Donovan's Echo

Outstanding performances by Danny Glover and Bruce Greenwood ground this interesting introspective investigation into déjà vu., time, and personal loss.

Well directed by Jim Cliffe, we see Glover's character Donovan slowly emerge from the fog of alcoholism, fighting to solve a mystery surrounding haunting déjà vu experiences. The viewer is drawn through this well constructed story at a very comfortable pace, with a sprinkle of humour that makes this drama extremely entertaining.

Donovan's Echo is multi-layered yet suitable for family viewing. It is bound to stimulate some interesting discussion afterwards.

Special mention must also be made of the very strong performance by Natasha Calis who plays Maggie.

With elements of an art-house film, Donovan's Echo will be remembered as THE sleeper indie success of 2011.

Although this movie is a little slow moving toward the beginning, the plot is pretty deep so moving too fast would mean you would miss more of the important bits like the other reviewer did, causing him to use the word "disjointed". This movie is not at all disjointed! It has so many well placed, easily missed "bits/clues" that if you blink you just may miss something...If you don't "get it", you were not paying attention! The pieces connect from the beginning right through to the end. There are some flashback scenes throughout the movie to fill in the blanks which, like I said, if you are not giving this movie your full attention you might lose your place! All in all a good watch...It is the type of movie that makes you think (in a good way)! NOT the dopey mush brain time waster that fills so much of the screens today!

This movie definitely has something for everyone; a brilliant story containing lots of very fascinating "what-if" scenarios, built around some unique and complex concepts. The main character's struggle with his personal demons keeps you sympathizing with his desire to right his perceived wrongs from his past.

While the character portrayals by the two veteran actors (Danny Glover and Bruce Greenwood) were as exceptional as you would expect, it is the sharp-witted character of Maggie (Natasha Calis) who instantly captured my heart.

Wonderfully written and beautifully shot, the twists and turns within the movie keep you on the edge of your seat until the end.

I just ran across this movie last night and decided to give it a look mainly because Danny Glover is in it. Very interesting movie to say the least. Definitely worth the watch if you haven't seen it.

Of course, Danny Glover does an amazing job. Kudos to Bruce Greenwood for producing the film and for his understated but essential performance. He often plays the villain but here he is the best friend a man--especially one experimenting with alcohol and deja vu--could have. The location ambiance (Canada, I assume) brings a brooding northern chill to the watcher while at the same time the sensitivity of Terry Frewer's music score wraps the whole film together with its achingly ethereal, warm, beautiful themes.

It's not a big high-concept car-chase adventure--it's an unexpected gem.