As a fan of conspiracies for entertainment purposes I was really happy to find this film. The acting was pretty good and the plot too, but I still felt something was lacking from the film.
Might be more enjoyable for those who already know about this particular conspiracy, rather than for those who have never heard of it.
117 Reviews
A very worthy indie film
megankolisch1 December 2021
For those rating this so low, I assume they either don't understand indie films or REALLY don't understand Sci-Fi. If you're over indulged in Hollywood lighting, settings, and effects, indie films take some getting used to. If you're not used to them, watch a few lower budget Sci-Fi films and you'll see why this one is rating very well with fans of those.
Let the story take you, the imagery is low budget, the story isn't. It's supposed to make you THINK and have fun with 'what ifs' There are several cool films about these concepts, most well known, is the Matrix, of course, but this concept has been around for many decades and many prominent scientists have discussed it in extremely interesting ways. What if?
Take the ride folks, it's fun. Science + Fiction is really, really fun.
Let the story take you, the imagery is low budget, the story isn't. It's supposed to make you THINK and have fun with 'what ifs' There are several cool films about these concepts, most well known, is the Matrix, of course, but this concept has been around for many decades and many prominent scientists have discussed it in extremely interesting ways. What if?
Take the ride folks, it's fun. Science + Fiction is really, really fun.
Viewers need to learn the meaning of science FICTION
Snootz30 June 2020
In reading the negative reviews here, something that pops up over and over is, "What a stupid concept, unrealistic, there are other explanations" etc etc ad nauseum.
What these viewers need to understand is that this film isn't postulating this as a possibility. That's why it's called science FICTION. It is an interesting take on a commonly experienced mental aberration. Yes, there are many conspiracy theorists and people who believe this is actually possible. The inability to tell the difference between reality and fantasy is a widespread psychological problem. This should come as no surprise to anyone.
This is a science fiction movie that states "What if?". It presents a concept, a climax, and a satisfactory resolution... which is all any movie should do. To discuss it further I'd have to go into spoilers, and not going to do that. If one saw this movie and didn't "get it", that's a shame because it has a very believable and understandable ending. Try not to read too much into things and just enjoy it as a fictional "what if?" scenario played through to its logical conclusion. That should help the viewer enjoy this film much more than if they try to tear apart the logic and reality of the premise.
It's science fiction... emphasis on the fiction. In this case.... it's directed well, acted well, the story is consistent and holds together. We don't need to know the who or why or "is this really possible?". All of that is irrelevant to the story being told. All in all it's fairly well done.
Note to parents: contains one F-bomb. Would have been a better film without it, but there's modern film-making for you. Never write something intelligent when a quick obscenity will do.
What these viewers need to understand is that this film isn't postulating this as a possibility. That's why it's called science FICTION. It is an interesting take on a commonly experienced mental aberration. Yes, there are many conspiracy theorists and people who believe this is actually possible. The inability to tell the difference between reality and fantasy is a widespread psychological problem. This should come as no surprise to anyone.
This is a science fiction movie that states "What if?". It presents a concept, a climax, and a satisfactory resolution... which is all any movie should do. To discuss it further I'd have to go into spoilers, and not going to do that. If one saw this movie and didn't "get it", that's a shame because it has a very believable and understandable ending. Try not to read too much into things and just enjoy it as a fictional "what if?" scenario played through to its logical conclusion. That should help the viewer enjoy this film much more than if they try to tear apart the logic and reality of the premise.
It's science fiction... emphasis on the fiction. In this case.... it's directed well, acted well, the story is consistent and holds together. We don't need to know the who or why or "is this really possible?". All of that is irrelevant to the story being told. All in all it's fairly well done.
Note to parents: contains one F-bomb. Would have been a better film without it, but there's modern film-making for you. Never write something intelligent when a quick obscenity will do.
