Sum of Existence

Sum of Existence is an extraordinary film that breaks with one of the most cliché'd traditions of psychological thrillers -- the idea that hypnosis is a panacea that can be used to solve problems. In fact, the story centers around the way that the use of hypnosis takes a girl who has already been brutally wounded and unbalances her in ways that almost get her -- and others -- killed.

Liz Murphy is a normal, vivacious teen, who was brutally assaulted by a stranger and left to die. Months after the attack, she lives in a strange sea of denial and confusion. Attempting to go about her normal life, she doesn't understand why so many people treat her differently, even her best friend and her parents, nor why she's periodically haunted by strange, frightening flashes of... something...

What Liz doesn't know is that, in the aftermath of her attack, she broke down so completely that, as a last resort, her parents turned to a psychiatrist who used hypnosis to block her memories. In the short term, it helped her to recover. But it's left her behaving in ways that her friends and family find disturbingly out of character, and THEY are still dealing with the fallout of what happened to her, even if she no longer is. Worst of all, her assailant is furious that she's forgotten him, and is determined to make her remember.

Although a lot of the conventions of the traditional thriller are in place, including the cat-and-mouse game that soon develops between Liz and her stalker, what truly distinguishes this film is the way it delves into the minds of its characters. It explores Liz's fragile state, and the way simply burying a trauma such as hers only worsens its impact. It explores the mind of her psychiatrist, a woman who becomes far too attached to her patients and can't always discern (because she's lost her objectivity) what is truly best for them. And it explores the mind of the twisted psychopath who has become obsessed with Liz's destruction.

Brooke Anderson is a luminous actress, definitely one to watch. She makes Liz's plight very real, and yet manages, even when Liz is at her worst, to imbue the character with a quiet strength that comes to the fore. Liz is nobody's victim, and her mind is nobody's playground, and watching her take back her life and her sanity is a very triumphant experience.

"Sum of existence" is amateurish: amateurish acting, scripting and direction. I came across this film on TV one night and assumed it to be either an acting school's end of year film, or someone's private project. I watched it in disbelief that a, it had been made and b, it was being shown on free-to-air television. When I discovered it was backed with government money and all involved were allegedly professional, I was shocked. It is a poor attempt at a thriller, with clichéd situations. I can find nothing to recommend in this film. It is an embarrassment to the Australian film industry. The industry here is notoriously underfunded and it makes me angry that money should have been spent on this schlock. All those who were involved in funding and making it should have a good long hard look at themselves.

"Sum of Existence" by first time director Jon Cohen is a great example of Australian independent film that is not afraid to present controversial ideas and concepts that are larger than life on such a shoe string budget.

The film presents the story of Liz, who after a traumatic and brutal experience is hypnotized in order to forget. In short it does help her recover from her complete psychotic break, but in the long run the treatment begins to affect her behavior towards those around her. The film therefore presents a realistic commentary on psychiatry and is a successful attempt of how most psychiatric treatments are short term behavior modifiers, but do not always work long term.

By placing this commentary in amongst a "serial kidnapper/rapist" storyline the film is heightened in its dramatic premise and keeps you entertained and intrigued.

The acting by the entire cast is strong and the vision functionally reflect this and the story nicely.

I have great respect for Jon and his team who were able to take a complex story and actually go out there and make it happen on such a low-budget and then to top it off they were able to score a nice time-slot on Channel 9 through sheer perseverance.

Patience and perseverance is exactly what this film is all about and if this is the first feature film by Jon Cohen then I look forward to experiencing future films of his... Give this guy a budget and see what happens...!!!!

I saw this movie. It was OK.

there were some incredibly strong performances from the actors, particularly from the girls who played Liz and Michelle. i found some of the other leads to be a bit over the top, some were a bit wooden, but overall the acting was one of the stronger points. the concept was interesting but wandered a little at times, at other times skimming over things which seemed like they deserved more attention.

it was difficult to really empathize with either of the female protagonists (the teenage girl or the psychiatrist)- mostly because their characters seemed to almost be fighting over which one was the focus of the main story. because of this they both came off a bit cold, something which may have been solved by their relationship with each other but wasn't. in their scenes together Juliet (the shrink) came off as patronizing and superficial, and the girl as a result just came off like a whiny brat (which considering she's recovering from a savage attack seems pretty damn harsh). there were other characters and sub-plots which could have brought a more human element to both these characters: Juliet had an ex-boyfriend character who was a rape counselor, any and all warmth about her character came from their relationship. unfortunately for her he was only in a couple of scenes (which also seemed strange considering his character was pretty much imperative to the whole story). he was one of the film's only completely sympathetic characters, had the potential to link Liz's family and Juliet on a more personal level but didn't. instead there was scene after scene of the parents fighting with each other which just distracted from the main story and made their characters seem cold and selfish. Liz had a best friend Michelle who spent most of the film going through an emotional crisis/ethical dilemma. the actress in this role delivered a notably convincing performance but the character just sort of added to the heaviness of the plot. there was a definite opportunity to balance this (which i can only assume was cut from the film for god knows what reason): they had a third friend who was a goth (the only teenage girl that didn't have blonde hair?) who for some reason was only there for the beginning and the end of the film. she was clearly supposed to be best friends with Liz and Michelle, it was set up that these 3 were being constantly verbally (albeit lamely) abused by the "popular girls" but that their strong friendship bond prevented the bitchiness from affecting them. why was she not around while Liz spent most of the film in a violent mental/emotional struggle and Michelle spent most of the film in tears? some of the other characters just blended in as part of the backdrop, such as the crazies in the psych ward, the bitchy girls, the nurses etc, probably their scenes could have been minimized as much of their interaction was unnecessary.

there were a couple of plot holes which was frustrating, it did seem as though there was little communication between the director/writer and the editor and some of the shots were weird and slightly inappropriate (stuff like characters cut off the edge of a shot for an entire scene... if they're there why can i only see their arm?). it ran too long (which i think is pretty standard fare for a writer/director debut)- some scenes dragged, some probably should have been cut. the music was really repetitive and often completely inappropriate. the dark mood probably would have been more balanced with a greater diversity of music- the only music was the score (apparently they lived in a suburb with no radio stations?) which was all based around a sombre piano that came in suddenly and forebodingly no matter what the scene.

there were some great elements in the film, there were also many things overlooked. brings up some interesting points but doesn't follow all of them through. the acting is good, if you can get past the urge to punch the characters for all being total downers. not a movie to cheer you up if you're feeling blue. might have made a great TV show.

Director/Writer Jon Cohen really tried to produce a good film, and did so with flying colours. Elizabeth Murphy(portrayed by Australian actress-Brooke Anderson) is very believable, she is just like every 16/17 year old, with a twist. Brooke "Mikey" Anderson brings Liz to life, you can really believe what is going on. While I was watching this movie, I could hear myself thinking what you would think if you were there. Its amazing what a bit of effort and determination will do when it comes to making a movie. Congratulations must go out to Jon Cohen, Tim Maddocks, Brooke Anderson and the rest of the crew involved. Lets hope the team does another Australian film soon!