Possible Worlds

★★★★★

Dir: Robert Lepage

2000

So, there is a deeply philosophical theory out there that doesn't just appear in science fiction or romance films. The theory is called 'possible worlds' but we may all know it as parallel universes. That we all exist in many other 'realities'. One world, for example where I turned left instead of right and another where I drank coffee instead of tea. Thinking about your day so far, the amount of other worlds out there in other dimensions might make you dizzy just to contemplate it.

Written by mathematician and playwright John Mighton, Directed by Canadian writer, actor and filmmaker Robert Lepage in his first English language film, Possible Worlds is a tricky film to dissect. Firstly the main character George Barber (Tom McCamus) is in fact dead, or at least has had his brain removed in a truly bizarre crime. Are you really in fact dead if your brain exists somewhere else, apart from your body. Is it 'working'? Thus begins a difficult investigation with comedic cop duo, the excellent world-weary and cynical old-timer (Sean McCann) and the young dumb rookie (Rick Miller), constantly being belittled by his partner.

In our parallel story / internal world, George keeps falling in love with the same woman (Tilda Swinton) in different possible worlds. The film's closest companion would definitely be David Lynch's Lost Highway (1997); The pace, minimalist style and strangely stunted dialogue are remarkably similar. However, the calm philosophical tone helped by the superb use of Peter Gabriel's track 'The Nest That Sailed The Sky' and continued use of the sea/water as a visual metaphor give this film a tone entirely of its own. The intricate scene transitions are sublime and even when you find yourself constantly lost, wondering what is really going on in the film, the visual beauty and intellectual banter is a marvel from start to finish.

McCamus is quietly effective as our troubled soul and Tilda Swinton is rather great as usual in multiple roles. The depth of Possible World's heady material could be summed up by Swinton's philosophy on her excellent choice of roles over the years. She has said that she always knows when she is working on a good project, when the producers start getting nervous. I would have loved to have seen them on the set of this gem of a film.