Its rating is pretty accurate
hurley-828815 August 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The rating of this movie fluctuates between 5.5 to 6 out of ten and that's rather accurate to me. The actor of the main male protagonist doesn't seems to be very genuine at times, you can really feel like he's reciting a learnt text rather than putting emotion into what he's doing. I think this is due to the amount of research that went into multiple topics, such as coding, computer science, the mandela effect, the Universe, parralel Universes, etc... But the time spent in each of these fields was only to gather basic information, and it lacks the expertise of, well, experts that'd work on these subjects. The storyline itself has flaws, the major one being that it's not very believable. This guy is a game developper / designer (directly quoting what he says); but he's never at work ? Or the events happen in a wide span of time ? It's hard to really understand how much time goes by except for a few scenes where it's indicated by the actors. And how come this dev / designer can single handedly reboot the entire Universe ? It's nonsense, it'd take centuries to come up with such a code, he doesn't even fully understands the machine itself that is running the code, he doesn't know what it is, yet he somehow parasites the code through a quantuum computer. What is a quantuum computer compared to a machine capable of running a simulation of the entire Universe where EVERYONE is the protagonist ? It's litteraly nothing.
Overall a movie that dwelves on an interesting concept but the lack of expertise in the matter coming from the directors end up making the movie pretty unbelievable and sloppy on the technical details.
Overall a movie that dwelves on an interesting concept but the lack of expertise in the matter coming from the directors end up making the movie pretty unbelievable and sloppy on the technical details.
A good idea for a story, interesting to watch.
deloudelouvain10 January 2020
The Mandela Effect probably won't reach a big audience and in a way it's a bit of a shame because there is something interesting about the story. It's one of those stories that make you wonder and think about all kind of existential questions, things we probably never get an answer to. It's not a high budget movie, no special effects worth mentioning but the story doesn't really need them. The acting wasn't bad either. Could it have been done better? Certainly, no doubt about that, but still it's an okay movie, especially if you like psychological sci-fi movies.
An Uninteresting Take on an Intriguing Subject
TwistedContent6 December 2019
Tricks of the mind, psychological phenomenons and conspiracy theories are very intriguing themes & promising plot devices - provided the effort, of course. "The Mandela Effect" is a small scale indie scifi drama/thriller and I do deem it quite effortful, just not in all the right areas. If you want an in-depth or just a fresher look at the phenomenon of mandela effect - this movie is not it.
"The Mandela Effect" has a few things going for it. A few minutes in & it's more than obvious that the budget was small, but the enthusiasm of filmmaking is there & technically it's an allright indie feature. Charlie Hofheimer & Aleksa Palladino provide decent performances & it was nice seeing my beloved Penguin from "Gotham" or Robin Lord Taylor, although portraying an uninteresting character this time. And Clarke Peters simply didn't get enough screen time. The effort can also be appreciated in all of the visual aspects of "The Mandela Effect", cinematography's not exceptional, at all, but not sloppy either. The problem, however, is that, for a movie based on such an interesting subject,which has sparked and still sparks infinite discussions, it's just.. an uninteresting take on it. Grantedly, topics like this one don't have any definite resolutions, but it has no boundaries in creativity when trying to depict it in arts and fiction. "The Mandela Effect" tries to keep the story up and going with only half succesfully focusing on the tragedy that's tormenting our two main charaters, while all the other themes - the intriguing ones - eventually just wind up nowhere. "the Mandela Effect" will get you intrigued, then drag for a bit in the middle & end it all vaguely beautifully and also highly unsatisfyingly.
It almost feels like it could've been a bit better if they just renamed it as something not widely known & changed the narration just a bit. Promising secrets and mystery solutions, "The Mandela Effect" provides only an average indie flick with a disappointing core shtick. My rating: 5/10.
"The Mandela Effect" has a few things going for it. A few minutes in & it's more than obvious that the budget was small, but the enthusiasm of filmmaking is there & technically it's an allright indie feature. Charlie Hofheimer & Aleksa Palladino provide decent performances & it was nice seeing my beloved Penguin from "Gotham" or Robin Lord Taylor, although portraying an uninteresting character this time. And Clarke Peters simply didn't get enough screen time. The effort can also be appreciated in all of the visual aspects of "The Mandela Effect", cinematography's not exceptional, at all, but not sloppy either. The problem, however, is that, for a movie based on such an interesting subject,which has sparked and still sparks infinite discussions, it's just.. an uninteresting take on it. Grantedly, topics like this one don't have any definite resolutions, but it has no boundaries in creativity when trying to depict it in arts and fiction. "The Mandela Effect" tries to keep the story up and going with only half succesfully focusing on the tragedy that's tormenting our two main charaters, while all the other themes - the intriguing ones - eventually just wind up nowhere. "the Mandela Effect" will get you intrigued, then drag for a bit in the middle & end it all vaguely beautifully and also highly unsatisfyingly.
