Relax, I'm from the Future

I enjoy Rhys Darby usually but the trailer's quirky scenes don't depict the quagmire of time-wasting dullness of the entire movie. It starts bad, I hoped it would get better but it got worse. My spouse couldn't watch the entire movie, bailed half way through, as other reviewers have, but I stayed until the bitter, drab end and we agreed I should write a review to warn people how terrible this movie is. We enjoy time travel movies, we enjoy off-beat humor, twists and turns, surprises, unique characters, but the only surprise was how inane the writing and story and characters were. I hope to forget this movie.

Rhys Darby can do no wrong. As the silly, well-meaning (or is he?) time-traveler Casper, he keeps things light and funny. The problem is the film tackles issues it doesn't flesh out. The villain is introduced way too late, so the suspense only comes in the last third. Human life is shown to be utterly dispensable, which I didn't find particularly funny (especially at the ending, which I won't give away). Julian Richings is one of my favorite actors and it was a pleasure to watch him. But what his character is doing at the end makes no sense in terms of how he's been set up--is he still capable of evil? Does he have the means? The plot goes all over the place. Also it includes one of my least favorite cliches: two people go on a boozy, drug-filled evening and yet are still able to converse intelligently. This only happens in movies and TV. In real life they'd be lying in their own sick or declaring "you're my best friend!" before passing out.

The film starts out with a seemingly simple premise: a time traveler from the future comes back to present-day Toronto to fix world-changing mistakes. But the film keeps surprising us. Maybe people's motivations aren't what they appear to be. Maybe time travel is more common than we realize. Maybe "everything's gonna be okay" means different things to different people. Rhys Darby, as Casper, is hilarious, infuriating, and loveable. Gabrielle Graham has a breakout role as Holly, a jaded young punk who has to wrestle with how much of the world's burdens she has to take onto her leather-clad, spiky shoulders. And Julian Richings shows how much circumstances can change a person's trajectory.

Darkly humorous and quirky, this movie keeps you on your toes (and laughing) throughout. Incredible performances from the whole cast, and particular props to Rhys Darby for making what could have been a dislikeable character absolutely charming. Julian Ritchings is also at his finest, bringing depth to a complex character with some extemely funny moments. This was the first thing I've seen Gabrielle Graham in, but she was incredible and I look forward to hopefully seeing her in many more movies to come! I saw this at a film festival when it first started premiering last year, and I've been waiting for it to get a wider release so I could convince everyone I know to go watch it, because I knew I had a ton of friends who would like it.