Parallel

Independent cinema very often allows us to discover directors who can give free rein to their imagination without having to constantly report to studios that too often see films as mere marketing products in search of a very large audience. In the case of Isaac Ezban's third film after El incidente (2014), Los Parecidos (2015), the film explores a theme that has become very fashionable since the worldwide success of the animated film Spider-man: New Generation (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), featuring several dimensions and what could happen if they converged together.

Scott Blaszak's screenplay features two friends and associates, Devin (Aml Ameen) and Noel (Martin WallStröm) who have designed a revolutionary parking management application. With the help of their roommates Josh (Mark O'Brien) and Leena (Georgia King) they managed to get the necessary investment but faced a major problem when their investors asked them to return their project earlier than expected. They are in fact with another competitor who seems to be able to achieve the requested objective before them. Faced with this difficult situation, they seem to face a certain failure when they stumble by chance in the house they share on a hidden room in which there is a mirror allowing them to pass into an infinite parallel world. This portal will certainly help them to reach their goal, but above all they will be confronted with their worst instincts and above all with difficult choices and unsavoury attitudes.

As the film develops many false leads, starting with a very disturbing first scene, one understands the will of the script to move away from a simple science-fiction film to a psychological thriller. The film thus highlights the worst human instincts such as greed, the thirst to become rich without having any ethics and especially the fact that money can spoil the friendship and mutual respect of friends working together.

Parallel once again highlights themes that are important to his director, such as the impact of unexplained phenomena in the peaceful lives of certain people, but also the quest for one's own identity in relation to one's actions. In spite of a budget that we feel restricted, we can only recommend this film for the excellent interpretation of its main actors, notably Mark O'Brien (IWedding Nightmare (2019), First Contact (Arrival) (2016)).

Parallel
Directed by Isaac Ezban
Produced by Garrick Dion, Matthias Mellinghaus
Written by Scott Blaszak
Starring Aml Ameen, Martin Wallström, Georgia King, Mark O'Brien, Alyssa Diaz with David Harewood and Kathleen Quinlan
Music by Edy Lan
Cinematography: Karim Hussain
Edited by Ben Baudhuin
Distributed by Vertical Entertainment (USA)
Release date: December 11, 2020
Running time: 103 minutes

Viewed on November 12, 2020 in original version (press screener)

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