OtherLife 2017 Review and Explanation

OtherLife expands the brain’s sense of time and creates virtual reality directly in the mind. With OtherLife, mere seconds in real life feel like hours or days of exciting adventures. As Ren and her colleagues race around the clock to launch OtherLife, the government muscles in to use the drugs as a radical solution to prison overcrowding.

OtherLife

Released: June 2017 Sydney Film Festival and USA internet release October 2017.

Screenplay: Gregory Widen, Kelley Eskridge, Ben C. Lucas.

Director: Ben C. Lucas

Starring: Jessica De Gouw (The Rezort 2015), Liam Graham (Hounds of Love 2016), T. J. Power (Offspring TV Series), Byron Finbar (Wolf Creek TV Series), Thomas Cocquerel (Look out for him in upcoming Billionare Boys Club 2018.)

Genres: Crime | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller.

OtherLife, 2017 is new on the Netflix line up. Supringsly it's an Aussie Sci-Fi film which doesn't come up as regularly as other genres do. For its director Ben C. Lucas, this is the follow-up feature film to his directorial debut. His first film Wasted on the Young (2010), is also in the technology theme. Because this was such an easy watch, I will definitely find the time to check his first film in the near future.

OtherLife might be an easy watch but that's because of it had many things to like. If you are looking for something that doesn't need your full attention, however, this is not a Netflix and chill film. The layered story-line gives you plenty of things to think about. It weaves its way along dropping clues and red herrings in its 96-minute runtime. For a plot-driven cinephile, I had a great time with this one and even spent a few minutes during the credits, getting things straight in my mind. For that reason, I had added a small spoiler section at the end to point out a few things should you find yourself confused. If you've played any kind of interactive gaming, none of the science stuff should go over your head though.

The scenic elements in this could easily be rivaled by some of the best films depicting oceans, mountains, and snow I've seen in recent years. Western Australia is renowned for its picturesque coastlines. You will certainly begin wondering if a holiday there might be in order after watching this. Kudos to the cinematographer Dan Freene.

Final Thoughts

The acting in this is high quality for a low-budget flick. The cast is small but they have been chosen and perform like a well-oiled machine. Each character suits the role they were given. Jessica De Gouw who plays Ren is so beautiful though, you will probably put the chips and chocolate down at some point while following the story along.

Some of the concepts introduced in OtherLife will get you thinking as it's incredibly relatable. I think if I was to point out any flaws in this it would be to do with the timeline. Although I understood the way it was structured and why this added detail made it a little convoluted. Overall though this film was a pleasant surprise and great spin on a tried and tested narrative.

I give OtherLife 3.5 cans of tuna in a box out of 5.

Ren:

Because the drug given has the ability to make a minute seem like days. When Ren is placed in her year-long incarceration inside OtherLife, not much time has elapsed in reality. We know this because people close to her were told she simply moved to Italy. Her father didn't believe her to be dead just missing.

When she breaks out of the cell, she has only broken out in her altered reality and is in fact still in the room at the facility with Sam.

Danny:

Danny died and the decision to incarcerate her as a guinea pig was real. She was really in an OtherLife jail.

Sam:

Sam decided to keep her in OtherLife as a means to recreate her technology. When Ren's stint in jail proved successful, he kept her there to try and find evidence to recreate her technology. Sam wanted Byron to help him tweak the code they had into the product the government wanted to buy. He wanted the money.

The End:

The end depicts Ren and her father at the hospital. In Ren's altered state, she gave her brother Jared the drug and he woke up. Ren is seen pulling the plug to relieve him of his seizure and letting him die. When Ren sees Danny in OtherLife, he explains he had a seizure which put him in hospital. He tells her how he drowned over and over again. Her Brother was explained to have drowned which resulted in his brain injury and life support. Ren had been struggling to keep her brother alive but OtherLife allowed her to realize Jared simply wanted to die. She and her father made the final decision to turn off his life support.

Do you have more questions? Leave me a comment and I will figure it out!