Time Month - Mini Review: Predestination

It’s Time Month!

And it’s time see a movie from the land down under. Predestination

Based on the short story “-All You Zombies-” (go figure that title) this is another labour of love, this time by the Spierig Brothers, who co-produced, directed and wrote the screenplay. It’s been critically well acclaimed, why? Well, let’s take a look.

The story revolves around one character but is told from the perspective of him/herself at different stages in their life. Born a woman, Jane, she grows up alone, learning to fight against her bullies. She ends up pregnant, it’s then she finds out that she’s intersex, she has both male and female organs but giving birth has destroyed her female organs. After her baby is stolen she undergoes an operation to become a male, John.

John is approached by someone in a bar, he tells him the story and he offers a chance to gain revenge on the father of the child, who walked out on her. He’s a temporal agent and has a device capable of time travel. Turns out he is the father (ewww) and it’s the stranger who kidnapped the baby girl, he took her back in time and dropped her off at the orphanage and if you see where the loops start closing, we’re still not done.

John is pursuing a terrorist named the Fizzle Bomber, during a fight, his face bears the brunt of an explosion and he has to undergo reconstructive surgery, becoming the stranger. He decides to retire but soon discovers thanks to a literal self-encounter he is the Fizzle Bomber and his travel-device did not shut down as it should. He kills his future self, starting him on that path.

This is an example of a way to do time travel on a low budget. The vast majority of the time is spent on developing John as both Jane and John. Time Runners did this too but where it succeeds where Time Runners failed is by not making the lead perfect or gifted. John and Jane are flawed human beings and they go through real cr*p during this and because they’re well-written we feel for them

Whilst I don’t know how comfortable I feel about Jane and John (who are the same person) giving birth to them-self, I think it suits this story.

The story of predestination vs free will more often than not favours free will, here whilst free will may be considered better, predestination triumphs. Even the motivation of the Fizzle bomber, wanting to do good outside the system with a needs of the many style attitude attests to this.

I need to give props to Sarah Snook, this is a fantastic performance as she plays both Jane and John similarly enough that you wouldn’t forget they’re the same person but with enough distinction to recognise their differences. It would be very difficult to pull off so credit where it’s due.

It’s a highly intriguing, highly entertaining movie, makes a change, doesn’t it? But I needed something to cool off with after Time Shifters.

Rating 88/100