It almost feels like it could've been a bit better if they just renamed it as something not widely known & changed the narration just a bit. Promising secrets and mystery solutions, "The Mandela Effect" provides only an average indie flick with a disappointing core shtick. My rating: 5/10.
Enjoyable and thought provoking but sloppy, maybe
chlump11 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
A man's grief drives him to explore a conspiracy theory that just happens to be true... he is living in a simulation. A fun premise, and it did make me think, but I found it a little unsatisfying. Guess that makes me a true American where I like my stories neat and well packaged.
The boundaries of the simulation are not at all clear. Was his daughter a person? Was his wife a person? Or were they just part of the simulation? If his daughter wasn't part of the simulation then where was she while dead? So how many real humans are there and how many of his friends and family are just the simulation? Are their bodies their own or part of the simulation?
Is his drive toward the breaking of the simulation just part of the test, of the game? To test his mind? His love? Was his wife real and crazy or just another part of the 'maze'? Is he the only real thing? Can the simulation alter his mind or memories? Does only vague memory remain at the end (after the reboot) or does he remember the former life with his daughter dying on a conscious level? Is he just so happy for the reboot he's okay being in a simulation now? If his mind is erased for the reboot then it would only be consistent that the events culminating in the reboot truly were a test or the simulation could have erased his mind much sooner and saved a lot of effort.
If the quantum computer is part of the simulation and only runs when someone observed it, then wouldn't it just pause when he stops looking at the terminal or the omnipotent simulation erase or stop the program?
All these questions were fun to ponder. But in the end only one consistent conclusion remains... nothing is real but the protagonist himself (unless the bodies are simulations too and some mind erasure is possible). And those controlling the maze are real. And that makes me feel sad for him. Well, maybe. Free will in this universe exists, but what good is free will when only walls surround you, forcing you down prescribed paths regardless of you desires?
Or maybe the maze is built according to your desires? Perhaps solving the maze means endless restarts until you get to die happy and without regrets. In other words the walls don't change but somehow the maze already knows the path to your ideal happiness. All you need is to keep loading your saved games until you get there with no mistakes (e.g. lletting his daughter die was a mistake) If the simulator erases your conscious memories of the previous attempts, and all that remains is a growing intuition that guides your decisions until you navigate life without mistakes and die happy, is that really so bad? Is the fact that he worked so hard to get to the simulation broken part of the test of his true desires? Maybe the walls do change based on what the simulation/simulators learn of you.
And when you finally die happy, is that just when you are finally removed from the maze and you (if you are even flesh and blood as we know it) have now earned the right to live in the reality in which the simulation is being run? Oh, and is that just another simulation run from an even higher reality? Turtles all the way down... and up.
I guess it really was thought provoking.
The boundaries of the simulation are not at all clear. Was his daughter a person? Was his wife a person? Or were they just part of the simulation? If his daughter wasn't part of the simulation then where was she while dead? So how many real humans are there and how many of his friends and family are just the simulation? Are their bodies their own or part of the simulation?
Is his drive toward the breaking of the simulation just part of the test, of the game? To test his mind? His love? Was his wife real and crazy or just another part of the 'maze'? Is he the only real thing? Can the simulation alter his mind or memories? Does only vague memory remain at the end (after the reboot) or does he remember the former life with his daughter dying on a conscious level? Is he just so happy for the reboot he's okay being in a simulation now? If his mind is erased for the reboot then it would only be consistent that the events culminating in the reboot truly were a test or the simulation could have erased his mind much sooner and saved a lot of effort.
If the quantum computer is part of the simulation and only runs when someone observed it, then wouldn't it just pause when he stops looking at the terminal or the omnipotent simulation erase or stop the program?
All these questions were fun to ponder. But in the end only one consistent conclusion remains... nothing is real but the protagonist himself (unless the bodies are simulations too and some mind erasure is possible). And those controlling the maze are real. And that makes me feel sad for him. Well, maybe. Free will in this universe exists, but what good is free will when only walls surround you, forcing you down prescribed paths regardless of you desires?
