LAPSE

This film will mess with your head. That is if you let it work its magic. You see, it’s subtle, it’s finely layered, it creeps up on you. On the surface, all looks normal. It appears to be a “regular” story about a girl with memory loss. You watch her journey as she struggles to remember. You may find yourself thinking: “This girl is annoying. I don’t think I like her”. You will wonder what will happen next. You will have many moments where you will say: “Hold on, who, what, where, why and when was that?”. All these things will happen to you. But why?

“Lapse” is really unique in its structure. That is its strength - and some will say its weakness. Because if you don’t pay attention, you will miss it. It’s not your average, run-of-the-mill movie that you can watch with half your brain switched off. You can’t pop to the lavatory and expect to pick up where you left off. And yet the film meanders along, events seemingly simple and straightforward. Don’t be fooled. This film is a bona fide puzzle.

You may choose to dismiss the whole thing, forget you saw the film, tell yourself it made no sense or that in the end you really can’t be bothered to care about unraveling its intricacies. But if you like a challenge - something more than mere entertainment - this film will offer it, and offer it bountifully. Abundantly. Copiously. You get the drift.

Writer-Director Marianne Hansen based this film on the feeling she’d get from watching a David Lynch film. More accurately, she based it on the exact feeling she had after watching “Memento” - she had to watch it again right away. These type of films are not for everyone, but for those who like them, they are brilliantly told stories. “Once you unravel “Lapse”, you will find that everything comes together in so many subtle ways”, Marianne explains, “there are always new tidbits to discover, new connections to make. This film holds up really well over repeated viewings. It kind of demands that you watch it more than once”. Marianne likes to mess with people’s expectations. In “Lapse” nothing is as it appears.

“This is a story about how terribly wrong things can go”, Marianne continues, “it’s the same thing every time. When we don’t want to face up to whatever is rearing its ugly head in our lives, it only exacerbates the problem. Matters get worse, because they gain power”. Marianne adds: “And blaming other people for our problems without taking some responsibility for the situation is a telltale sign that we’re hiding and in denial. We usually project issues we can’t handle in ourselves onto others, it’s all pretty much psychology 101, but so true. It’s why we always have the same issues repeating themselves - like a karmic yo-yo. And they will keep repeating themselves, until that “Eureka” moment hits us”. The protagonist in “Lapse” is one such person. Here denial, escape and projection is taken to their extremes. “Renee is very human, and she portrays in the majority of the film behavior and characteristics that we usually would like to pretend we don’t have. She’s a ugly mirror held up before us, but I personally have a soft spot for this kind of flawed heroine. She is so tragic, I really feel sorry for her. But at the same time, she makes me laugh, because she’s completely lost her marbles”.

The remaining three characters support the protagonist in her rise and fall. Chloe is a lovable, ditzy blonde, only she’s a redhead. She’s not perfect, but she knows it and doesn’t pretend to be. That makes her incredibly endearing. She’s sort of an antithesis of Renee. Guy is both mentor and villain all rolled into one - a mysterious character whose motives are unclear, so he is constantly shape-shifting. He has the answers, but he doesn’t serve them with a spoonful of sugar. Jamie is the love interest - the classic prize that in this film no one wants in the end, because not everything that glitters is gold.

“Lapse” is an unlikely commercial movie, but it could become a cult film. It’s the kind of product cinephiles might stumble upon and take to their hearts. Luckily for them, this movie will provide intellectual fodder for days. It’s great for book reports and film analysis. It is not suitable for children and it probably won’t appeal to granny either. “But we don’t all have to like the same things”, Marianne muses, “I just hope that “Lapse” finds its audience, because I know it’s out there. That is my sincerest wish for this film”.