5/6/14

The Signal

This enigmatic Sci-Fi was submitted by the US to the 2014 Seattle International Film Festival. We follow a trio of college students into the desert after they are challenged by mysterious hacker.

This first threatened to be 97 minutes of "Don't Go In The Basement!" but it soon settled into a little more involving head-scratcher.

The cast:
  • Brendon Thwaites ("Maleficent") is Nik, who starts out using crutches. Flashbacks show us how that happened. He is uncommonly smart and as a grad student from MIT, he accepts the challenge.
  • Olivia Cooke ("Bates Motel") is Haley, who mostly seems to be set decoration. Nik loves her...
  • Beau Knapp ("Super 8") is Jonah, Nik's friend, roommate and probably classmate. He too, is uncommonly smart.
  • Laurence Fishburne ("Man of Steel") is Dr. Wallace Damon, an imperturbable fellow bundled in a hazmat suit, because our hero is ascertained to be "EBE" or "Extraterrestrial Biological Entity." 
This turns into a white-knuckle ride and I was surprised how engaged I had become. I think it helps that the lead guy is such a handsome devil!
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Here is a sample:
http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2741873177/
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