Uncertainty (2009, NR)

This film starts with young lovers played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception, 10 Things I Hate About You) and Lynn Collins (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, John Carter) trying to decide how to spend their Fourth Of July, so they flip a coin and... we follow them through both options.  The film cuts back and forth between the two alternate versions of the day and we see where each option takes them and what other decisions arise as a result.  In one version, they go to Collins's family's barbecue and in the other version, they go to their friend's party.  An attempt to be a Good Samartian makes one version of their day more pleasant and the other into a nightmare.  The story is chock-full-of decisions.


I've seen a several films in which Lynn Collins played a significant role, and none of them were very good, but I can't say it's her fault either.  I'd say she's a fine mediocre actress.  However I am a huge fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and willing to watch pretty much any movie he plays in (that's the entire reason I watched this film after all).  It was kind of weird seeing JGL (I'm getting lazy and that's a long name to type) with a scruffy face: I think he's been clean shaven in every other role I've seen him.  The acting was OK (JGL did well, but some of his other performances were far more impressive), and the script was fine but not particularly profound in most parts (the most clever conversation is probably the opening scene).  The concept and how the story was cut together was was makes this movie good.  One version of their story is calm and shows some interesting character interactions but could be seen as slow and boring if it was the entire movie, and the other version of their story is very tense and could wear you out (and/or it would feel too compressed).  But by carefully timing the switches between them, you get action when you need it and rest when you need it.  I was startled more than once when the tense world had me expecting an attack of some sort and it cut to a normal action/noise in the calm world.  And I liked some of the clever planning/reacting they do in the tense world.

If you don't tend to like independent movies because they're just people talking, then the calm world in this film will bug you more than the action sequences will please you: there are other action movies out there.  If you like the idea of alternate variations on something like Run, Lola, Run (sci-fi or not; this one is not), you'll like this (like a far tamer version of The Deaths Of Ian Stone); or stories about normal people in over their heads like The Next Three Days; or stories of people getting to know each other like The Breakfast Club... you could like this movie.  I'm trying hard to some up with some more mainstream movie that could describe it, but it's only got a couple of features in common with any of them.  It has a low production value look, so be forewarned, but I liked it for the pacing.  For me it's 3.5 or 4 stars.