best version of you? Does intellectual property exist in other dimensions? How much are you prepared to do to versions of yourself to get what you want? It’s all pacily directed and engrossing, with a central MacGuffin that works, making this an unexpected genre treat.
Released via digital platforms and DVD on Mon 14 June
words KEIRON SELF