Review by Eric Hillis
Directed by: Piero Messina
Starring: Gael García Bernal, Renate Reinsve, Bérénice Bejo, Olivia Williams
Hitchcock's Vertigo has inspired dozens of imitations over the decades, but most of them focus on the thriller element of that canonised classic. With Another End, director Piero Messina strips away the thriller plot and focusses on the more intriguing aspects of Hitchcock's film, i.e. grief and obsession. He does so with the sort of sci-fi conceit that might have fared better as an hour long episode of an anthology like Black Mirror rather than a two-hour feature. The longer Another End runs the more time we have to pick it apart, but if you can watch this film through an uncynical lens it has its emotional rewards.
The film is set in a near future version of an ambiguously European city where most residents speak with British accents but which resembles Iron Curtain era East Germany, all brutalist architecture and poorly lit trams with wooden interiors. Here we find Sal (Gael García Bernal), who recently lost his lover Zoe in a car crash for which he holds himself responsible. Consumed by grief, Sal even attempts suicide, his doting sister Ebe (Bérénice Bejo) thwarting his plot just in time. Ebe offers a solution to her brother's malaise. She works for a company named 'Another End', which offers a unique service. Dead people have their memories uploaded into the bodies of others who volunteer to act as hosts. The grieving loved ones then get to spend more time with the departed, albeit in someone else's body.
As luck would have it for Sal, Zoe's memories are uploaded into the body of Renate Reinsve. At first feeling awkward with this arrangement, Sal settles in and recognises that the soul residing in this stranger is indeed that of his lost love. There's a catch however. The departed can only inhabit their hosts for a limited number of shifts, as to do so for any prolonged amount of time and their memories will start to cloud those of the host. Unable to say goodbye to Zoe, Sal begs his sister to pull some strings, but she is unwilling to arrange more than a couple of extra sessions.
It's after Sal is forced to say goodbye to this resurrected version of Zoe that the movie takes its cues from Vertigo. Despite knowing that she's a stranger rather than the woman he lost, Sal seeks out Ava, the woman who played host to Zoe. Fittingly, given the requirements of hosting, Ava is a sex worker. Viewing Sal as just another creep who wants her body, Ava initially sees him on purely professional terms, but something within her draws Ava to this melancholy man.
Another End certainly raises its share of interesting questions on a variety of topics. Foremost is the timely question of whether the departed can live on through technological recreations, like those creepy AI videos of animated photos of dead loved ones you come across on social media. It forces us to consider the nature of attraction, and whether Sal is drawn to Ava because she acts like Zoe or simply because she looks like a ridiculously hot Norwegian movie star. It wisely leaves the answers to such philosophical questions to us, and will likely make for some interesting post-screening pub debates. But there are some more grounded questions we find ourselves asking regarding the logistics of this process, for example the protocols regarding physical intimacy (what would happen should a host be impregnated by a grieving loved one?). A late twist is initially effective in making us gasp, but it only leads to more questions regarding the mechanics of how this all works. The movie's final shot raises disturbing implications that the film perhaps hasn't fully considered.
When we're not questioning the science of Another End, it's easy to get caught up in this moody tale of grief and unlikely rekindled romance. Bernal strikes just the right balance between making us empathise with Sal's grieving status and question the morality of his actions. If you've followed her rapid rise in recent years, it's no surprise that Reinsve is the standout here, fully convincing as two very different women who both share the same body. She's tasked with essentially playing three roles: that of Ava, of Zoe in Ava's body, and gradually as an increasingly confused Ava whose mind becomes clouded with Zoe's memories. It's Reinsve's performance(s) that sells this rather preposterous premise, and regardless of which woman she's playing, we never question why Sal would want to spend as much time with her as possible.
Another End is in US cinemas from September 19th. A UK/ROI release has yet to be announced.
