95ers: Echoes

So let's get one thing clear and set the record straight right from the get-go: all the reviews here on IMDb that are 9s or 10s are clearly not real, but rather faked reviews by people who worked on this low budget flick or are friends or family -- for this is surely NOT a 9 or a 10, Hell, it's not even a 6 7 or 8. I LOVED the idea of the plot/storyline; time travel is my thing. So seeing that it was free due to Prime, I figured "why not? It's Sunday morning and I'm not even awake yet." Within a minute or two I heard what could possibly be the worst, and most unprofessional and amateurish dialog by a male actor being delivered that I've ever heard in my life -- seriously. And I work IN the entertainment business (obviously), so I've seen and heard it all. But this was just AWFUL. BUT I hung on simply due to the fact that I was intrigued by the alleged storyline. Honestly glad I did. Though this is one of the worst movies I've ever seen -- in terms of the art craft and science of movie-making -- clearly a very low budget indie film made by amateurs, it also has had me thinking about it and it's ramifications non-stop since I watched it. It IS a good story. Interesting, well thought out, intriguing. It's just not a "professional" movie. That's all. If you can accept that from the start, AND you dig sci-fi and/or time travel movies, then you just may enjoy this indie movie. Everyone has to start somewhere... And this is where this crew happened to start. Frankly, for the alleged $750k budget they had to work with, one could almost applaud their effort. So 5 out of 10 is a fair assessment.

A very small budget Science fiction movie, possibly made for TV that kept me entertained throughout. I am a sucker for time travel, but it had some original ideas that impressed me. The effects are really not that important, use your imagination, the plot kept me interested and the acting was reasonable. Special note for the character called Brego, a person from the distant future with a wonderfully camp South West English accent, put a smile on my face every time he opened his mouth. Anyone who is a lover of Sci-fi should give this movie a try, far better than some of the Hollywood rubbish.

Apparently, TIME RUNNERS took many years to get made. You wonder why all the effort, because this turns out to be a very ordinary movie, one whose admittedly interesting premise is ruined by a dreadful, TV movie-style execution which makes the whole thing look and feel cheesy. It feels like a rip-off of TIMECOP, except with the action heroes of that film replaced by a pregnant housewife trying to solve the mystery of her husband's death.

This housewife has a special ability, which is to rewind time by five seconds, something that comes in very handy during some fun fight scenes that are interspersed throughout. Sadly, the interest level remains low, thanks to some VERY cheesy performances, particularly the guy with the exaggerated British accent who made me cringe every time he spoke. The special effects are on par with your average SyFy Channel movie, leaving this a disappointing "could have been" viewing experience.

95ers: ECHOES is an ambitious, ultra low budget sci-fi flick. (I think some of the reviewers out there might be expecting a big budget epic or something, and are disappointed when they see how indie it is.) It's an extremely original time travel tale... with an interesting Christmassy ghost story thread. The acting is decent, and the effects are surprisingly good for an indie movie. The only complaint one might have is the pacing. It's a bit slow here and there, but after a second viewing you realize how much detail is packed into the scenes. There are plenty of cool payoffs if you stick around until the end. It's different approach to time travel--lots of quantum physics stuff for science geeks. If you liked Memento and Frequency, and especially if you have a penchant for X-Files, you'll like 95ers. You can tell it's set the stage for future movies, with lots of unanswered questions and interesting characters that are part of the back story. Despite the pacing, I have to give it a ten for good writing and for what they achieved on such a tiny budget. Very much worth a patient watch.

Well, I can honestly say I was very surprised. Many will complain it's slow, I will agree that it is, indeed. If you like "Timecop" type flicks you'll be better off skipping this one. I like the approach it takes on the meddling with time lines and I love the aesthetics of the "science" and machinery in it. I thought that maybe, from the critics I had heard, I would be bored of watching it after as little as 15mn but here's the thing, I didn't. It's one of these movies you have to try for yourself. If you start it, do finish it. In the end, I feel it's worth it once you go beyond its pacing. Even that improves dramatically in the end. Not a popcorn flick, rather a brainy type of time paradox movie.