Predestination - Better than I expected

I had never heard of ‘Predestination.’ I don’t know for sure, but I’m guessing it never received a theatrical release in cinemas.  Or, if it did, it was a ‘limited run’ and I didn’t notice.  Therefore, baring this in mind and the fact that it didn’t have any ‘big name’ actors in it (apologises, Ethan Hawke), I kind of looked upon it as a B-movie that was released straight to DVD.

But, regardless of its origins, it’s actually pretty good.  I have to confess that I wasn’t really watching it properly to begin with.  I kind of had it on in the background while I did other things.  I read the blurb regarding its plot and saw something about ‘time travelling agents’ and preventing future crimes and considered it a basic ‘bang bang’ action movie. 

It isn’t.  There’s actually very little action and you really do have to pay attention to get something out of it.  It was because of that I started watching it again so I could actually know what’s going on.  Obviously, with anything regarding time travel, there are always going to be people who pick holes in the story, so you’ll have to suspend your disbelief when it comes to the ‘temporal physics’ of it all.

Ethan Hawke plays the time travelling agent who prevents crimes before they happen.  However, even with all the technology at his disposal, he’s still having trouble catching the ‘fizzle bomber’ before he strikes.  At first it seemed that the story was going to be all about him, yet we meet a secondary character who sort of takes over the ‘meat’ of the tale.

The tale itself is a twisted one.  Anything concerning time travel is going to have to deal with paradoxes and parallel universes and realities.  And ‘Predestination’ seems to involve all of them.  And, if you can follow it (or should I say prepared to follow it) you’ll definitely enjoy it.  It’s not an action movie and it’s certainly not fast-paced.  It’s more of a thriller/sci-fi drama that you will have to follow closely to make sure you don’t miss something.  You’re only going to get to watch it the once before you know all the twists and turns of the tale, so watch it closely and enjoy the mystery surrounding the plot.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that