“This is some Bourne Identity shit right here.”
Another indie horror film is taking on the unknown of time and space. It is an appealing take when a bigger budget isn’t accessible to filmmakers; not worrying about the science of it all. But where Redux Redux shines is in character development and simplicity – even if everything doesn’t quite make sense.
The film kicks off with a woman named Irene (Michaela McManus) burning a body. A moment later, she is struggling with the same man before she kills him. It doesn’t take long to realize that Irene is facing the same monster over and over again. She questions him about her daughter while holding a lock of her hair that she found in his house. Neville (Jeremy Holm) is a serial killer, and Irene is hell-bent on ending his life- over and over again.
Time Flies…
Matt and Kevin McManus don’t spend time divulging the how behind multiverse travel because it doesn’t matter to the story. The McManus brothers weave Irene’s motivation and enough information about why she has a body-sized machine that allows her to cross into parallel universes into the script without bogging it down with exposition dumps. Coupled with the almost hazy way Redux Redux is filmed, the film doesn’t feel like just another sci-fi thriller. It feels more like a lived-in moment of suspense moment with grounded character work.
As the story continues to unfold, Irene comes face to face with the reality of what she’s done when she finds a kidnapped girl in Neville’s house. This meeting changes the course of Irene’s mission. It makes her realize how far she’s strayed in her grief-fueled desire for revenge. The dynamics of this budding mother-daughter gone rogue relationship is what takes this film to a new level. Mia (Stella Marcus) is a runaway teen with deep-rooted trauma. She wants nothing more than to help Irene rid all the timelines of Neville at all costs. Marcus displays beautiful emotion on screen, and the rawness of what her character has experienced is palpable until the final shot.
The Final Verdict
While Redux Redux is well done and engaging, there are a few moments where I questioned some of the choices made. For much of the film, Irene appears to be a smart character. She has done these universe jumps hundreds of times. Yet, when she needs a replacement part for the machine, she finds herself in a situation that doesn’t quite lineup with how Irene is written. And that very well may be because she is no longer just looking out for herself but also for Mia. However, the scene comes off as an opportunity to further expand our knowledge of how Irene is able to jump timelines but to the detriment of her character.
The McManus brothers prove that you can expand on concepts that have been done before, even with a modest budget. Redux Redux breathes new life into multiverse horror by keeping it simple and leaning into the driving force: story and characters. The characters are compelling and rich – so much so that I’d love to see this duo team up again. Hopefully, taking out even more serial killers across the multiverse.
Redux Redux still has tickets on sale at this year’s SXSW.
