Between

It is truly amazing that, a film as horrific as BETWEEN even gets accepted into a prestige festival such as Sundance. I am not mad at the director for making such a poorly produced feature (even though he owes me $10 and 2 hours of my life), I am confounded how this movie made it past the Sundance judges. There is NO doubt that it is who you know at Sundance.

Before the movie began at the Echols Center at Park City, I knew I was in trouble: the director steps up to the podium then tells the audience this: "Folks, you are going to see a movie with a lot of twists and turns. Please, stay with it, as I promise you, the BIG twist ending is something you will love!" I mean, how dumb was that? Not only was he telling us the movie has a big twist, he was also trying to justify the weakness of the film's story-telling, that we must "hang in there". Bad start.

The film itself is a monotonous thriller about a girl whose sister is missing in Tijuana. THe girl goes to Mexico in hopes to find her sister.

The movie's title is a dead giveaway of "the twist" after watching 20 minutes of this film. Also, a deposition scene gives the movie away BIG TIME. You HOPE you are being led down a different path, ie, the recent SAW or even SIXTH SENSE for that matter, but no, you are not. You are spoon fed the entire movie within 30 minutes. And, for all of you stupid people out there, there are even force fed FLASHBACKS just in case you didn't get what was happening.

THe group I was with were constantly looking at their watches. Even a bunch of people got up and walked out.

DO NOT waste your life or $$ with this film.

On the other hand, the short film MOTEL that preceded BETWEEN was one of the best shorts I have ever seen. Now the guy who directed this DESERVES to work in this town. I would hope that the director of BETWEEN would give him $9.99 from the $10 I gave to him.

David Ocana posed his wonderful talent in this film.

The film was mostly shot in the city of Tijuana, Mexico. It is here that the protagonist Dianne comes to reality, or is it something else?

The movie style portrays the typical Alfred Hitchcock classic suspense with a touch of Bernard Herrmann, the well known composer of movies such as Psycho. The musical score is phenomenal. I applaud the composer for his excellent arrangements. The slightly melodic arrangements are used sparingly throughout the film nevertheless it renders a powerful effect of a good Psych thrill film.

Symbolism and imaginary ideas surge from the dreams which are based on Freudian-Lacan theories of dreams and relationships. It is here that Dianne must decipher and decide which step to take, which will take her to eternity. It is Pandora's box on the afterlife.

This film is for those of us who love a good psych thriller. The movie contains a lot of clues- one must be keen and sensitive to find each hidden clue. The movie gets better as you watch it again and again!

TWO thumbs up.

Salud, Dinero, Paz y Amor en 2006!

Can you put it together? In the same way a puzzle begs this simple question, so does the cinematic mind bend BETWEEN. From the first several seconds of the intro, cut by dramatic scene leaps & use of black and white to color, the film begins to offer us one jagged piece after another. And this is how we are pulled from our seats and strapped into what this film is selling, an entertaining and intellectual challenge. The general theme of one woman's physical and psychological journey, wrapped in a cloak of conspiracy and love, is offered in well thought out doses that keep us hooked as we catalog the pieces. It may be almost impossible to gather them all your first time through (I've seen it three times), but when we step back at the end of the film, with just a little help from director David Ocanas, the picture emerges. We are left partially satisfied, and overwhelmingly in immediate need of a second loop to gather the pieces we are sure we missed! Pierced with beautifully shot scenes across gritty Tijuana, this film is a visual and cleverly weaved intrigue that cannot be missed…several times!

Robert Nelms and Director David Ocanas have penned what was referred to at Sundance as a "metaphysical thriller." It almost works. The movie begins with a mysterious sequence of a woman seen only by her bare feet walking along a sidewalk in a Mexican city. Shortly thereafter, we are introduced to Nadine James, an attorney who soon learns that her sister is missing in Tijuana.

Although they were not close, Nadine is haunted by dreams of her sister, and immediately heads for Tijuana to try to find her. But it quickly becomes clear that what we are experiencing is not the linear and tangible reality we are all accustomed to. Dream-like sequences come and go. Events are repeated, but not exactly. Nadine runs into Kafkaesque characters in an Alice in Wonderland setting. On one level, she is playing the role of a detective, trying to unravel a mystery. But on another, she is clearly battling her own demons and trying to decipher the meaning of her own psychological flailings.

You get the feeling that Ocanas is attempting to follow the success of M. Night Shyamalan. But there are too many flaws in the script; too many contrivances. The tension drags on without building to a climax. Some of the clues are too obvious, and some absolutely elusive. Having said all that, I believe that thrillers need to play by a simple rule: At the end of the film, do I realize that I could have figured it out if I had been sufficiently smart and observant? And to be fair, Between passed this litmus test.

As an aside, at Sundance I sat next to the producer of the movie at its world premiere. He was coming out of his seat in excitement. (That's a great part of the fun at Sundance. There is so much anticipation and enthusiasm accompanying each movie.) Turns out I was right in the midst of the cast and crew. For many of them, including Ocanas, it was their first feature-length film. To their credit, this was an ambitious maiden voyage.

The most innovative independent films in this country are being made by Latin filmmakers and Between is no exception. In the tradition of Inarritu with Amores Perros and Amenabar with the Others, director David Ocanas transports the viewer through the unfolding of a complex mystery. The story focuses on the journey of Nadine, played by Poppy Montgomery, as she travels to Tijuana in search of her sister who is missing. Her search propels the viewer through a series of events - some in the future and some in the past - with supernatural overtones. Most of the action takes place in the border city of Tijuana which provides the movie with a certain grittiness and mystery that sucks Nadine in as soon as she arrives. Ocanas weaves the elements of the story into a powerful narrative. I was never quite sure what was going to happen next and had an unsettling feeling that it wasn't going to be good for Nadine. Through the use of flashbacks, Ocanas manages to convey that something bigger (and perhaps more sinister?) is going on here as Nadine continues her search. Ocanas strikes an excellent balance, though, keeping the movie from becoming too dark using exquisite cinematography of daily scenes in Mexico with bold colors, striking backgrounds, and rich scenery. I'd encourage lovers of indie film (especially if you're a fan of Inarritu or Amenabar) to go see this movie. It's a beautiful, gripping, thought provoking film.