Review of Predestination (2014) by Thequietgamer — 13 Sep 2021

What a ride! This is the story of a temporal agent who's playing a ridiculously complex game across space and time in order to stop a terrorist attack, all the while raising questions about predetermined fate and inescapable realities. Certain twists and reveals are incredibly obvious, but even when you can clearly tell where things are going next where they'll ultimately end up and what the point of it all will have been when it gets there are another matter entirely. That's what will keep you watching.

In fact, the meaning of this has completely eluded me. Is it simply a way of showing off a cool paradox someone came up with? A parable on the ultimate narcissism trip? Maybe it's just about how time travel makes no freaking sense. Whatever the case it gets you thinking in ways I can't elaborate on without spoiling things that need to be seen for yourself. Like how the movie starts off as one thing before turning into something wholly different.

There are people who will find this too outlandish, weird, and complex in a convoluted feeling way (largely because of their own lack of understanding). Yet, those who really enjoy when movies push the science aspect of science-fiction and use them to deliver experiences with genuine depth are sure to find this to be a worthwhile viewing. For me, it stands alongside the likes of Ex Machina and Under the Skin as a particularly rich, compelling, and unique entry in the genre that has stuck and will continue to stick with me for quite some time. The only difference being that it comes from a pair of directors nowhere near as respected as Jonathan Glazer or Alex Garland. Showing that even names typically associated with schlock are more than capable of dropping a gem despite their reputation.

8.