Nurse Sophie Rice (Judy Greer, Halloween franchise) loved her husband Malcolm, a former engineer for an aeronautics company. Eight months ago, Malcolm (Edi Gathegi, For All Mankind) was killed by a drunk driver, and Sophie has been struggling to care for their 12-year-old daughter Riley (Faithe Herman, Shazam! franchise, This Is Us). Providing some support is her husband’s best friend, Jabir (Payman Maadi, Bomb: A Love Story). Jabir was a physicist in his own country but fled to the U.S. 10 years ago when his family was killed by the National Guard. He now works as an Uber driver, but in his spare time, he tinkers with the time machine he and Malcolm were building so he could go back in time and save his family. While he hasn’t been successful in that effort, he did manage to build a machine that could send a particle back in time, which could be used to kill someone if you know exactly where they will be at a given moment. While the machine isn’t strong enough to go back far enough to save his family, it could be used to save Malcolm, killing the drunk driver before he can step into the car that kills Mal. And so Sophie and Jabir decide to test the machine out.
“This machine is a gun that can fire a bullet into the past.”
While they do manage to prevent Malcolm’s death, Sophie and Jabir only remember what they experienced in their own timeline, and not everything that has changed since the moment in time they affected. Sophie also starts to feel some guilt over the ripple effects they caused in the lives of the wife and daughter of the man they chose to kill, and wants to help them. However, she worries about what other repercussions this might have, and what other memories this could affect—could making more changes cause her to lose Malcolm again? Meanwhile, Jabir has a different reaction to what they’ve done, and starts to see all the possibilities the machine holds for saving innocent people who were killed at the hands of terrorists, school shooters, etc. Malcolm, Sophie and Jabir debate the moral implications of using the machine, and whether saving lives is the right thing to do, not knowing if the people they are saving are actually good people themselves.
“Maybe it’s not about who we kill. Maybe it’s about who we save”
The dictionary defines aporia as “a logical impasse or contradiction”, and this is where the characters find themselves…in a moral quandary, torn between what is right and wrong, and the possible consequences of their choices. While Aporia initially starts off a little slow, it becomes a fascinating tale and study into whether or not people, if given the chance, would erase someone from history in order to save a loved one or prevent them from experiencing loss and pain. Things get increasingly more complicated for these characters—as they try to fix one person’s life, they end up causing pain for someone else, and each time they mess with time, they must deal with the unforeseen repercussions that come from pulling a trigger in the past, and all of the changes that ripple from that moment on. They also run the risk of loved ones becoming out of sync, each living in different alternate realities.
The film, which is a love story with a sci-fi twist, takes some pretty interesting twists and turns. It’s shot documentary-style with handheld cameras, giving it more of an intimate feeling. Judy Greer really shines as the dramatic lead of the film, providing the emotional core of the story. Sophie’s actions never come from a selfish place—everything she does is out of a desire to help her family or others. She experienced the extreme pain of loss for eight months, and doesn’t want anyone else to have to go through that. As unexpected consequences come from her actions, she rolls with these and owns them. Aporia brings viewers on a satisfying emotional journey along with these characters.
Well Go’s Blu-ray release provides solid picture and sound. While scenes can occasionally look a bit dark, the picture still remains clean and clear throughout, with an excellent level of detail in faces. This may film may have a sci-fi slant to it, but it’s more of a character drama than an action or effects movie. I didn’t really notice any extensive use of the surround sound in the audio track, but dialogue remained clear throughout.
As for bonus material, Well Go’s Blu-ray release includes a nice 18-minute behind-the-scenes featurette with the cast/director as well as the film’s trailer and some previews for three other Well Go releases. The disc comes packed in a locking HD keepcase, and doesn’t include a digital copy. Our review copy also included a carboard slipcover.
What’s Included:
Film: (1:43:47)
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Blu-ray:
- 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
- Audio: English DTS-HDMA 5.1, English Stereo
- Subtitles: English SDH
Extras:
- Behind the Scenes (18:32)
The cast and crew discuss the characters, the premise of the movie, why they were drawn to the project, the time travel rules of the film, the moral implications of using a time machine like this, the budget and look of the film, working with the actors, the director’s style, creating the machine, keeping track of the timelines, shooting in Los Angeles, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with writer/director Jared Moshe, and stars Judy Greer (“Sophie Rice”), Edi Gathegi (“Malcolm Rice”), Payman Maadi (“Jabir Karim”) & Whitney Morgan Cox (“Kara Brinkley”). - Trailer (2:27)
- Previews
- Bad City (2:17)
- Warhorse One (2:21)
- Forgotten Experiment (2:28)
Final Thoughts:
Aporia is an interesting new take on the time travel genre. While it has a sci-fi twist to the story, it never relies on special effects or big action pieces. Instead, it is more of an intimate character drama/love story that brings viewers on a satisfying emotional journey with the characters. It features strong dramatic performances from the leads, and keeps you guessing with some unexpected twists and turns. Well Go’s Blu-ray features solid picture and sound, and even a nice behind-the-scenes bonus feature. This disc comes recommended for anyone looking for an interesting new twist on the time travel movie.
Aporia
49% Off $29.98 $14.99 (as of April 26, 2024 08:34 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Aporia
$12.50 $12.49 (as of April 26, 2024 08:34 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
