On the one hand, Excursion is highly original, but on the other, the acting and scripting of this film are mediocre. It's shot in an apartment in Shad Thames, and it has the unfortunate feel of a local drama group deciding to act out a novel script in someone's flat and basement. (Watch Hoshii Mamoru 'University of Laughs', if you want to see a master class in how a single setting film can work brilliantly, by the way). The acting settles down a bit half way through, but the former is needlessly snail paced even for the context. Some fans laud the interesting twist on time-travel and this is indeed a refreshing take that suitably steers clear of cheap and needless special effects. However, trying to follow the threads of the timeline and paradoxes will drive you 'loopy' and despite feeding into a clever catastrophic twist, it struggles to really make any clear sense of the tangled ball of time and events, unless as one of the protagonists says, that you pull on a thread and some of the knots sort themselves out. For me though, pulling on the threads just seems to tighten the knots of confusion.
45 Reviews
Good idea, poor acting
ignastio5 August 2019
The take on time travel is interesting, if a little convoluted, but the film is let down by the amateur acting and some poorly written dialogue (the actors' timing on delivering their lines gives it a 'student film' feel). That being said, there is potential in the script and production values which makes me think that the filmmakers, with access to better actors, are capable of producing higher quality material.
Just about watchable.
hfheatley29 July 2019
An amateur production with some awful acting
adamonIMDb17 August 2019
A good idea doesn't necessarily make a good film and 'Excursion' is proof of that. Reading the synopsis, this sounded like an interesting film. But less than 20 minutes in and I was cringing at just how bad it was.
It is evident almost immediately that this is a low budget production trying too hard to be something that it's not. The storyline is original and has potential but the poor quality of the film makes it difficult to buy into and I quickly lost interest.
The acting is atrocious and the dialogue sounds like it was written by a ten year old. It honestly reminded me of some kind of amateur college production that was written and shot in a day. The only positive I can think of is the cinematography and camera work, which was the only convincing aspect of the film. Everything else about 'Excursion' felt completely amateurish.
It is evident almost immediately that this is a low budget production trying too hard to be something that it's not. The storyline is original and has potential but the poor quality of the film makes it difficult to buy into and I quickly lost interest.
The acting is atrocious and the dialogue sounds like it was written by a ten year old. It honestly reminded me of some kind of amateur college production that was written and shot in a day. The only positive I can think of is the cinematography and camera work, which was the only convincing aspect of the film. Everything else about 'Excursion' felt completely amateurish.
Ameteur drama
AJ10817 August 2019
Interesting concept. More of a play than a movie really, with five actors and two locations. Poor writing, with incomprehensible actions by poorly-acted characters, and often inaudible dialogue.
The kindest thing I can say about this movie is that the key theme is how time travel produces paradoxes, and the whole plot is a barely comprehensible mess, so in a way, it illustrates the point.
The kindest thing I can say about this movie is that the key theme is how time travel produces paradoxes, and the whole plot is a barely comprehensible mess, so in a way, it illustrates the point.
Slow plot, poor acting
chrispeartree6 September 2019
Worth a watch
joycemyers-1776322 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This film is about a devoted communist party member that fast forwards into the future to make sure socialism is still well and alive. Nice script, good acting and the movie is classified as sci-fi but not many special effects where in there. Given the small budget and some of the news actors i think excursion still held it's weight. The story didn't drag and it had a good ending.
I wish i could go back in time to stop me from watching this movie... :-/
daveosf3 September 2019
If anyone is reading this and can go back in time, please stop me from watching this. Tell me the acting is stiff, their delivery of the poorly written script is weak, and I won't get back the time I spent watching this movie ever again. I kept sitting here thinking "...it's got a 7.4 on IMDB its got to get better...". Well it doesn't. Save yourself if you can't save me...
Interesting design, poor audio quality.
minematas3 January 2021
Sometimes it was super hard to hear the actors.
And the acting wasn't the best. It felt like they overexplained some small parts to make it more realistic, but it went the other way instead.
