Altered Hours

Positive reviews for this film are forgiving and I think based mostly on concepts only pointed at by the film, not actually realized. Yes, the premise is great, but the impetus of the movie shifts and the acting is spotty at best. I don't mind having to figure things out as I go--that can be the appeal of a film--but the cast and crew seemed to also be developing their vision as they filmed. Most important is that the co-star's character is sorely underdeveloped given the crusader she emerges as in the end. They recall bits of the movie that were to have foreshadowed this, but the effect flops. Somewhat similarly, the main character's motive for using Z has to be stated explicitly at the end. While it makes total sense with the movie content, he's too much of a mystery otherwise to triangulate/confirm. What's less of an issue, but still sticks out is the poor acting of the inexplicable villain and the absurdly, grotesquely incompetent acting of the detective. It's probably not all the fault of the actor, though, as no one seemed to have a clue what was or was not supposed to be driving the film, which also contributed to the empty acting and tedium.

Like other viewers, I found it confusing to watch the first time. However, I know that I tend to be a linear thinker and movies that present alternate time lines almost always require a second viewing from me. I really empathized with Will, the main character, and that is important to me in any movie I watch or book that I read. I was ready to hate both Michelle and Jay, but the ending made a lot clear to me and I forgave them at the end. I won't say what television show this movie reminded me of, especially at the end, but it's one of the few movies that I really feel could use a sequel.

So, yeah. It wasn't a perfect movie and some of the script was pretty rough. But overall, considering the relative neophyte status of the writers, I was suitably impressed enough to be willing to give their future work a second look.

I have -no- idea why this movie is ranked so poorly!

For low-budget Sci-Fi films, this is top tier and has an engaging storyline, likable characters I can relate with, and doesn't dumb things down too much.

It has great rewatchability. I wonder how all the nay-voters would rank Primer?? Especially the only other reviewer who said "the storyline is confusing." Um, this movie is **definitely** geared towards the genius spectrum.

For any story about time-travel there are going to be confusing and unclear parts. How these are handled somewhat defines the experience. Altered Hours uses the premise of drug-induced time-travel/viewing to avoid paradoxes such as those encountered in time-machine stories. While the concept is good, the actual film making is pretty woeful, indeed terrible in parts. The main protagonists' acting is bearable, but some of the supporting characters are appalling, really dire in places. However, the outcome of the story, the raison d'être for the behaviour of the characters is finally well explained. I was quite moved by the ending, indeed it was what saved the film for me. It's a clever story, poorly delivered. I look forward to the next story from these writers in the future - hopefully with a better budget and cast!

I thought it did some clever things with the time travel. I liked the idea that it was a drug that showed you glimpses into the future, but you're only seeing part of it as you're trying to figure out what is happening. The lead character is uncontrollably thrown into the future, and there's a mystery to solve rather then the keep going back until it's right trope.

But I think the story is really decent actually, it's a shame some of the acting isn't great. I've seen worse, but it's definitely below average. The cinematography is not bad, and I think they did well with the budget they had.

There's a fun little twist at the end too.