Review by Quin
What would you do if you were ever put into a scenario where you met yourself? Yes, I know it’s a strange question, and it’s one that I’ve never really considered before. There have been tons of films over the years featuring clones and doppelgängers, but +1 does it in a pretty new and original way. The film also brings up some pretty chilling philosophical ideas. This leads me to think, if I met myself, I’d probably die of fright. It would mean reality as I know it, now ceases to exist. To paraphrase The Amazing Criswell in Plan 9 From Outer Space… can your hearts stand the shocking facts about doppelgängers from outer space?
I have to be honest and tell you that I hated the first 20 minutes of this movie. This is important that you know this because if you start watching it and find yourself hating it too, you’re really going to want to stick with it. +1 starts out like your typical teen movie. David is having a surprise visit to his girlfriend’s fencing match (that’s not the typical part) with flowers in hand. After the match he accidentally hits on his girlfriend Jill’s opponent. Her back is to him and she’s dressed like a fencer (I looked it up, that’s what they’re called) when she turns around and kisses him, David notices it’s not Jill (looks like David’s non-evil/good intentioned plan has been foiled) but he keeps kissing her just long enough for his girlfriend to come in and see what he’s done. Rats! Foiled again! She runs off, understandably pissed off, but the movie needs this silly misunderstanding to move the story along to bigger and better things.
The movie, still in its awful setup phase, moves the setting to a ridiculous mansion. This is where the equally ridiculous party is going to take place. Post high school kids file into the place for one of those parties that can only happen in the movies, much like doppelgängers, they do not exist in this reality. The party goers consist of equal parts hipsters and stereotypes – sometimes both. There’s a girl hanging out wearing a bikini as well as a Native American headdress. If cultural appropriation wasn’t enough, they threw in a nude asian woman covered with sushi – she’s just laying there, being referred to as the body buffet (Just so you know, this doesn’t end well for anybody – there’s a merkin and a karate kick.) Just as my blood was beginning to boil, these rich, hipster idiots start playing indoor tennis using a tennis ball dowsed in vodka and set aflame. It was around this time when the lightbulb went on…the filmmakers are satirizing hipsters and rich people and a bunch of other things. As angry as I was getting, I admired it for its subtle buildup. The reason I think it doesn’t work is because it will most likely make too many people shut it off before they realize what is going on. And like I said, the rest is fun and thought provoking.
As the party is getting underway, a short blackout occurs. it’s revealed to the viewer that something fell from the sky and hit a power line. It explodes and sparks and then sort of glows with a blurry light complete with sci-fi noises. This causes the rest of the night to spiral into chaos, sending doubles of everyone loose into the party. One nerd finds himself with the rare opportunity of having sex with the popular chick in a weirdly hilarious scene. But the hero of the film, David (played by the plastic faced yet versatile actor Rhys Wakefield) realizes what is going on and uses the opportunity to try to fix his relationship with Jill.
There are so many reasons why I really like this movie. I love that it has updated the basic plot of old 1950’s science fiction movies. There would be no +1 without The Blob or Invasion of the Body Snatchers. But the tone it creates is more like a cross between Spring Breakers and Animal House. However, while there is neon everywhere in +1, I didn’t see a single toga. The detail in the film is great as well. There is a young woman standing on a toilet staring at the ceiling. The camera moves past her from time to time and she’s still there. The dialogue is a strong point as well. When your ear picks up on the satire, lines like, “These fancy strippers are making all the girls horny!” become hilarious. Then when the movie shifts back to philosophical seriousness, we get some very well written conversations. There’s even a reference to the book of Talmud. Overall, +1 made me realize that a doppelgänger invasion would be way worse than the zombie apocalypse. Luckily, I think +1 explored the topic as far as it needs to go. I doubt that movies about people’s doubles will be the next big thing.
+1 is available now on Region 1 DVD via MPI Home Video.