The Pulse Before the Flatline
The announcement of the reimagining of Flatliners (1990) sparked a certain excitement. Even when reboots are announced, the anticipation of seeing how a new generation of filmmakers tackles the issues of the original film is reason enough for excitement. Flatliners is a film that (and rightly so) received a lot of attention blending science fiction, horror, and ethical problems.
Promising a new and more exciting tale, the added cast and the attentional to all the main actors to the various different plot-lines certainly added to that attention. With the addition of big name actors (Elliot Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton, and Kiersey Clemons), the expectation of a more riveting narrative about the afterlife guilt, and redemption is understandable.
A Journey Beyond the Veil
The plot of the film focuses on a character named Courtney (Elliot Page), who is a medical student and pursues after the mysteries of the afterlife. This obsession of Courtney leads to the main narrative when she convinces her classmates, Jamie (James Norton), Marlo (Nina Dobrev), Sophia (Kiersey Clemons), and Ray (Diego Luna) to stop their hearts and induce a near death experience.
Every participant in the afterlife faces manifestations of their past sins:
Courtney is haunted by the ghost of her sister Tessa, who died in a car accident that Courtney caused.
Jamie meets the child he pressured his ex-girlfriend to abort.
Marlo witnesses the ghost of Cyrus, a patient who died because of her medical mistake.
Sophia confronts Irina, a classmate who she sabotaged to become valedictorian.
As the experiments become more extreme, the possibility of a sad outcome becomes more probable because the group rationalizes their actions to a troubling degree.
The Dangerous Crossing of Characters and the Consequences
Every character is touched by loss and guilt, and every character is forced to rationalize the blame and the loss in increasingly troubling, guilt-ridden ways. Courtney is obsessed with the afterlife because she self-destructs blame her sister’s death. Courtney returns in the end to die in the cache as a staircase.
Jamie is forced to rationalize his past decisions, and the fun and jovial attitude he is initially and deceit. Marlo, who recalls her medical mistake, becomes the ghost we most sympathize with. The most ambitious and desperate character of the lot, Sophia, is forced to rationalize the unethical compromises she made to achieve her success.
The emotional journeys reflect the appreciation for the actors’ performances, depth, and complexity.
Aesthetic Choices: Striking Yet Shallow
Flatliners, for the most part, is a visual delight. Neon-lit and surreal dreamscapes are integrated in the cinematography and the editing to show the characters’ near-death experiences, and these sequences are captivating. The sound design enhances the spell of the characters’ psychological and emotional turmoil, immersing the audience and adding to the surreal ambiance.
Like the fashion paradox of a well-dressed individual possessing poor interpersonal skills, in the case of Flatliners, the poor pacing and shallow character construction provide little room for emotional closure.
Behind the Scenes: A Troubled Production
The revelations and the Flatliners controversy are quite the combination. In Pageboy, Elliot Page describes unsafe working conditions, which include a near-miss accident and unbelted seat restraints during a car stunt involving co-star Kiersey Clemons. Page describes misogyny and queerphobia on set, such as being bullied to dress more femininely after his gay coming out.
Moreover, Page describes inappropriate behavior of a studio executive toward him and Clemons, which is yet another mark in the troubled production history of the film.
The controversy surrounding the film’s release has raised questions regarding the safety and inclusivity of productions in Hollywood.
The Aftermath: A Flicker That Faded
Upon release, the film had little trouble raking in revenue, earning 45.2 million dollars total against a 19 million dollar budget. Although this was seen as a moderate, profitable venture, audiences and critics alike had little love for the film, as demonstrated in the comments. The visuals were seen as well crafted, but the film was panned for its incoherence and lack of substance. The film’s disappointing outcome, and the lesson that came with it, came as a result of the lack of substance being primary.
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