Fantasia 2021: Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes Review

Directed by: Junta Yamaguchi
Written by: Makoto Ueda

Starring:
Kazunori Tosa – Kato
Aki Asakura – Megumi
Gota Ishida – Komiya
Riko Fujitani – Aya
Yoshifumi Sakai – Ozawa

Running Time: 70 minutes
Not Rated

Time travel movies have traveled the entire spectrum of filmmaking. For every big blockbuster like Back to the Future, there’s an indie gem like Timecrimes. Each expansive, world-affecting film like Tenet or Edge of Tomorrow has a counterpart with a small, intimate scope such as Primer or Safety Not Guaranteed. The concept has given us comedies, horror films, dramas, action, and pretty much every genre in between.

And yet for the many ways that filmmakers have found to put moving through time into their stories, there’s always something new to explore when time gets fluid. All it takes is the right amount of inspiration, a willingness to set down (and then sometimes ignores) rules about how it all works, and a hook. You don’t need to have the budget or big stars of Avengers: Endgame if you have the right combination of ideas. If that hasn’t been obvious before, Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes proves it. Junta Yamaguchi’s new Japanese-language film, which has its North American premieres at Fantasia International Film Festival, does a heck of a lot with little more than its small cast, an iPhone, a couple of TVs and a whip-smart high-concept script from Makoto Ueda.

The film stars Kazunori Tosa as Kato, the owner of a café in Kyoto. After a night of work, he heads to his apartment above the café to relax and play his guitar ahead of his band’s upcoming performance. Just as he’s about to start, his TV turns on and he sees himself in the café, who says he’s from two minutes in the future. Going down to investigate, he has the same conversation with his past self that he just had.

Soon, his co-worker and friends begin showing up, and as they learn about the “Time TV” they start thinking of the possibilities. But how much can you do with two minutes? Quite a lot as it turns out, once you start thinking outside the box. It isn’t long before things spiral a bit out of control and Kato’s crush Megumi (Asakura), some angry mobsters, and a mysterious pair of men seriously complicate matters.

Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes is the brainchild of Ueda and the first feature film from his Europe Kikaku theatrical troupe. Ueda’s script is economical, focusing largely on the Time TV and the chaos it unleashes, as well as the moral questions it starts to provoke. The Time TV is a nifty gimmick to set a film around, and while it does get a bit repetitive when we see both sides of the conversation play out in real time Ueda compensates by finding some crafty ways to play with the idea in the plot.

It also helps that he doesn’t get too caught up in the gimmick that he loses sight of the characters. Ueda gives his able cast plenty to work with, and they deliver a lot of heart and humor. Kato and Megumi are a couple you want to root for, with chemistry right off the bat. And the rest of the café crew manage to walk the line between colorful and wacky without tripping into irritating territory.

Ueda and Yamaguchi, as well as most of the cast, come from Europa Kikaku and made this a DIY project. The entire film is shot in a single location using an iPhone, with a very minimal crew. It’s a perfect example of a film where its DIY nature appears to have led to bolder creative choices that enhance the movie. Yamaguchi shoots the film to look like a single take from start to finish, which makes the characters talking to themselves through the TVs a nice little trick. It feels small and intimate, but it never loses track of its warmth and charm.

It’s also nice to see that at 70 minutes, this film feels remarkably well-paced. It doesn’t feel stretched out to make the gimmick fit, nor does it seem like it’s missing something that an extra scene or two could have fixed. One small subplot involving the two mystery men doesn’t land quite as well as it could have, but that’s a small quibble. In the end this is a film that succeeds on the energy of its cast and filmmakers combined with the creativity of their production for a thoroughly enjoyable little sci-fi comedy.

The Fantasia International Film Festival takes place in person and online from August 5th through August 25th

7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes is a delightful little DIY science fiction comedy that works wonders with its single take concept and its time travel gimmick. With a clever script and some well-pitched comedic performances among a cast with serious chemistry, this is an independent feature well worth checking out.