‘Be careful what you search for’
The Alternate is a 2021 American science fiction thriller film about a struggling filmmaker who is forced to confront his idealised self after unlocking a portal to an alternate dimension where all his dreams have come true.
Written and directed by Alrik Bursell (shorts: The Rage; Brother; Strange Thing; High Stakes; Impossible to Kill), making his feature directorial debut. Produced by Jeffrey Allard, Marcella Cortland, Seana Meek and Ed Ng.
The Bursell Productions movie stars Ed Gonzalez Moreno, Natalia Dominguez, Patrice Binaisa, Phillip Caires, Lisa Finnie, Alexander Marais and Olivia Pintz.
Plot synopsis:
Jake (Ed Gonzalez Moreno), a videographer, discovers a portal to another dimension in which he has everything he has always wanted: the perfect version of his wife, the career of his dreams, and the daughter he never had. He starts travelling back and forth between these two worlds but soon sees that his alternate is not as perfect as he seems, and perfection comes with a price…
Release:
In the US, Uncork’d Entertainment will release The Alternate On-Demand (VOD) and on DVD on September 13, 2022. Rent or buy via Amazon Prime
Reviews:
“At about 85 minutes to the credit run, The Alternate is a taut sci-fi thriller that, cleverly, wastes little time either pondering or explaining the scientific “hows” of its story. It’s all made up, it doesn’t matter, and you won’t care. Besides, the notion at the center of it all is solid enough to drive the film’s message home.” Altfg.com
“While the budget is low and the effects not the best you’ve seen, this movie realizes that it can be different by having an intriguing story and pushes itself to be quite unique.” B&S About Movies
“The Alternate is a highly entertaining science fiction film that takes a fantastic element and uses it to tell a very personal story. One that many people watching the film will probably confess to having experienced at least once in their lives. The cast is very solid, and while the pacing slips a bit towards the middle, the final section of the film balances things out to properly end the story.” 7 out of 10, Fiction Horizon
“The Alternate is well shot, with a visual quality that’s well above your average indie sci-fi feature. It’s an entertaining story, but the hesitance to embrace its dark side does create a conflict in tone as the plot intensifies which holds back its full potential. Looking at the film’s different pieces […] there’s a sincere amount of talent at work here…” 3.5 out of 5, Film Carnage
“Looking at The Alternate it seems to find yourself in front of a genre film that has come down to us directly from the 80s, reworked in a modern key but which retains that intrinsic passion for the purest cinema. Independent but with the heart.” 3.5 out of 5, Madmass Magazine [translated from Italian]
“Time travel or alternate universes can be faked with […] cheap effects. What matters is the sharp focus of the screenplay, witty dialogue, cleverly-set-up moments of suspense, and execution. The Alternate has the effects and a plot that could work but falls short in pretty much every other regard.” 1 out of 4, Movie Nation
“When it comes to the effects in use, the portal itself looks great and the merging between the two worlds comes off very well too. The Alternate is a sci-fi film that leaves you with plenty of questions about your own universe.” 4 out of 4, Movie Reviews 101
“The Alternate has a premise that suggests the arrival of fascinating new concepts for the multiverse genre. In the end, it only skims those concepts with its relatively slight story. Still, it is a story that is told well, with real stakes and intrigue. The deeper exploration would’ve only served to make The Alternate stronger…” 3/5, Screen Rant
” …the characters are carefully fleshed out and their issues, besides the dimension-hopping of course, feel 100% real. And of course, two very solid leads who ground the thing help in making this very nice if not exactly run-of-the-mill science fiction entertainment, as does the movie’s suitably subtle directorial effort.” Search My Trash
“With a simple direction and in a homely atmosphere, Bursell creates a truly appreciable fantahorror work, which manages to pay homage to the great classics of horror and science fiction cinema. In the same way he can stay away from it, following his own path and a style all his own.” Der Zweifel [translated from Italian]
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