Shuffle (2011)

Rating 12
Length 1h22
Release 21.10.2011 (USA release only)
Director Kurt Kuenne
About A man begins experiencing his life out of chronological order. Every day he is a different age, in a different stage of his life, and never knows where he’ll be when he wakes up.
Moon: Full moon 48 minutes in
Where to Watch: Part of MGM subscription on Amazon Prime
Trailer:

The Good

• The characters are good and so is the story; once you have all the pieces.
• TJ Thyne proves here that he can hold his own and lead a film. He’s charming, engaging and emotive. Everything you need in a leading man.
• The mystery does keep you invested. Knowing that the protagonist is there with you too allows you to want for the answers. I never like it when the protagonist is holding back from the audience.

The Bad

• The lighting of the film is inconsistent. Now while it may convey something, I found it very distracting when it changed when the angle did. It didn’t feel like an artistic choice and more of a incompetence.
• The unusual narration choice is really hard to follow, as seen by the extensive use of a vocal narrative. It became rather repetitive to hear the protagonist for the fiftieth time tell us he knows something, but doesn’t know how he knows.

The Ugly

• There was no option for subtitles on this title. I have them on out of habit now, but this film really did need it. Perhaps its part of the “Indie” feel, but the sound mixing was terrible and I spent a lot of the film changing the volume.

Final Thoughts

One watch wonder. The out of sequence narration does not make for an easy or enjoyable watch. Once the mystery is solved, I’m not sure a repeat viewing is needed.
Wanting something similar, but better? Time Traveller’s Wife, About Time or Benjamin Button all handle this bittersweet time travel much better.