A French Canadian sci-fi romance that feels more foreign than it actually is. The scoop here is twin worlds, floating side-by-side through the cosmos with inverse gravitational pulls. What's up for one is down for the other and all that jazz; certain mountaintops or skyscrapers venture close enough to actually touch the opposite landscape. A lot of time and effort is sunk into explaining this concept, which seems like wasted effort because not only is it mostly self- evident, but the finer laws (like the idea that matter from one world bursts into flames after an hour on the other) are often broken without consequence as the plot gradually develops. The film's best qualities are undoubtedly visual. A concept like this one will often live or die by how it's visualized on the screen and, despite never completely shaking a major case of disorientation, it's a dazzling, vivid, mesmerizing display that downright demands our attention. It's a real pity those visual heights couldn't find an equally interesting story to partner with, because Upside Down's plot is a real paint-by-numbers stinker. It's shallow, predictable, slow and empty, without a voice of its own. Terribly acted and even more terribly written, with zero chemistry between its star-crossed leads, it's borderline insufferable and often makes for great unintentional comedy. Worth a quick glimpse, but strictly for the visuals - I'd recommend you watch it on mute.
Review of Upside Down
Upside Down
(I) (2012)
Fascinating Visuals Are Let Down By a Particularly Awful Storyline
22 August 2013