I can honestly say I'm perplexed about the reviews panning this film. I can see how it's not for everyone, but you can't deny the outstanding acting, good script, and creative direction. It's not easy to pull off something this satisfying on a low budget!
For me, it hit a lot of sweet spots: Detective noir/horror is one of my favorite genre mashups, the characters were strong but quirky, there was humor that arose from the established characters and situations (not from absurdity or just to be "funny", for the most part), and the story was mysterious without being too perplexing.
Of course it had some flaws, so there will be mild SPOILERS here...
First, they could have saved some of their limited budget by not placing the story in the near future. There was absolutely no reason for the heads-up displays on some of the smart-phones. I'm sure that wasn't cheap to do, and it added literally nothing to the story. If anything it detracted, since it never went anywhere.
Second, probably the biggest flaw, is that the interpersonal beat that was the linchpin of the entire ending was not explained well enough before we got there. There were hints that it was some sort of big deal, but not enough IMO. A few lines of clarification beforehand would have helped - not giving everything away but at least giving us SOMETHING that wasn't totally opaque.
And finally, there were some lines of dialog that were really hard to hear because of sound effects on the voice. They may have been able to hear it fine in the studio, but on a TV they were lost.
Overall, however, I really loved this one! The acting, especially, was head and shoulders above what I'd expect in this sort of film, even down to the smaller characters. The lead actor James Clayton, as the P.I./estranged father, was particularly excellent. And the clever story told us just enough without getting into the tall weeds of over-explanation. All of that was so good that I can easily forgive a few cheesy effects - it's not their fault it was low-budget and I'm not above using my willing suspension of disbelief for a story I like.
I for one am going to keep my eye out for a sequel!
For me, it hit a lot of sweet spots: Detective noir/horror is one of my favorite genre mashups, the characters were strong but quirky, there was humor that arose from the established characters and situations (not from absurdity or just to be "funny", for the most part), and the story was mysterious without being too perplexing.
Of course it had some flaws, so there will be mild SPOILERS here...
First, they could have saved some of their limited budget by not placing the story in the near future. There was absolutely no reason for the heads-up displays on some of the smart-phones. I'm sure that wasn't cheap to do, and it added literally nothing to the story. If anything it detracted, since it never went anywhere.
Second, probably the biggest flaw, is that the interpersonal beat that was the linchpin of the entire ending was not explained well enough before we got there. There were hints that it was some sort of big deal, but not enough IMO. A few lines of clarification beforehand would have helped - not giving everything away but at least giving us SOMETHING that wasn't totally opaque.
And finally, there were some lines of dialog that were really hard to hear because of sound effects on the voice. They may have been able to hear it fine in the studio, but on a TV they were lost.
Overall, however, I really loved this one! The acting, especially, was head and shoulders above what I'd expect in this sort of film, even down to the smaller characters. The lead actor James Clayton, as the P.I./estranged father, was particularly excellent. And the clever story told us just enough without getting into the tall weeds of over-explanation. All of that was so good that I can easily forgive a few cheesy effects - it's not their fault it was low-budget and I'm not above using my willing suspension of disbelief for a story I like.
I for one am going to keep my eye out for a sequel!