Welcome back to the feature where I review movies and tv series that are at my local in my local video rental place. Previously, I have reviewed 10 Cloverfield Lane and the SyFy Series 12 Monkeys. Today I will be reviewing the indie scifi thriller called 400 Days.
First, I’m going to say this. After your first watch of this movie you may be a little pissed off to start. It’s sudden and difficult to understand. But after thinking about it for a little while, I think this is intentional. I will get to this after a brief synopsis.
400 Days is set mostly in a mocked-up spacecraft. We are led to believe that the four astronauts we have just met are being put into the ground as a test of the effects of long-term space travel on the human mind. There is some drama as the main psychological officer has just dumped Brandon Routh, our main spaceman.
There is some interesting character work in this movie, with Dane Cook, Brandon Routh, and Tom Cavanagh making for some interesting character work. There is a twist at the end of the first act where something seems to have gone wrong with the experiment. This generates much of the drama for the rest of the story. We see various things happen that stretch these individuals to the breaking point through the course of this experiment. But there is a third act twist that I won’t ruin for you.
I think this is trying to be one of those trippy psychological thrillers which plays with your perception and then leaves you with a question. Were the events of the movie real or were they all in the character’s minds. It doesn’t pull it off perfectly, but oddly the last twist of the movie, although it may piss you off, will leave you wanting to watch the movie again very carefully. Ultimately the last series of twists makes some sense, but there is still some missing in the film.
If you are a fan of the psychological thrillers this movie is worth watching. I found it quite enjoyable despite the rage-inducing ending. The rage will wear off and curiosity will set in. Ultimately the story has some holes, and you’ll be left scratching your head even after the second viewing, but I still think genre (and love story) fans will get enough enjoyment out of this to drop the dollar or two it takes to watch 400 days.
The Thoughts of Jonathan Sonantis 