OtherLife

It's got a nice premise even though it is impossible not to see the similarities with the Black Mirror episode "White Christmas". We follow the main character trying to achieve something but she constantly gets sidetracked with other things which makes the story a bit convoluted. It almost felt like they added these extra events to turn this into a feature length film.

It's about a girl trying to wake her brother up from a coma through a drug that lets you have time-compressed VR experiences.

OtherLife is the story of a piece of software that can transport you into a dream-like world (like Total Recall). The movie discusses the implications of the software through the 2 developers' secret projects with the software.

For a low-budget science fiction movie there is a lot of positive things to point out. I was personally impressed with the visual effects and the courage to tell the story through the language of cinematography (dolly zooms, Dutch angles, color-grading, etc.). When it comes to acting and sound design I found the movie did a decent job and it never felt like an amateur low-budget movie to me.

Unfortunately there were 2 things that annoyed me about the movie: Firstly, the movie takes ideas from existing sci-fi which makes the story unoriginal and predictable (to some extend). It reminded me in particular of 2 Black Mirror episodes; White Christmas and Playtest. If you haven't seen Black Mirror I think you will find this more original, less predictable and consequently enjoy it more. Secondly, the protagonist is a very smart woman working on the software, but she only appears to be smart when working on the software and not in any other part of her life. I don't want to give any examples of this since that would spoil the plot. If you don't expect to share these issues then I believe you will like or maybe even love this movie.

In conclusion i enjoyed watching the movie, and I am surprised by the low rating (my ratings are usually 1-2 points under the average). Despite a few issues I will definitely keep my eyes open for this directors next project.

To me OtherLife is a decent movie which amounts to a 6/10 in my rating distribution.

OtherLife had potential to be a great film, but the story development fell through. Great premise, great idea, thrilling, but no real story. Decent acting but not very well scripted. All in all, a fairly predictable movie, especially the ending.

Would recommend watching Total Recall, the Matrix, or Inception instead of this one if you want a more engaging and well-written movie with a good execution, however, this one will suffice if you're bored and just looking for any thrilling Sci-Fi to watch.

The "DMT security" was a nice reference to DMT, the psychedelic drug, which I laughed at. Clearly this was the source of inspiration for the writers, considering the DMT-type visuals that were added in some scenes.

5.5/10

*A no spoiler review so this will be pointless for anyone looking for confirmation/discussion after watching.*

Overall: Highly recommended.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, having no idea what it was about when I clicked on the icon in Netflix, so was slightly disappointed to find it given such a mediocre score on IMDb.

I will not give away the plot, suffice it to say that you'll have stay on your toes to follow the hints and clues. On a second watch, they are quite cleverly there!

The acting is first rate! The lead role's character and background are sufficiently fleshed out and approachable, and the majority of the science is quite convincing.

Moreover, like much of the best speculative fiction, the premise raises some philosophical and moral questions: In this case, regarding the application of cutting edge technology.

While not entirely original in plot (but then, what film truly is in the 21st century?) the adaptation and implementation makes for a worthy and memorable ride with some visceral and quite disturbing moments, not to mention a spot of exercise for the old noggin.

It's hard to feel anything for the lead, because she comes off very unlikable. And liking, or feeling sympathy for the protagonist is probably kind of important. Although there were many beautiful shots, there were just as many unneeded slow scenes. I tried to like it. But I didn't.