The Shift

2023

Action / Romance / Sci-Fi / Thriller

41
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 87% · 30 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 87% · 1K ratings
IMDb Rating 5.6/10 10 6247 6.2K

love of one's life time travel zealous independent film urgent wry

Plot summary

Following a tense encounter with a mysterious stranger with otherworldly powers, a man finds himself banished to a parallel, tyrannical Earth, where he fights to get back to the woman he loves.

Director

Brock Heasley Photo
Brock Heasley

Top cast

Sean Astin Photo
Sean Astin as Gabriel
Neal McDonough Photo
Neal McDonough as The Benefactor
Kristoffer Polaha Photo
Kristoffer Polaha as Kevin Garner
Kevin Lawson Photo
Kevin Lawson as Unmasked Lancer
720p.BluRay 720p.WEB 1080p.BluRay 1080p.WEB 1080p.WEB
1.03 GB
1280*674
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 54 min
Seeds 13
1.03 GB
1280*674
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 54 min
Seeds 17
2.11 GB
1920*1012
English 5.1
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 54 min
Seeds 9
1.91 GB
1920*1012
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 54 min
Seeds 27
1.71 GB
1920*1012
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 54 min
Seeds 16

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by MickyG333 7 / 10

Something is missing

6.6 stars.I waited a bit over a year to watch this, because I really wanted to see it, but not until after the hype wore off. So I finally bit the bullet, and these are my unbiased opinions.First of all, there was too much hype surrounding this film and I have no idea why. The story is splintered into three or four different themes and unfortunately none of them are impactful. Let me explain. The first aspect is multiverse. Ok, well, if you want to combine a multiverse with Christianity, you really need to sell it much better. Instead, they offer us a gimmick in the form of a borderline low-budget atmosphere. Now, don't get me wrong, you can tell this is not low-budget, but the script and pace make it seem that way, which is unfortunate. What we have are a crew of filmmakers who know sci-fi, but they don't have a grasp on high quality scriptwriting and flow (probably the director's fault). It's obvious that amateurs who specialize in decent sci-fi, decided to add a Christian twist, or maybe it's the other way around. The special effects were good, but for some reason the religious parts were lost in the mix. You can't have a man running around in an alternate universe accomplishing nothing for a full hour and expect us to come away satisfied, or fulfilled. His good works were not very convincing and seemed lost in the setting. We weren't getting the message.The devil aspect is acted well and seems ominous enough, however it's cliche, cheesy at times, and doesn't make sense. Benefactor gets angry at a stubborn man, and supposedly this stubborn man isn't supposed to be so disagreeable, he's supposed to be one of the "good guys". It's a fragment that we never see the solution to.And what's the point of the blinking back and forth between universes? You will see there is absolutely no point to it. What's gained, what's lost? What agenda does Satan have with it? It is for display only with no endgame. And the part where the main character can view different things in a movie theater (don't want to spoil it, so I'll be vague with this). There is no point to that part of the plot.The best part is when he makes a couple of good decisions, and that's when you see a bit of good vs evil that makes sense.The music sold the experience, but it's the only redeeming aspect of the whole film.And to touch on the good vs evil stuff a bit more, it would be nice if life really was like that. And the sprinkling of little miracles here and there was a good addition, but it also gets lost in the utter nonsense of their attempt to allegorize the book of Job from the Bible. Honestly, I don't think it's anything like the book of Job and I'm pretty certain the writers didn't intend it to be. And also, Job from the Bible did not lose his wife.If I had never of this film previously, I'd not hesitate to say it's a fragmented failure, B-rated at best. But I had some expectations (because Polaha is a beloved Hallmark male lead regular), so I'll say it's not a B-rated failure, but more of a religious/sci-fi fusion failure.
Reviewed by michigan_football 6 / 10

A decent blend between sci-fi and spirituality/Gnosticism

I don't think this movie deserves the low reviews it's getting based on people who cannot entertain the Christian/spiritual themes of the movie. I found it to be refreshing take on sci fi and overall social commentary that leaves you thinking about the world we live in today.With this said, I wouldn't say it's a great movie, but not because of the content but because of the execution. The concepts are great but at times it feels a bit cheesy or for me and plot points don't quite add up, which reminds me I'm watching a movie. But overall it's Better than a lot of other movies being made now a days with bigger budgets and cast. Once again I'm really impressed with what Angel Studios has achieved.6.5/10.
Reviewed by sbweightman 6 / 10

A dystopian take on religious sermon.

A weird dystopian sci-fi story with a heavy focus on its religiously inspired plot. The story has substance and with strong acting performances and a somewhat realistic 'police state' setting it makes for compelling viewing, but it also overcomplicates itself by trying to fit in too much. The heavy emphasis on religious allegory, romance, drama and action scenes are all good, but I found it to be a bit boring. Some of the subtle special effects were good whereas others looked cheap, the overly loud music drowned out the atmosphere and the ending, whilst expected, felt a bit of a cop out.6/10.
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