Review: 2010 Sci-Fi Drama “15 Till Midnight”
“Have you ever felt like you’ve already experienced something you’re doing now?” This is one of the mind-puzzling questions asked in this quantum physics-inspired film. 15 Till Midnight will make you think of the possibility that each of us has mirror selves, letting us live a few minutes ahead or later the current time.
If you are familiar with the fundamental law of the quantum mechanics theory, you may be aware about the chances of having similar worlds that exist in parallel with our own earth, and that if we are to experience all of these universes, we are able to do so one world at a time. But in this film, everything you learned from your Physics subject will be ruined as the characters experience a time warp, letting them live confusing and mysterious lives as the film progresses.
Lukas Reyes (played by Brandon Slagle, who also serves as the film’s writer and producer) wakes up 1 day with his wife Sara (Andrea Chen) magically gone, and the next day, he wakes up next to a girl named Nara (Devanny Pinn) whom he remembers to be the girl he had a one-night-stand with last night yet claims to be his wife for 2 years now. These 2 consecutive sudden and mysterious changes in his life made Lukas felt really puzzled. It was when he found Sara again that he found out he’s not the only one experiencing weird things for the past days.
It turned out Sara also woke up 1 day to find her husband and his things totally gone from their apartment. Aside from this, it seems like everything she does is 15 minutes or hours advanced or late from the current time (which is also experienced by Lukas). The 2 then realized that something weird was indeed happening, and whatever it was, they had no idea how or why it started and what they can do to stop it… until both Lukas and Sara were kidnapped by mysterious “men in black”.
The next thing Lukas knew was he was lying down half naked in a dark room with masked people getting some parts from his mouth and injecting him. There he met Sarosta (Andrew Roth) who explained that Lukas has been actually observed on for a long time now and that he crossed over from one world to another when he was experiencing those weird things. Lukas was also asked to cooperate and join Sarosta’s secret society (which guards against parallel worlds) so he could have a seemingly magical clock that lets him “differentiate himself from others like him”, “become the only one of him”, and “not become trapped in another life”.
In the end, Lukas refused to the offer of Sarosta and even killed his mirror self, who also killed Sara. The ending of the film shows Lukas wandering alone and meeting another version of himself.
What’s nice about this movie is that first, the actors portrayed their characters well. Second, its scenes are full of mysterious twists and puzzling sequences. Third, it uses comprehensive lines. Fourth, its musical scoring is consistent. Fifth, it has a perfect combination of romance, thrill, and action.“15 Till Midnight” will keep you guessing and looking for answers about the possibility of the quantum mechanics phenomenon on our real world.