Or maybe the maze is built according to your desires? Perhaps solving the maze means endless restarts until you get to die happy and without regrets. In other words the walls don't change but somehow the maze already knows the path to your ideal happiness. All you need is to keep loading your saved games until you get there with no mistakes (e.g. lletting his daughter die was a mistake) If the simulator erases your conscious memories of the previous attempts, and all that remains is a growing intuition that guides your decisions until you navigate life without mistakes and die happy, is that really so bad? Is the fact that he worked so hard to get to the simulation broken part of the test of his true desires? Maybe the walls do change based on what the simulation/simulators learn of you.
And when you finally die happy, is that just when you are finally removed from the maze and you (if you are even flesh and blood as we know it) have now earned the right to live in the reality in which the simulation is being run? Oh, and is that just another simulation run from an even higher reality? Turtles all the way down... and up.
I guess it really was thought provoking.
Cool idea
mvike20 January 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The concept we all know, and as cool as it is...the brother in law IS chances are correct. It's misremembering, false memories are insanely easy to create. Then all it takes, you take some things that were known but not hugely popular and that's why no one remembers for sure. Also, science has shown if you're on the fence about something (say you're not sure if it's Toons or Tunes) and someone plants one or the other in your mind, your mind will accept it easily. Hence why there are no HUGE ones that we use daily, nor are there any recent ones in the last 5-10 years. Why isn't your name suddenly spelled another way one day? Why is it an old friend doesnt remember you anymore? See what I mean, it has to be vague and older, and less important.
Anyways, to the movie... it started out great I really liked it...but where it really went down hill fast was him attempting to change reality, and I guess he's able to do this from home...? And then at the end he somehow resets the code to go back to before the accident took place...was I the only one that was thinking ..."WHAT code is this?" "How did he make this code?" How the heck did he know how to make a code to go back to that exact moment in time...? The idea is cool, but how on Earth did he know how to design a code for a God simulation that took him back in time to the exact moment he wanted to, and not screw up anything before that moment!? Even if you say "he corrupted it so it had to be reset"...okay, then how and why did it go back to THAT exact moment...? It's as if he looked over the entire simulation code and was able to find that one moment in time? Which is maybe what he did but that seems basically impossible. And it was only 4.3 GB? Haha.
Cool idea, falls apart big time in final 20 minutes.
Anyways, to the movie... it started out great I really liked it...but where it really went down hill fast was him attempting to change reality, and I guess he's able to do this from home...? And then at the end he somehow resets the code to go back to before the accident took place...was I the only one that was thinking ..."WHAT code is this?" "How did he make this code?" How the heck did he know how to make a code to go back to that exact moment in time...? The idea is cool, but how on Earth did he know how to design a code for a God simulation that took him back in time to the exact moment he wanted to, and not screw up anything before that moment!? Even if you say "he corrupted it so it had to be reset"...okay, then how and why did it go back to THAT exact moment...? It's as if he looked over the entire simulation code and was able to find that one moment in time? Which is maybe what he did but that seems basically impossible. And it was only 4.3 GB? Haha.
Cool idea, falls apart big time in final 20 minutes.
Interesting subject, but the final result is disappointing
fciocca18 October 2020
I am very intrigued about parallel universes theories. A few years ago when this Mandela Effect theory came out on the internet, people were crazy about it, but after a while everybody forgot about it. Last year I watched the trailer of this movie, it was weird and very confusing. Recently I was able to finally watch it. I have to say that the subject is really interesting and premises are also very good: a father that lost his daughter, refuse to accept the loss and stumble against the Mandela Effects theories. The narration is smooth, but unfortunately the movie fails to explain how the guy managed to cross different parallel universes. The ending feels extremely rushed, and I think that they finished all the budget available for the movie on VFX, in the very last scenes. Even if it is just 1 hour and 20 minutes long, there are some moments that feels a little bit dragged.
Acting is solid, the two main characters delivers a good performance, the struggling feels real. Very happy to see again Charlie Hofheimer, which played Peggy Olson's boyfriend in the famous TV show Mad Men.
