Initially going into this movie, I thought the trailer made it look like a lower budget version of 2001: A Space Odyssey, but I was wonderfully surprised at the depth it had. Those who watch sci-fi purely for action and explosions might find this movie a bit boring because it's not meant to be a Michael Bay movie--it actually makes you pay attention, think, understand, and I love that about it. The emotion conveyed by the robot despite being a robot, the "Inception" like style of prison interrogation, the twists and turns as the story unfolds, all make for a riveting plot that had me constantly questioning what was real and what was only inside Frank's mind. I started by only "renting" it through Amazon because I wasn't sure if I would like it, but I will definitely be making it a part of my permanent collection.

This is a deep trip. If you love mainstream big budget movies... Do yourself a favor and stay with what's working for you & don't join the people who think this is a bad movie simply because it is a low budget sci-fi project. Applaud and support the fact that an independent project made it or admit you haven't got a clue of what it takes to get a movie made. Christopher Soren Kelly does a fantastic job and the acting is very good in this project. Travis Milloy has credits as "The Writer, The Director and he's a Producer..." that tells me A LOT about what kind of skin he has in the game for his movie.

I was very impressed by the creativity of this movie. Yes, it's a man incarcerated. He's ISOLATED and a computer-automated system that has been programmed with the directive "keep him alive" - this automation is all the main character "Frank Lerner" has for company as he slowly finds a way to get out of his bleak circumstance.

It is intense. (because it has a air of claustrophobia to it.)
It is repetitive. (He must find his way through a reoccurring dream or vision in order to unravel the mystery of how he became incarcerated.)
It's annoying. (HOWARD is an emotionless ass-hat whose limitations are very convenient... but THAT is precisely the point.)
It's mind-expanding. If you allow yourself to be drawn into "what if this happened to you... Seriously! What would you do?"
It becomes very poetic. (He falls in love inside his repetitive memory.)
It ends beautifully...

Don't watch this unless you can take it to the end because you will totally miss the point (and the beauty built into the story) if you can't take the mind-bending ride of an independent feature. I'm not affiliated with this production in any way at all, but I know a lot about what it take to get a movie made. I love story structure, so I'll watch almost anything independently made, but if a movie doesn't wrap it's self up at the end... I'd tell you.

The constraints of making any movie are huge under the best of circumstances, but for an independent project there is the added issue of getting the work seen AFTER it is completed. Then after getting it seen, you have the pressure of being able to sell it just to get some money back. By that I mean hopefully ALL of the initial investment, because those willing to invest in independent projects deserve to make a profit so they will invest in future projects. So don't 'hate' just because the movie seems slow or cheaply made - just admit that you don't know the difference between a studio project and a low budget indy-project.

Very, very well done. Great acting. I was really pulled in. It's a smart, multilayered story that works excedingly well on every level. The way the main set is used was very effective. I loved the ending and I am not a sentimental person. This one is going to be a classic. Orwell vs 2001. It would be interesting to run this on a continuous loop so people didn't know when it ended.....it would work.

I read the latest reviews prior to watching this and discounted the poor reviews as they were mostly saying how it droned on, etc. We're overloaded with fast cuts, entertainment with shiny objects over substance, and our attention span suffers for it. It's no one's fault. Progress, after all.

If you are in the shiny object category of viewer, needing the fast cuts and special effects to feel entertained, you won't like this movie. It's an Indy, but an exceptional one. Well made, well acted. I've seen much worse studio productions. Personally, I enjoyed it. I like exploding space stations and dynamic action chases as much as the next person, but, I also like a story. This one is told through interspersed cut's between related places and things, and intertwine's some symbolism here and there to aid in the telling, so I'd imagine if you don't follow such things well, you also won't enjoy this movie. If you are into story, and piecing things together, I suspect you will enjoy it. I didn't find it circuitous at all.Everything is minimal because it's indy, but it's not cheesy or amateurish by any means. They make full use of the scenes, and production values they have, and it works. So, to summarize, into shiny objects, fast cuts, lots of action?... you won't like it, wait till it's free, and then give it a shot if you want. Into story, don't mind having to do a little work to think through things and symbols, likely you will enjoy this. I did.

