Since losing her husband, Sophie has struggled to manage grief, a full-time job, and parenting her devastated daughter, but when a former physicist reveals a secret time-bending machine, Sophie will be faced with an impossible choice.
In “Aporia,” writer/director Jared Moshe tries to stuff in as much exposition as possible, leaving his characters abruptly explaining things, like a shared past experience for the audience. This inorganic dialogue is clunky, the antithesis of an immersive sci-fi story centered around time travel. On top of that, Moshe’s awkward direction leaves his talented trio of actors struggling to bring any semblance of gravitas to their characters or the underwhelming script.
As Sophie, Judy Greer gets one of her few leading roles. Having appeared in pretty much every episode of television ever and plenty of notable films, Greer is a reliable supporting actor. Here, she is flanked by supporting cast members Ed Gathegi (“Gone Baby Gone”) and Iranian leading man Payman Maadi (“A Separation,” “About Ellie”). Most people would recognize Maadi from the exceptional HBO miniseries “The Night Of” created by Steven Zaillian and Richard Price.
“Aporia” occurs eight months after the death of Sophie’s husband, Mal (Gathegi). Being an overworked single mother, she struggles to make the time to deal with her grief and properly guide her misbehaving child. Her daughter Riley (Faithe Herman) is suspended from school, and luckily, her friend Jabir (Maadi) – a physicist who moonlights as an Uber driver – picks her up. The poor script comes through when the two are talking; Sophie tells Jabir how they know each other and what he does for a living. It turns out Jabir and Mal built a Time Machine of sorts. Not a Delorean that can get your parents together, but one that can kill a single person in the past. Since a drunk driver killed Mal, Sophie ponders, maybe go back and kill the man responsible. Luckily, she does not spend the entire running time trying to decide; she kills the drunk driver and Mal returns. Having a new appreciation for her now-living husband, as Mal and Jabir continue tinkering with their murder machine, their actions begin having unintended consequences. A butterfly effect that ripples out and changes everything around them.
My knowledge of quantum physics is nonexistent – but I do know that, basically, every film that deals with complex theoretical science falls into the inherent paradox with its premise. The most infamous example is “The Terminator.” In it, during a robot uprising in 2029, Kyle Reese is sent by rebel leader John Connor back to 1984 in an attempt to save his mother, Sarah. But while in 1984, Kyle impregnates Sarah, becoming John’s father, and gets killed. If he died in 1984, how was he sent back from 2029? Anyway, “The Terminator” is a masterpiece, and “Aporia” is a far cry from that.
Available on Blu-ray™, DVD, & Digital September 12th
