The decision to watch ‘Flatliners’ came from that one time I was on a ‘Lonely Island’ binge & came across Andy Samberg’s underrated mockumentary ‘Popstar’ & one of the characters played by the great Bill Hader just randomly brought up this movie briefly. Its outlandish concept was enough to make me want to check it out. A bunch of med students taking turns to stop their hearts in order to pay a visit to the afterlife, then restarting their hearts, only to end up dealing with the consequences of whatever’s unleashed from the land of the dead… What’s not to love, eh?
I love that this movie is a fascinating combo of philosophy and fantasy and unlike other works from the late Joel Schumacher, it doesn’t rely on the fancy over the top CGI that the filmmaker was known for, although it does have a fair amount of epilepsy-inducing sequences (you’ve been warned). It instead delves into each of its characters’ respective flawed psyches and lets the story progress based on their actions or rather, on their ‘resurrection mishaps’.
It isn’t preachy about its message, one of which is that your past sins will eventually catch up to you and another being the message that ‘bullies never prosper’. I didn’t really expect a lot of depth from a movie with such an outlandish concept which at first seemed funny to me, but this movie is a serious one and it will make you think.
It also benefits a lot from great performances. Kiefer Sutherland turns in a gripping performance as Nelson, a man haunted by his past which eventually catches up to him and which leads him to turn into a deranged man who poses a danger not only to himself but also to his colleagues and while it is a slightly hammy (but like good hammy) performance, it is also nuanced at the same time. Kevin Bacon, of course, does what he does best, playing a disturbed young man and turns in, what in my opinion is his finest performance yet in a psychological horror.
Julia Roberts as Dr. Rachel Mannus, too emotes well and shines in her role of a woman who’s trying to gain closure with a deceased loved one through the experiment. It also benefits from a strong supporting cast like William Baldwin who provides some comic relief as well and Oliver Platt who tries to be the voice of reason when things began to go awry during the experimental procedures.
It is also a well paced thriller and there’s never a dull moment, albeit many disturbing moments. Even the dank & dark surroundings complement & lend the right atmosphere to the proceedings and sets the tone for the dangerous path that the group of inexperienced med students have unwittingly ventured on to.
An underrated gem that was sadly overlooked when it released , but you should definitely catch this really cool cult classic. You won’t regret it… Unlike those med students who kinda did regret all the stuff they did in the end.