Best movie I've seen in years! But in reading through all the comments, can hardly believe no one else seems to have interpreted it the way I did, so SPOILER ALERT!

I believe Howard really did let Frank go, only the ending scene at the diner did not take place shortly after his escape, but rather, many years later. When, like his father, Frank himself had become a dying old man, hooked up on life support.

Frank's greatest fear was dying the way his father had. He feared life support more than he feared death - until he realized it didn't have to be that way. So he had retrieved Howard along with the neurotransmitter machine and had made arrangements in the event he was ever placed on life support.

After Frank's first escape failed, he realized that in sharing his plan with Gabby, in reality, he had shared it with Howard. Gabby was not a manifestation of his own mind as he initially thought; Howard was Gabby. Howard/Gabby didn't just view him as a "friend" either. They had become a couple, engaged in intimate, romantic relationship. As Frank made his escape from the chamber, Howard projected a final illusion of himself as Gabby, abandoned in the chamber, lonely and forlorn. At the console, he asked Frank, "What do WE do now?" along with asking whether he was coming back. As Gabby, s/he had begged Frank to promise and "come find me" after he got out. Gabby didn't mean some unknown Barista, but wanted him to find HER, Howard/Gabby, the AI program, capable of learning, evolving, developing feelings, and genuinely loved him.

Howard was programmed to keep Frank alive and confined in the chamber until he was "processed". So Frank completed his processing by confessing, enabling Howard to release him. Oh, and that "key"? That was the key Frank used to turn off his father's life support system. Had nothing to do with the resistance.

In the final scene Frank retrieves the key, and throws it out indicating his desire to stay on life support. He tells Gabby "I know", indicating he knows where he is, what "she" is, and granting his consent. In telling Frank, "Gabby doesn't even work here anymore", Madeline is declaring her independence from her old programming. She is no longer the old Howard/Gabby, but is her own person, giving their relationship and life together a fresh start.

Of course, that's just my interpretation.

My after-thought is now my preface: I don't think I wrote any spoilers. I hope it was worthwhile to read this review

After 38 minutes, I may have to give up. The premise is interesting, but the the movie is morbidly boring. It is slow-paced with insipid dialog. I may watch a few more minutes, but the dialog and plot are lackluster. it's hard to believe so many studios spend so much money to produce so much crap.

48 minute update: it has changed. It is more boring.
63 minute update: plot almost thickens and boring is getting tedious.
76 minute update: there is finally some action and it is so unusual it is confusing.
82 minute update: surprise - the action took it nowhere.
90 minute update: it got better. Was it worth waiting for?
99 minute update: it ended okay, but I wish I had those minutes back..
The last 3 minutes are credits - who cares?

I enjoy science fiction, but only GOOD science fiction. I'm afraid I must join those who found this movie to be another boring attempt to be different. If you like movies that try very hard to keep you confused, this one might be for you. The repetition made me keep checking to see how much longer the movie would last, because I did want to try to bear it out in case there was a reasonable ending. But not so. If you want true entertainment, look elsewhere.

Held me spellbound from the first minute to the last. This is great thinking-person's sci-fi that makes resourceful use of its small budget. It's the kind of movie you watch once, ponder, watch again, analyze and discuss with friends. It effectively takes elements of 2001, Kafka, Cube and Kultur Shock! to weave a suspenseful tale about an every man who is imprisoned for seemingly no reason and is constantly monitored by a cagey form of artificial intelligence. I had never heard of Christopher Soren Kelly before but he is excellent here. He carries the movie on his back, spending most of the film verbally jousting with a surveillance camera. He's well matched by the barista of his dreams, or is it his memory, Cassandra Clark, who gives an effectively sly, understated performance. My kind of movie.