Flashback

Seeing several comparisons of this film to classics as Donnie Darko and The Butterfly Effect, though in fairness. Flashback is not on those films' levels. Dealing with an interesting concept and a good leading actor with Dylan O'Brien, the problem lies more with the writing and overall script.

Too many flashback scenes, quick cuts, different timelines, fast forwarding and backtracking to keep up. The result is that it was a little too gimmicky and ending up being confusing. Perhaps if this movie was given more explanations and possibly added more runtime it would have been better.

There does lie an interesting concept but the end product is something which doesn't reach its full potential. Was expecting some sort of big reveal or twists in the end but nothing special occurred. Some intriguing moments but nothing special and not quite like Donnie Darko or the Butterflies Effect.

Mom is in the hospital, potentially brain dead. Our hero and his lovely young wife visit mom... but our hero is haunted with a memory from his past that he can't shake, so he investigates. As he goes down the rabbit hole it seems there is something much deeper to find which has been suppressed all these years. And just as if think a new reveal is about to happen.... it's 50 more minutes of video filters, scaryish collages, triple image effects, flashing lights, adding up to a whole lot of utter nothingness that doesn't even stop its metamorphasing until even the very last minute of the film. And boy does that non-ending turn into a non-tearjerking stinker.

There was a really good film begging to be unearthed. The performances are very good for what amounts to a whole lot of nothing. Nothing ventured. Nothing gained. Imagine a 2 hour movie that reflects a minute for minute wandering daydream of a drug addict where the sum of all its parts can just be your mind on drugs. No wonder this went straight to video. A waste of good efforts by the actors.

Psychedelic, Hallucinogenic, or Outright Bizarre; those would be the words the majority of the viewers will be spitting out following their time with "Flashback". Guess what? This enunciates more than it may come off on the exterior! Not without its caveats but still a resonating piece of art; that if understood correctly, it may well take a permanent place deep-down your consciousness.

"It is never too late to correct our mistakes. And if we do not, we risk repeating them"

At some point in our lives, each one of us more or less faces existential dread. What am I doing? Is it all worth it? Am I on the right track? Concerns like that slowly take over your mind; seek to cripple us from the inside. If not dealt with at the right time, an inevitable collapse into madness or something worse than that awaits in the offing.

While taking obvious cues from Magic Realism, Flashback attempts to throw light upon the root causes of such traumatic & agonizing developments and guides us towards the path of Redemption!

What is life? It is nothing but a series of events that transpired from our own doing. Good Decisions, Bad Decisions; both shape the reality that encircles us. A continual cycle of Consequences and Repercussions that follow one after the other. All because of the mistakes we made or the wrong roads we took, which eventually dragged us to our miserable fate.

What if you could turn the clock back? Go to that exact minute where it all took a turn for the worse! Given the opportunity, wouldn't you take your step back? Would you not pull your loved ones closer and give them a tight, warm hug and make sure to never hurt them again? Would you not put all your efforts to rebuild the relationships you hold so close to your heart? I'm sure you would. Who wouldn't? Let us keep in mind that it is never too late.

I could go on & on and talk about its Mind-bending Cinematography, or its Melancholic Score, or the Staggering Performances (Especially of Dylan O'Brien & Maika Monroe's) in great detail; but I believe, I don't need to. The underneath lesson of life takes precedence over any other prospect herein.

Based on the acting I would have given a higher rating, you can't fault the cast. Dylan O'Brien does a great job.

The direction, storytelling was just convoluted and messy. It was trying to be smart and artistic but just didn't pull it off. A similar story that has been done better in other movies.

Flashback is so ambitious that the story becomes convoluted very quickly. I thought Tenet was a mess but this is easily way harder to follow. I do admire the attempt at doing something new, even if the director couldn't quite stick the landing.

All the actors give a great performance with Dylan O'Brien delivering a career best performance. When the directing and story collapse in on itself much like the concept of time and space that's used as a plot device here, we are still held together somewhat by the acting.

I love how the script flirts with very interesting concepts such as drug addiction, agency, accountability, reality vs maladaptive dreaming and love. The ending was surprisingly emotional and the bond between mother and son will tug at your heart strings.

All in all, don't expect a straightforward story, this is a different film. Instead go where the story takes you, suspend your belief and think about the themes the story explores and how they relate to your own life.