I'm sure that most people are aware of the grandfather paradox (especially the kind of people who watch this movie) and don't need the complicated examples, even though I liked this representation.
Otherwise, it was pretty interesting and I still have to digest two small parts of it, though I don't think it would be worth a rewatch.
And the acting wasn't the best. It felt like they overexplained some small parts to make it more realistic, but it went the other way instead.
I'm sure that most people are aware of the grandfather paradox (especially the kind of people who watch this movie) and don't need the complicated examples, even though I liked this representation.
Otherwise, it was pretty interesting and I still have to digest two small parts of it, though I don't think it would be worth a rewatch.
Oh dear...
biglogmollydog22 April 2019
I read the storyline. Sounds interesting and original, I thought to myself.
I was wrong.
Do something else with your time, anything but watch this. I don't understand the 8 and 9 star reviews. It's definitely not a 9, not even an 8. An 8 would make it comparable, as I write, with current IMDB ratings of Donnie Darko, Rocky, The Wizard of Oz, Jaws and the Exorcist.
Nope, it's definitely not an 8. Nowhere near.
I was wrong.
Do something else with your time, anything but watch this. I don't understand the 8 and 9 star reviews. It's definitely not a 9, not even an 8. An 8 would make it comparable, as I write, with current IMDB ratings of Donnie Darko, Rocky, The Wizard of Oz, Jaws and the Exorcist.
Nope, it's definitely not an 8. Nowhere near.
Time Travel Paradox
daveandkim-2793727 August 2019
The movie plot is excellent for a cheap budget film. Acting is decent and holds up when you account for the expense of the film. The movie more or less condemns socialism which is why I believe many people will give this a bad review because many ideologies cannot see past indoctrination for a film which includes actual historical events. Put down the party affiliation and watch the movie for the excellent story on time travel.
Back (again ... and again)
kosmasp4 February 2021
And again? I actually forgot the count. Then again, I'm not the count from Sesame Street, so everything is fine. But that aside, the movie is quite the mind ... bender. Because you know let's not use that swear word. Might not bode well with guidelines here.
So while I only watched this once and can't tell if or how many inconsistencies exist plot wise, it is quite intriguing. Especially for a low budget movie that dares to feed your brain and keep you on your toes. Not everyones cup of tea surely, but those that love low budget intimate plays ... will love it. Or at least like it. One for the mind and the thrill ... whos' who and where or when?
So while I only watched this once and can't tell if or how many inconsistencies exist plot wise, it is quite intriguing. Especially for a low budget movie that dares to feed your brain and keep you on your toes. Not everyones cup of tea surely, but those that love low budget intimate plays ... will love it. Or at least like it. One for the mind and the thrill ... whos' who and where or when?
Worst time travel film ever
brmtowers29 August 2019
I love time travel films. There has to be a worst one. This is it. Worse than Time Cop. The acting was the most wooden I can remember seeing from so many characters. The plot didn't make sense - somehow it's possible for characters to die yet wake up again in a different place and time.
I have it two stars not one rather because at least they were trying to work on a concept. It's not worth your time though :op
Could have been good
andrew-80514 June 2019
excecution
ops-5253520 April 2019
This was pure rubbish down the line of river thames, its two men ,at first one of them dangling from the ceiling, and a captor, that seems completely let out of this world. , a gun controls the situation, and the rest is for you to find out, its not too vivid and spiritual. excursion.... of what???, tell me if you can
i thought british filmmaking were stronger than these tangerine dreams, and this neoneonoirnoirish commotion mustve been made on credit that noone really wants to make a claim on at all. im still the grumpy old man,and this really pewtifies me.
i thought british filmmaking were stronger than these tangerine dreams, and this neoneonoirnoirish commotion mustve been made on credit that noone really wants to make a claim on at all. im still the grumpy old man,and this really pewtifies me.
Utter tosh
andy-vickery-126 September 2019
Such a grossly infuriating film. Made for £3.50 and a packet of Quavers, this film has all expense spared in the production, the acting, and the screen play. Don't believe what other reviewees have said, I'm sure they were watching another film.