Overall is a solid movie that gives a straight forward and clear narration, there is no mistery, no open interpretation possible by the audience, thing that is pretty much common in this kind of movies. You don't even have to do some research on the Mandela Effect before watching this movies, as the basis of this theory are already explained. It's a movie for a small niche and I am pretty sure that most of people that watched or will watch this are in some ways already interested in this kind of topics. It is worth a watch, if you are into this kind of stuff, for all the others, I think that this could just be a waste of time.
Acting is solid, the two main characters delivers a good performance, the struggling feels real. Very happy to see again Charlie Hofheimer, which played Peggy Olson's boyfriend in the famous TV show Mad Men.
Overall is a solid movie that gives a straight forward and clear narration, there is no mistery, no open interpretation possible by the audience, thing that is pretty much common in this kind of movies. You don't even have to do some research on the Mandela Effect before watching this movies, as the basis of this theory are already explained. It's a movie for a small niche and I am pretty sure that most of people that watched or will watch this are in some ways already interested in this kind of topics. It is worth a watch, if you are into this kind of stuff, for all the others, I think that this could just be a waste of time.
Great movie about loss simulation theory and determism
shadfj17 January 2022
Wow great movie about loss and simulation theory . Loved it for the fact just like main character i suffered same loss and spend numerous hours questioning reality and still do.it may not be for everyone but it's worth a watch.
Sci-fi for fans of parallel universes
mvahidalizadeh13 June 2020
The story is fascinating. This is the story of a game programmer who lost his daughter. I liked the special effects and background music of the movie. To me, the number of locations for this story was not enough. Most of the movie is happening in the house of the programmer and a university. I liked the ending of the movie. I suggest this movie to sci-fi fans, especially for the multi-universes fan.
Self-important drivel
jephtha-6486511 November 2023
This is an entire film that gives the impression of having been generated by an after-midnight conversation had by two undergrads after getting high and watching The Matrix, except that every syllable is uttered as if it is conveying something of universe-altering importance. The lead 'actor' breathes through his mouth, and darts his eyes back and forth a lot; the guy playing the professor delivers every line as if it had been written by Aeschylus, and every few minutes the story stops dead so a character can deliver yet another interminable lecture on string theory, or procedural generation, or whatever buzzterm gave the screenwriters a thrill that day. Somewhere along the way, the filmmakers forgot they were creating a story about actual human beings with emotions and souls. An insufferable waste of time.
Better than the critics say....
jmwalmsley28 March 2022
I put off watching this film due to the majority of its ratings/reviews being so low (I believe it's only a 1 or 2 star on rottentomatoes?)... but I'm glad I finally watched it! It's much better than ratings lead you to believe. I almost feel like the powers-that-be gave it low ratings on purpose, to try and keep people from viewing it and getting closer to the truth of reality!
If you've been on the fence about watching it, it's definetly worth giving it a chance.
If you've been on the fence about watching it, it's definetly worth giving it a chance.
Poorly written and executed
pediatricgrime6 December 2019
Good for what it is
malhaas-jacobsz1 January 2020
Sophomoric Writing
lftflank21 June 2020
Is any of this real?
ten-thousand-marbles13 June 2020
This is a decent drama covering the theories of multiverses and of course, the Mandela effect. If you're looking for heavy sci-fi and splashy effects, this isn't the place. I was a little disappointed this wasn't a little more odd and twisted, but the story still plays out well. It seems to be low budget which could explain this. The script and performances are decent too. If you go in not expecting a big production, you should like it.
A sci-fi movie that you will sleep while watching
lucasnewsavril4 January 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Don't waste your time.
The movie plays over the feeling of parents that lost their children and the paranoia that there is a virtual world and actually they can "hack the matrix" and go back in time.
What was that end? All they needed was to be good parents and ask the children to don't take the teddy bear with her and then she wouldn't die?
Why not simply monitor what a children is doing in the FU**ING SEA instead of taking a nap!!!!
Guys, seriously, hire me, I can write better scripts.
Delightful watch!
Golightly67827 October 2021
I highly enjoyed this. Loved the bro-in-law cast (Penguin). The premise is one of great interest to me and i watch anything with it. This is really high in my book, of a quality presentation of ideas.
The ending was fantastic. Exactly what i hoped for. Casting is great. Writing excellent. Direction on point. Give it 30min if you still hate it, it might not be for you. If you enjoy it at that point keep on. It's a great ride.
