Repeaters (2011)

not as good as all the hype

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

A Major Disappointment

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

This movie tries to take the 'Groundhog Day' idea into darker territory, with three recovering drug-addicts in rehab getting to live a bad day over and over again, until, presumably, they get something right.Besides the dark edge, this movie also promises interesting developments by having three friends go through it together in different ways. At first, and after the confusion, they have wild fun with it and even hold up a liquor store. But then two of them start introspecting when they have to deal with their families and a suicidal jumper. The third, however, seeing the endless hate his father has for him, decides to give up and give in to the dark side of his insecurities, and turns to a nihilistic life of brutal crime, since there are no consequences to his actions anyways.So it starts becoming interesting, and in a sense, they become god-like beings that can get away with anything, except that the more conscience-laden duo now also have a 'super-villain' on their hands to deal with, while the regular world suffers the consequences.But then it stops being interesting, fizzles out, and just ends.Their attempts at stopping him never become creative (for example, they don't even bother finding out who starts their day first by a few seconds, thus giving that person a slight edge). Their time-loop and personal dramas are solved with only a couple of lazy pop-psychology revelations and confessions. The development of the bad guy is way too fast and extreme - it could have worked if they had to repeat a hundred times or so, but to turn into a suicidal-rapist-murderer within 3-4 days is a bit much. And their 'thoughtful' introspection about consequences for their actions ends abruptly when one guy says: 'I need it to mean something'. Way to go, Schopenhauer.And so on. It just doesn't develop its ideas in any way. And then there's the ending where the bad guy gets to repeat himself, while the rest move on. If you think about it, since none of them see any meaning in their lives and its only about whether they get caught or feel bad for their family, the ending means that the bad guy gets to live it up without consequences, and the good guys have to live with their consequences and bad decisions. So even the faux-moral ending is a product of muddled and lazy thinking. Lazy movie-making does not produce great movies.

I really liked this. Gotta say.This premise has been made into quite a lot of movies, actually. The newest being 'Edge of Tomorrow' with Tom Cruise. 'Groundhog Day' being one of the first and maybe the most well known. (There is also one called 12:01, that I caught on television one time as a kid, I was absolutely fascinated. I had not seen Groundhod Day at the time).OK, moving along!Repeaters is pretty much the same premise as Groundhog Day, like I said, but much darker. Which is also probably much more realistic, as people tend to use their extraordinary powers for bad things.Anyhow I enjoyed this movie a lot, and it is quite a mess these people get themselves in, and it made me sort of uncomfortable. At least I tend to feel a little uncomfortable when people in movies get themselves into more and more of a mess. I like thinking that I may have problems of my own, but at least not _those_ problems.I would recommend 'Repeaters' if you like that kind of time travel/time loop-kind of movie. I think the score this has one here is a little on the low side.

Yes, it is impossible to talk about Repeaters without mentioning Groundhog Day - a charming family film where a sardonic Bill Murray has to relive the same dull day again and again until he can find a way of somehow - literally - moving his life forwards.Groundhog Day was a happy-go-lucky sort of affair, filled with light-hearted 'what if' scenarios. Here, in 'Repeaters,' we're presented with a similar premise, i.e. what happens if you're stuck in a day. However, the results are far from Groundhog-like.This time there are three central characters who keep reliving the same day and they're all in a recovery centre, trying to get over various addictions. Then, once they discover their new 'power,' they hardly use it to help the homeless. Therefore we're treated to what people with very dubious morals would do if their day had absolutely no consequences whatsoever.It's a great film. The performances are perfect from all characters, the setting it suitably gritty and it's not too long. However, it's not one for the faint-hearted. It covers pretty much all the nastiest adult themes you can think of, so, if you're looking for a 'feel-good' kind of movie, you better steer clear.Bottom line: Groundhog Day + comedy = Groundhog Day. Groundhog Day + action = Source Code, whereas Groundhog Day and nastiness = Repeaters. Not one for everyone, but if you're looking for some gritty sci-fi/thriller, definitely give this one a go.

The ninth step in recovery is apologizing to all those you've hurt with your drug addiction. When three members of a rehab group fail to complete this step, they are met with a strange consequence. For them, the day they were supposed to complete the ninth step keeps repeating. Movies like Repeaters, are why I watch independent films. I'd never heard of the film, the cast, or the Director, and in fact, this movie isn't even available in the U.S. I saw it as one of my suggestions on Netflix streaming and figured, what do I have to lose? What I found was on of the smartest, most original stories in years. Repeaters isn't just a weird science fiction movie or a drama about addiction, it's both, and it's a whole lot more. Fusing elements of action, drama, and science fiction, Repeaters will have you on the edge of seat craving for more. Words can not express how well written this film was and how it will give you a full range of emotion in just ninety minutes. As for the cast, I'd never heard of any of them, but they were terrific, especially Richard de Klerk, who played the most deranged member of their little group. He really connected all the elements, showing a range that most actors today can't even dream of attaining. Repeaters is a tremendously written roller coaster ride of emotion, with some outstanding performances, and stunning conclusions, and for that it gets labeled as one of our can't miss movies!