Great ending - I think...
DarrenJCampbellUK6 January 2020
Great bit of proper sci-fi. Not sure there were any special effects - more of a dramatised thought experiment. Production values pretty good given the obvious low budget. Without getting into spoiler territory, if you got to the end without any lingering thoughts, then watch/think again - I think there's an important conclusion to be drawn that many might miss.
As ridiculous and pretentious as its socialism theme
daniele-iannarelli17 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
What a disappointment... and it has a relatively high 7.4 rating???
Perhaps this would have been more realistic as a straight comedy as it does offer such potential moments.
The entirety of this guff is riddled with badly researched writing such as the many references to "the Ukraine". "The Ukraine"??? It's a COUNTRY. You wouldn't say 'the Italy', 'the Japan', 'the Iceland', etc etc etc. It's simply "Ukraine", there's no "the" prefacing it.
The acting is poor... pretentious and self-absorbed.
There are no redeeming factors except it finally ending.
Absolute nonsense.
Perhaps this would have been more realistic as a straight comedy as it does offer such potential moments.
The entirety of this guff is riddled with badly researched writing such as the many references to "the Ukraine". "The Ukraine"??? It's a COUNTRY. You wouldn't say 'the Italy', 'the Japan', 'the Iceland', etc etc etc. It's simply "Ukraine", there's no "the" prefacing it.
The acting is poor... pretentious and self-absorbed.
There are no redeeming factors except it finally ending.
Absolute nonsense.
Nice
wizzardosose3 March 2020
Great concept and idea. I thought the actors and the script was strong but the effects should be better. Since it's the first film debut from the director I did look past that and it was still good. This is an independent film and without a big budget it can be hard to bring those big effect ideas to the audience but somehow they managed to bring in just enough. Regardless, great effort and I highly recommend this.
Terrible
omnitomte15 November 2019
The acting is terrible
The characters are unlikeable
I forced myself to watch this and theres hardly anything I can say to reccomend it.
As I was watching it and reading the reviews here I thought I must be watching a different film.
If you want a similar idea done way better go for time crimes instead
Nicely Done
caleb500422 April 2019
I had seen this at a film festival in Los Angeles and I was pretty impressed. It was the directors first feature film and they actually shot it within 2 weeks so given those circumstances Excursion turned out pretty good. I thought the acting was pretty good and the story had my attention right to the very end. I love british made movies so i'm hoping for more from the director. Good effort.
Must be a student film
The_Judderman22 September 2019
The premise sounded interesting and that is probably why this film got made. That and because it would have been cheap to produce. The script is bad: clunky, boring exposition; unclear motivations; terrible dialog. The acting is patchy but on the whole bad. though they didn't have much to work with. The grasp of history seems superficial as though there was little understanding of the period beyond the western pop culture view, especially disappointing when all ofvthe characters are supposedly from the Soviet Union.
On the upside, there are some laugh-out-loud moments, though they are not intentional.
Just horrible
jonesmarkrobert17 February 2020
I watched this because it had won some awards... I have no idea how that could have happened. The dialogue is simply dreadful.
Even if the script was rewritten so that the characters weren't constantly saying ridiculous things, the plot doesn't work. Good science fiction is not science confusion...i.e. making the audience confused does not mean the idea was "smart." It's just not coherent.
It feels poorly acted but maybe it's because the lines they are having to deliver are so silly. Some of the silliest seen to be especially over-acted, and you either laugh or groan. (For me it was the latter.)
Even if the script was rewritten so that the characters weren't constantly saying ridiculous things, the plot doesn't work. Good science fiction is not science confusion...i.e. making the audience confused does not mean the idea was "smart." It's just not coherent.
It feels poorly acted but maybe it's because the lines they are having to deliver are so silly. Some of the silliest seen to be especially over-acted, and you either laugh or groan. (For me it was the latter.)
A very boring bad movie .
hayatikayhan19 January 2021
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