Too much of everything

Good movie but grossly overrated

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Sure it has a lot of the flaws you expect from this type of low budget film. The dialogue makes you wince a few times as the writer was going for clever and it just sounded clunky coming out of the mouths of the actors. But the acting was fairly solid (with a few notable exceptions, but not where it counts). The cinematography was quite good, and even the "special effects" weren't too distracting. The editing was magnificent, and in many cases that's the key difference between good and bad in films. You don't notice it unless it's done poorly, and in this case, it was pretty much seamless.Despite is flaws, there was something about the story, and the developmental arc of the characters, that kept me fascinated. I watched it more like I was watching an art project than a movie, and I was able to really appreciate what they were trying to do.I watch a lot of indie films, and some are definitely horrific (although many of them have some merit buried in there somewhere. This one was definitely worth a watch. Someone had a pretty clever idea, developed it, and managed to work in some thought-provoking philosophy along the way.

This is a sci-fi based film that moves quickly into social commentary. The main character, Jack Sutree, is a research scientist studying the potential to use light to see olfactory data, namely scent. After an all-night work session he accidentally gives himself the ability to see smells. Soon after, he's begins to see people's souls, or the essence of their humanity. How he deals with this ability frames the film with his actions motivated by his response to events going on in his personal life. A pet's death, a pending divorce, a chance encounter with a damaged, but talente$d, homeless musician and a regent in his department who shills for Big Pharma all affect Jack as navigates the good and bad aspects of this ability to see beyond what everyone else can observe. This is an earnest movie. The tone is set right away as we see Jack dealing with having his beloved dog euthanized. He decides he wants his research to be used for the greater good, not great profits. The writing moves us along briskly, and the authentic Los Angeles locations are a fresh breeze. I thought the cast was put together nicely, especially Rob Locke as Stuart Holloway, Jack's mother's pastor. There is a great scene where he describes an onion in metaphysical terms. All in all a worthwhile movie — there's much to like here.

Extraordinary storytelling and writing for this low-budget feature film. Science meets God when a doctor discovers a chemical formula that allows the human eye to see the essence of energy. The story makes a play for the advancement of psychoactive drugs. The "see smells" and 96 souls scenes are well worth the wait. The protagonist Dr. Jack Surtree "has it all" on the surface, yet his personal life is falling apart. He is facing dwindling research funding, an estranged wife, mother in a nursing home and loyal dog passing away. It seems Dr. Surtree's entire life has been devoted to controlled deductive reasoning with methodical outcomes, and he has hit a wall. Grinnell Morris is an excellent actor in this role, especially in such scenes where he convincingly says a sweet goodbye to his dying dog. He must venture into the unknown to find solutions. With the aid of his new formula and a little help from his friends (a minister, a homeless schizophrenic, and an East Indian doctor) he succeeds in finding a humanitarian medical cure for society. The characters expand on these ideas with heart-felt revelations, delivered by strong actors. I admit to tearing up on several occasions. "When you are free, I am free; we can't escape the effect we have on each other in the larger societal consciousness."

The movie started with what seemed to be a well executed story line but somehow lost the plot half way through. The director could have either done away with the pseudo philosophy , or at least developed it properly. Amateurish special effects and cardboard acting from some actors did not help.