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Civilizations have risen and fallen in the turn of an
instant, and Fate often displays a quirky and rather dark
sense of humor. In this film we see several seemingly unrelated
lives intersect dramatically at precisely 11:14pm on one
random evening. A drunk driver who believes he hit and killed
someone, three teenage boys tooling around town in a van
who do hit someone, a very overworked and confused law enforcement
officer, two convenience store clerks with a make-cash-fast
plan that goes rapidly awry, a hapless and morally devoid
boyfriend, two seemingly normal and protective parents,
one dangerously bored and sociopathically self-centered
young woman, and two civic-minded emt workers become the
pawns of Fate and, in most cases, victims of their own karma.****
Naturally, this film bounces around a lot as it weaves
these stories together into a coherent whole. If you find
films with multiple characters and rapidly shifting perspectives
not to your taste, then I would recommend you skip this
one. Personally, I was utterly fascinated in a rather "I
really don't want to see this, but can't look away!" manner.
11:14 is curiously repellant and attractive in equal measures,
and transforms ordinary lives into an extraordinary string
of event in a whirlwind 85 minute run time. After I had
a chance to catch my breath, it was easy to see that the
likelihood of individual lives intersecting in such a convoluted
and outrageous manner are slim at best. Yet, the film managed
to draw me in so thoroughly while viewing that I was simply
carried away by the characters and the events that inextricably
binds their lives together forever, without once really
questioning the "reality" of it all. That alone speaks highly
for the film. ****
I particularly enjoyed it's darkly comedic moments
that so mirror life, and the underlying message that sooner
or later we reap the consequences of our choices and actions.
In many of the characters' reactions it was easy to see
the grit of reality. For example, in the aftermath of a
crisis one character's immediate response is to blame his
friend for the consequences he is now suffering rather than
accepting any responsibility for his own poor choices. His
friend's response? He fired the attitude right back at him
with an extra charge of anger and threats. This is all too
common in any given situation it seems, a typical human
response. The third friend is the one who steps up to the
moral plate and tries to set things straight as best as
he can without generating or feeding any more such destructive
behaviors. That could easily be the history of humanity!
****
The cast alone makes for a fascinating and talented
mix. Barbara Hershey, Henry James, Patrick Swayze, Sean
Hatosy, Hilary Swank, Ben Foster and Jason Segel working
together was intriguing and wholly satisfying. Although
Segel's role is relatively small, it is none the less memorable
and I hope to see more of him in the future. Foster managed
to actually shock me with this role and I definitely saw
him here as I have never seen him before! This film deserves
it's R rating, yet, aside from prolific use of the grand
F word and truly unnerving moments, most of the jolts are
more suggestive than graphic. You know, moments where you
find yourself thinking, "Gee, bet the sound/fx people had
fun with that one!" These roles were definitely a departure
for Swayze, who is so often the hero or central figure,
and Hatosy, who I recognized immediately from the wonderful
film "Outside Providence". Complex, multi-faceted, thrilling,
humorous and tragic... Check your watch, isn't it about
time you saw 11:14?****
Image and Sound:
1.85:1 aspect ratio
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