While I'd much rather be sharing photography, I don't actually have any photographs to share at the moment. Instead, I felt like writing about a low budget indie film made by a bunch of zoomers that suddenly sprung up into the public eye recently. The film was picked up by Neon after a few festival screenings, which led to widespread acclaim and visibility. Indie films that have big success stories are few and far between these days, especially ones that came from really young filmmakers that just decided to make something. I read that the creator of the film was even tempted to just upload the film to YouTube shortly before the call from Neon came in. Anyway, this was largely perceived as a horror film for its themes, and to some degree it is one.
It Ends is about a road that, well, seemingly never ends. A group of students moving from one place to another find themselves stuck on a road in the woodland just endlessly driving. Whenever they stop, groups of frantic people begin to chase them, screaming and begging for help. Thus, the group decides the best course of action is to simply keep moving. They soon realise they no longer feel hunger nor tiredness. The road continues on and on. Sometimes with hints of others having made it as far as them. Eventually they attempt to make an understanding of the road. Trying to figure out what it means or what's happening to them. Is it a spiritual thing? Is it a punishment of sorts?
This thematically springs up a big question to us as the audience: what actually is happening to them? Are they being tested? Did they die at some point? One by one the group disbands as they reach their limit of endless driving, accepting their fate as the others move on. It brings the question of character into play. Are they each yearning for something? Is there something they fear in life? Is this a metaphorical narrative on the uncertainties of what awaits ahead in life for the lost youth? Particularly in such dire times where nothing makes sense, where nothing truly holds any promise or security. All that can be done is to step ahead and move forward and see what happens, what challenges await, and how to address them. It's a really well made film in that regard, you'd think over an hour of people driving and talking in a car might grow stale, but the pacing here is incredible. It goes by without feeling like it's overstaying its welcome, without it feeling like you're in that car with them longing for an end.
This was one of the most creative and engaging films I've seen in a long, long time. It really surprised me in its visual quality and narrative. Sometimes the writing felt a bit off, but hey, this was written by a student that had never made a feature before. And the fact that it got made and exists is a great accomplishment. Writing and dialogue behind, it's visually impressive. Shot on anamorphic lenses and giving a great sense of tightness to the world the characters are trapped within. I highly recommend checking this out.