Film Gecko

"Suspension" Review

by Jane Boursaw on May 27th, 2008

It’s always nice when a movie leaves you pondering the mysteries of the universe long after the credits roll. Such is the case with Suspension, a sci-fi thriller that had me scratching my head over 1) the mysteries of time and space; and 2) how the heck the filmmakers did that. Read more about this in my interview with director Ethan Shaftel.

Suspension is a twisty-turny tale that tells the story of Daniel Bannet (Scott Cordes), whose life is turned upside down after he loses his wife and son in a tragic car accident. Daniel is a middle-aged, guy-next-door type, making it easy for viewers to interject themselves into his character. He’s one of us.

More after the jump, including a trailer…

But here’s the thing. At the time of the accident, Daniel’s son was playing around with a video camera in the back seat. Through some fluke of inter-dimensional wonder, the camera gains the ability to stop time. It’s as if there were forces at work at the precise moment of the crash which were then infused into the camera.

Daniel discovers this while rebuilding the camera after the crash. When he presses the pause button, everything stops. And by everything, I mean soccer balls stop in mid-air, people are frozen in mid-stride, cars are halted in mid-turn. It makes you think about the power of such a fluke. What would YOU do if given the power to stop time? Would you move things around? Re-arrange people? And in so doing, change the course of history and the universe?

That’s just what Daniel does. Oh, his motives are good at first. Grief-stricken over this giant void in his life, he strikes up a relationship with Sarah Caine (Annie Tedesco), a newlywed who lost her husband in the same car crash. She has a weird connection to the space/time continuum, as well. When Daniel presses the pause button, Sarah’s eyes flutter and she passes out. The filmmakers don’t try to explain this, which is cool, in my mind. It is what it is.

Daniel begins to watch Sarah, stalking her in his gentle every-guy way. Then he takes it a step further and tries to improve her life. When everything stops, he rearranges people and things to benefit her. It’s not a romantic obsession. It’s more of a “help” obsession. But as Daniel “helps” Sarah more and more, he becomes addicted to this all-mighty power. As you might imagine, it goes oh so wrong.

I read through some of the other reviews of Suspension, and it’s funny that we all used the words “riveting” and “mesmerizing.” The film has an other-worldly hue to it - sort of blue-ish - which gives it a hypnotic feel. Plus, unlike so many movies these days, I had no idea where the plot was headed. I was glued to the story into the final scene, and even then, wasn’t sure how things would end.

Suspension has been making the rounds at film festivals and winning its share of awards, as well. It’s a thrilling ride from start to finish, and a “mesmerizing” study in the complex psyche of the human experience. I highly recommend it! Just make sure you don’t have anything else to do for 95 minutes, because you won’t be able to stop watching.

The DVD is available at the film’s official site. Check it out and let me know what you think.

DVD Extras:

• A 13-minute “Making the Visual Effects” featurette containing behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the filmmakers, actors, and effects artists. An in-depth look at the whole process of creating the effects from early storyboards, to elaborate wire rigs on-set, to the final computer wizardry of talented artists.
• Deleted scenes with introductions and explanations by directors Alec Joler and Ethan Shaftel.
• Director Commentary.
• Dolby 5.1 mix for folks with fancy speakers at home.

Image: Suspension, EasyAction Pictures, 2008