Expected more
Absolutely Brilliant!
A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
View MoreOk... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies
View MoreThis is a sci-fi based film that moves quickly into social commentary. The main character, Jack Sutree, is a research scientist studying the potential to use light to see olfactory data, namely scent. After an all-night work session he accidentally gives himself the ability to see smells. Soon after, he's begins to see people's souls, or the essence of their humanity. How he deals with this ability frames the film with his actions motivated by his response to events going on in his personal life. A pet's death, a pending divorce, a chance encounter with a damaged, but talente$d, homeless musician and a regent in his department who shills for Big Pharma all affect Jack as navigates the good and bad aspects of this ability to see beyond what everyone else can observe. This is an earnest movie. The tone is set right away as we see Jack dealing with having his beloved dog euthanized. He decides he wants his research to be used for the greater good, not great profits. The writing moves us along briskly, and the authentic Los Angeles locations are a fresh breeze. I thought the cast was put together nicely, especially Rob Locke as Stuart Holloway, Jack's mother's pastor. There is a great scene where he describes an onion in metaphysical terms. All in all a worthwhile movie — there's much to like here.
View More"96 Souls" is captivating from start to finish. The lead scientist at a university lab has his hands full as he deals with personal disappointment and heartbreak at the same time he is fighting for support of his unprecedented research into light-based identification of scent. His life turns upside down when an accident in the lab inadvertently provides the breakthrough he is seeking and more. This low-budget thriller uses simple, but effective special effects to illustrate the "hallucinogenic" quality of his formula – it literally alters one's perception of reality. There is unexpected humor in this film, which doesn't detract from its message about the importance of not abusing potentially exploitative information for harm. It is also a meditation on love and loss, as well as personal redemption. Jack's discovery transforms him as readily as it transforms his field of study. Toyin Moses deserves special recognition for her performance as Bazemint Tapes. Her scene in the mental hospital's music room is both poignant and revelatory, and the young actress is convincing throughout the film. This nicely-written film serves a main course of entertainment with side of morality tale.
View MoreThis film was horrific. The dialogue was stiff and empty, the plot was nonsensical, and it lacked even a single "Oh, cool!" moment. Even though I watched this on Netflix, I mourn the wasted bandwidth and urge you not to make the same mistake I did. My son and I tried hard to mock it a la Mystery Science Theater 3000, and even though we're pretty good at that, even our magnificent milieu of mockery was unable to find any fertile ground in this sad excuse of a film.
View More96 SOULS is an indie thriller with science fiction touches. The film's protagonist lead (a Sharlto Copley lookalike) has a laboratory accident, but instead of turning into a giant green monster with anger issues, he has the power to see inside people's heads and thus their real intentions. Yeah. It's not a very exciting concept for a movie, and perhaps would have worked better as a novel. In any case, this film is as dull as can be, with very little effort or vitality to make it of interest.
View More