Suspension is a riveting and somewhat disturbing look at the ways in which power and control, even in the hands of a good person, can spiral quickly down a dangerous path. After a car accident leaves his wife and son dead, Daniel, portrayed by Kansas City actor Scott Cordes, finds his son’s video camera and soon realizes that the pause button not only pauses the tape, but also time itself. At first he uses his newly found power to control and adjust small things, while also trying to help out his financial situation with petty theft, but soon Daniel becomes infatuated with the widow of the other victim in his family’s car accident, Sarah, played by Lawrence native Annie Tedesco. He begins by following her, taking care of her, and performing small acts of kindness, but quickly becomes obsessed with Sarah, which leads to a series of frightening actions and crimes.
One of the most interesting parts of this movie is how Scott Cordes transforms Daniel from an ordinary man with a family, mortgage, and car into a virtual stalker. We feel for him when he loses his family and put ourselves in his shoes to try and understand the despair he must be feeling. But rather than deal with his grief in a healthy way, it, along with his new found power, transforms him into a frightening person who we cannot relate to at all. Co-Directors Alec Joler and Ethan Shaftel, originally from Lawrence, do a fine job of sorting through the emotions of loss, grief, and hate, and show how they can develop into traits which are much more frightening.
The special effects in Suspension are worth mentioning as well. The stop-time sequences are extremely well done and vividly portrayed. Not only are the people in the movie stopped whenever Daniel presses his pause button, but objects are also frozen in midair, such as a tennis and soccer ball, as well as the car crash, which are all shown from 3-D angles. It’s a realistic and believable portrayal of the stopping of time, much like the effects first seen in The Matrix.
Suspension is somewhat reminiscent of several episodes of The Twilight Zone in that, for the most part, the action revolves around human flaws and frailties which are exacerbated by an outside force which cannot be explained. It’s definitely worth watching if you’re in the mood for a good Sci Fi film.
Unrated – 95 Minutes