SOMETIME ELSE | Omeleto Sci-Fi

A therapist treats a patient.


SOMETIME ELSE is used with permission from James Cleave. Learn more at https://jamescleavefilms.com.


A therapist is meeting with her regular patient Josh, an awkward young man who is working through a traumatic breakup with his ex-girlfriend Gemma. Using state-of-the-art VR technology, the therapist helps Josh navigate his feelings by sifting through his memories.

But as Josh takes the therapist through the pivotal moments and events of the relationship, from his initial crush to their devastating breakup, what seems like a troubled romance reveals something deeper and darker at work.

Directed and written by James Cleave, this gripping sci-fi drama explores the intersection of technology, memory and psychology, as a young man slowly strips away layers of denial and emotion with the aid of a virtual reality technology and a wily, persistent therapist. Situated believably in a version of today's everyday reality with slightly more advanced tech, the film pulls viewers in with riveting performances and consistently compelling storytelling, leaving us with plenty of thought-provoking questions at its conclusion.

In many ways, the storytelling is structured around a classic two-hander set-up, anchored by the interaction between Josh and his therapist. But it takes advantage of VR's expansive immersion to open up the story as a romantic drama of a young, tumultuous teenage romance. We see Josh as a classic lovelorn boy, slightly awkward and head over heels for his crush. To his delight and surprise, he begins dating Gemma, but the romance goes sour, much to his distress.

Through clever use of split screen, we see both Josh's memories and his recounting of them to his therapist, and there's enough of a gap for viewers to realize that he's often in denial of events and his feelings around them. The use of VR places Josh viscerally in his memories, which seems to unlock deeper, rawer levels of emotion within him. Two strands of the story begin emerging: that of how exactly Josh's relationship breaks down, and the cat-and-mouse game between him and his therapist, as she attempts to get him to face reality.

As Josh, actor Sean Joseph Young carries the short with a richly layered performance. He conveys Josh's aching hope, desire and attachment to his girlfriend, but as he relives his memories, darker shades of his thoughts emerge, as the therapist -- played by actor Nia Roberts with disarming calm -- finally helps him face the truth of what happened. That truth, of course, is much more disturbing than previously thought.

Being a clever, absorbing and superbly crafted thriller at the end, SOMETIME ELSE has other secrets to uncover, and other ideas to ponder, especially about the ethical use of technology, reliability of memory and how we so easily reshape stories to suit ourselves. But in the imagining of a future where dreams and memories can be recorded, we may not be able to escape the truth for long, for better or for worse.