Donovan's Echo (2011)

A series of uncanny déjà vu events force a man to re-examine his tragic past, memory, instinct, and future.

Director:

Jim Cliffe

Writers:

Jim Cliffe (screenplay), Melodie Krieger (screenplay)

Stars:

Danny Glover, Kyarra Willis, Karen Holness

4 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Danny Glover	...	Donovan Matheson
Kyarra Willis	...	Magnolia Matheson
Karen Holness	...	Jasmine Matheson
Bruce Greenwood	...	Finnley Boyd
Kevin McNulty	...	Dean Belton
Natasha Calis	...	Maggie Walgrave
Lanette Ware	...	Susan Boyd
Hiro Kanagawa	...	Kaisha
Katina Small	...	Maggie Walgrave - 35 years
Stephen Jefferys	...	Speaker (as Stephen Jeffreys)
Chelah Horsdal	...	Doctor
David Lewis	...	Kit
Sonja Bennett	...	Sarah Walgrave
Sunita Prasad	...	Medical Assistant
Ian Tracey	...	Ray

Storyline

In late 1994, former physicist Donovan Matheson returns to his hometown to live in the house he abandoned almost thirty years ago following the deaths of his wife and then eleven year old daughter, Jasmine Matheson and Magnolia Matheson respectively, in a car accident caused by Christopher Bailey, an underage driver who stole a car for a joyride. Donovan, who focused his work on cold fusion, believes he is at fault for their deaths as he believes he could have saved them if not for other things in his life, including his excessive drinking which has only worsened in his grief. The house had been kept up by Donovan's friend, police sergeant Finnley Boyd, who Donovan had only sporadically kept in touch with in the intervening years. Although not clear why he moved back, Donovan comes to believe, in a sense of déjà vu, that the purpose of his return ultimately is to save an eleven year old girl he meets, Maggie Walgrave, in his constant encounters with her, her bookstore owner mother ...

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Plot Keywords:

downward spiral | past | memory | instinct | astronomy | 

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Taglines:

Can His Past Save Our Future?

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some violent content

Did You Know?

Trivia

With a professional background in illustration and animation, Jim Cliffe storyboarded almost the entire movie, but the ambitious twenty-day schedule forced the first-time director to be more spontaneous on a day-to-day basis.

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Goofs

In the newspaper clipping Donovan pulls out near the beginning of the movie, there is a typo. It says "Police and ambulances responded quickly to the seen.. (should be "scene").

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Connections

Featured in Starfilm (2017)

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Soundtracks

That Girl
Written by Richard Markmann, Dan Pinella (as Daniel Pinella) and Christopher Wagner
Performed by Matter

User Reviews

Complex Premise Hampered by Low Budget and Contrived Coincidences

A Movie About Clairvoyance and One's Ability or Inability to Make Sense of it All and Connect the Dots for Some Kind of Understanding and Closure to Things that have Happened or Might Happen is the Complicated Plot of this Small Film from Canada.

It is Difficult to Process (things that go on in the mind and in dreams or precognition) and making it Intriguing and Mysterious to an Audience is not the Easiest Way to Make a Thriller. But when it is done Well it can Make for a Unique and Unusual Movie that is Welcomed in the Paranormal and Sci-Fi Genre.

The Premise can be Creepy and as the Viewer is Most Likely at Some Point in Their Lives through Dreams of Deja Vu can Latch On to it with an Uneasy Feeling Taken from the Uneasy Feeling that such Real Life Experiences can Bring On.

This isn't a Fully Rendered Film about Danny Glover's Frustrating Predicament and there are Coincidences a Plenty and a bit too many Contrivances to Accept, but the Movie does Manage to Draw You into its World of Wondering What's Up just Enough to Pass as a Low-Key, Well Acted, but Ultimately Boxed In Entertainment and So Restrained by its Budget and Running Time that it Seems Rushed, Confusing, and Shackled.

Overall, it is Definitely Worth a Watch for some Good Performances and an Interesting Story, but Fully Involved Fans of this Type of Thing will Most Likely End Up Wanting More than this can Deliver.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 February 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

El destino está escrito

Filming Locations:

Fort Langley, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Common Man Films Ltd., Donovan's Echo Productions, Maniacal Toon Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1