Aaron (Shane Carruth) and Abe (David Sullivan) are two garage start-up engineers trying to make it big. While trying to create some sort of anti-gravity device they accidentally find themselves in the possession of a device that allows time travel in such a complicated way that wikipedia has a detailed diagram to try to explain it.
Like anyone should expect, using the device proves to have all sorts of implications. In the name of realism, these implications are so complex that I'm not sure I understand half of them. Realism is the name of the game here, despite the unrealistic subject of the film. I could completely believe that Aaron and Abe were actually two geeks trying to be the next Woz and that they knew exactly what they were talking about every time they opened their mouths to say something I didn't understand. The small budget ($7,000) incidentally did not cause the film to suffer. The low quality film style lent itself quite well to the realism as if there was a hidden person filming a documentary.
On one hand I applaud Carruth for crafting such an insanely complicated piece of work that I'm sure makes sense if you are capable of understanding it. He refused to water down anything for the sake of the uneducated, and that's something I wish we saw at least a little more of in some mainstream movies. On the other hand, however, it is very hard to enjoy a movie you can't understand and follow, even if you know you should appreciate it for the Einstein caliber masterpiece it surely is. I know there are those who will point out that this is a smart film that moves far beyond the schlock that is most mainstream films. I can't however, in good conscience, recommend this to anyone who does not list visiting the Large Hadron Collider among their life long goals.
** (2/5 stars)
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