The ending was fantastic. Exactly what i hoped for. Casting is great. Writing excellent. Direction on point. Give it 30min if you still hate it, it might not be for you. If you enjoy it at that point keep on. It's a great ride.
Pretty good
xjad-7727418 November 2020
What does real mean?
punisherversion114 August 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The Mandela Effect
Directed by David Guy Levy. Written by David Guy Levy and Steffen Schlachtenhaufen
If you've spent any amount of time on the internet and who here hasn't, then you've heard about the Mandela Effect. It's a collective misremembering of past events. For example Looney Tunes being called Looney Toons or Nelson Mandela dying in the 80s even though he lived well into the 2000s. This movie uses that as a jumping off point.
Unfortunately it also attaches itself to a rather formulaic story about a man losing his grip on reality after the death of his daughter. He falls down a rabbit hole on the internet exploring various theories on the Mandela Effect. We spend a good portion of this film just watching him watch Youtube videos.
He begins questioning his reality and finding the entire thing might just be an elaborate computer simulation. He is naturally hoping that he can find a way to bring his daughter back.
This film has a nugget of a good idea. Once we get past the been there done that opening with its very manipulative hook of the dead kid and we swim through the minefield of the research montage, we get into the existential aspect of life being a simulation. This movie is full of ideas and it does manage to push past its beginning and edge into more endlessly fascinating territory.
I should talk some about the characters but they are really thin sketches to hang the framework of this story on. You're not there to really dig into who they are. You're there to post your fears and anxieties onto them. This movie is interested in the mystery of our existence. How sure can you be that what you perceive to be real is in fact real? This is something that faces people every day. You see it on the internet every day. They build their own world views and find the things needed to keep those worlds from crumbling. That's why it is now referred to as my truth rather than the truth.
While this movie started off like a ride down the well worn path of familiarity, it brought up enough questions and the answers that it gave were sufficient to generate the activity in your brain. You wonder what life could be like if you were able to manipulate the code keeping reality working. What kind of computer is needed for such a thing to be real?
If our memories go, then what do we trust? It asks plenty of questions but as a complete story it doesn't delve deep enough into the people asking the questions in the movie. It could be described as bare bones in this regard. So I think in the end that it is worth a watch. I watched this on HULU should you find yourself also curious. I give this film a C.
If you've spent any amount of time on the internet and who here hasn't, then you've heard about the Mandela Effect. It's a collective misremembering of past events. For example Looney Tunes being called Looney Toons or Nelson Mandela dying in the 80s even though he lived well into the 2000s. This movie uses that as a jumping off point.
Unfortunately it also attaches itself to a rather formulaic story about a man losing his grip on reality after the death of his daughter. He falls down a rabbit hole on the internet exploring various theories on the Mandela Effect. We spend a good portion of this film just watching him watch Youtube videos.
He begins questioning his reality and finding the entire thing might just be an elaborate computer simulation. He is naturally hoping that he can find a way to bring his daughter back.
This film has a nugget of a good idea. Once we get past the been there done that opening with its very manipulative hook of the dead kid and we swim through the minefield of the research montage, we get into the existential aspect of life being a simulation. This movie is full of ideas and it does manage to push past its beginning and edge into more endlessly fascinating territory.
I should talk some about the characters but they are really thin sketches to hang the framework of this story on. You're not there to really dig into who they are. You're there to post your fears and anxieties onto them. This movie is interested in the mystery of our existence. How sure can you be that what you perceive to be real is in fact real? This is something that faces people every day. You see it on the internet every day. They build their own world views and find the things needed to keep those worlds from crumbling. That's why it is now referred to as my truth rather than the truth.
While this movie started off like a ride down the well worn path of familiarity, it brought up enough questions and the answers that it gave were sufficient to generate the activity in your brain. You wonder what life could be like if you were able to manipulate the code keeping reality working. What kind of computer is needed for such a thing to be real?
If our memories go, then what do we trust? It asks plenty of questions but as a complete story it doesn't delve deep enough into the people asking the questions in the movie. It could be described as bare bones in this regard. So I think in the end that it is worth a watch. I watched this on HULU should you find yourself also curious. I give this film a C.
See also
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