Lifeline

I hope this movie gets more recognition because Josh Stewart and Judah Lewis give off a perfect performance.

The story is so gripping. It caught me off guard for sure. The execution is mastered flawlessly. I loved it.

I enjoyed every single minute of it, was always intrigued. Definitely would recommend.

It's both good and bad that when smaller independent movies get seen they have their big supporters. Because when someone over-exaggerates how good something is, as Newton stated, there will be an equal and opposite reaction. So with a flurry of 10s come a flurry of 1s. I suppose they will eventually balance themselves out as more people see this movie.

And it DOES deserve to be seen.

It's a good use of a small budget, a clever idea, and while the script has weaknesses, it has some powerful moments as well. My biggest complaint is that the red herrings don't quite hold up by the end of the movie. While the audience should be pondering the interesting questions the story brings up, it leaves too much room for debating the tiny details that weren't really the point. But in a movie like this details hold a lot of weight.

I will say, perhaps the best part of the whole thing was Josh Stewart's performance in the lead role. I liked it so much I went out and watched The Collector and it's sequel with him in them. He carried those movies well also, but this is a better role. He plays his character with a quiet confidence with a hint of regret that is perfect for the story.

Go into this believing it's somewhere between a 6 and an 8 and you won't be too disappointed.

A real puzzle of story with crisp, natural dialogue and a fantastic lead performance by Josh Stewart. Surprising at several turns. Flies by and leaves you thinking about what is real and what is not, what is in the past and what is in the present. I found myself switching perspectives and perceptions about the reality time, the state of Steven's mind, the possibility of so many unknowns.

There are beautiful sequences and while not exactly scary, there are times when the suspense if palpable and uncomfortable enough to cause some nail-biting.

It is a film I would watch again to test assumptions I made the first time round.

5.4 stars.

I rate right where it belongs, as it does not entertain and falls utterly flat. Don't get me wrong, it's somewhat interesting and suspenseful for about 40 minutes, but it's nothing more than an elaborate bait-and-switch. I realized after watching many reviews, there would be no great mind-bending moments, no fulfilling reveals, no intriguing or thought provoking twists, nothing to hope for.

I was hooked into 'Lifeline' for way too long, at which point I realized it was a mystery I didn't really care to solve. After reading more reviews and continuing on this unsatisfying journey, I knew the ending would bring no closure whatsoever. And unfortunately they were correct, and that's what happened.

It's a basic and unoriginal psychological thriller. It could be many things, like a Sci-fi alternate universe, or final memories of a dying teenager or dying man, or his own mind playing tricks on him, or he gets prank calls, or a call from a doppelganger...I say, who cares?

This movie has a strong message and should be seen. But. All the little carefully planted mysterious things we encounter throughout the story that makes us continue are sadly tied together in the least innovative way in the last few minutes which makes the whole movie seem worse than it was. Not exaggerating when I thought of it as a waste of time just after finishing it.

Almost any other explanation, except for maybe the main character waking up at home from a dream, would have been fine. But even that ending would have made more sense. Too bad, since the acting was great and they made a suspenseful story out of very few actors and sets.