Remote wilderness: A place where you can unwind with nature, not seeing or hearing another soul. It’s a peaceful promise, one which I recently accepted in purchasing a house on the outskirts of a suburban neighborhood; where I can still enjoy the spoils of utilities in a larger city, while staying, for the most part, in a semi-secluded place outside of the rat race. Just the dog and me. It’s a little slice of heaven.
Now, would my life change significantly if a mysterious new disease started spreading among the masses, turning half of the locals into mad murderers and the other half simply disappears, as if they grew wings and flew away? Outside of securing all of my doors and windows and loading up on ammunition, booze and ingredients to brew even more, my life would be pretty similar (with the exception of my blood pressure rocketing).
The psychological pandemic thriller, No More Time, takes that premise and runs with it.
The movie begins with a mostly silent car ride in the woods, as a couple (played by Mark Reeb and Jennifer Harlow) from Texas scavenges for supplies, seeking a secure shelter. Driving from one neighborhood to another, these nomads are far from home, eventually settling on a vacation home/mansion in Colorado. It’s got power and eight bathrooms, but also a variety of locked doors (and dark secrets). There’s no guarantee of safety or survival as the neighbors live in fear, trusting no one.
Things have gotten so bad that nearly half the town is gone, and the details of the infection are just as sketchy as the squatters, themselves. This is life within The Upside Down of COVID Cinema, but something supernatural is stowed away right before their very eyes. Will they notice it before it’s too late?
“We’re doing everything we can and it’s not enough. Nothing’s enough. No matter what we do.”
I’ve got to admit that I haven’t watched too many pandemic-themed horror stories, but I somehow survived COVID without ever getting seriously sick (knock on wood). I recognized the story elements without needing too many details, and details are what this film never flat-out provides.
If you’re patient and paying attention, you’ll notice that whenever our heroes travel, American Top 40 isn’t cranked up, but it’s the constant ranting and raving of a conspiracy-theorist radio host that provide the only story development here, besides the testimony of a few townspeople. I wish Jim Beaver’s part could have played a bigger role in the story, but I’ll take what I can get, here.
In this world, fear supposedly makes the people sick, weakening their immune system. Whether wearing masks prevents its spread is never really revealed, but it seems to help some, while others ignore its use. Or maybe it’s just virtue signaling.
Stories based on real-life scenarios scare me more than fantasies, but in this one, common sense seems to be missing. Guns are necessary but not carried at all times (or when they’re most necessary). Nobody seems to lock their vehicle doors, especially when a stranger is approaching. Houses are easily broken into, but never truly secured. Scavenging strange, new places with little to no knowledge if anyone might be home would be the biggest terror for me, along with whatever might be hiding inside those mysterious locked doors of the house.
Could people be in there, watching and listening, attempting to drive our heroes crazy? That’s never fully explored, but it’s assumed.
Written and directed by Dalila Droege, No More Time is an ambitious first feature attempt by the multi-hyphenate filmmaker. While I can appreciate ambiguous stories much more than films that beat you over the head with their overly obvious themes, I was truly hoping for more than only a nibble of the storyline here. While the character arcs actually develop to a degree, the script never truly provides any answers, only showing multiple life-and death scenarios rotating among the cast for an hour and 22 minutes.
I wanted more. I needed more, especially concerning the supernatural presence. But was left wondering what could have been.
Fear of the unknown is real, but fear of what cannot be controlled may be even stronger in this world. And these people have to keep their guard up for so long, it’s during those very brief moments when they’re unaware of their surroundings when disaster strikes, which becomes predictable at times. There’s not a lot of jump scares and despite these criticisms, Droege does a good job framing the suspense and holding the tension, as what you can’t see, offscreen, is usually scarier than what is directly in front of you.
Trust isn’t easy to give to strangers in this world, and I can appreciate getting swallowed up and consumed by mother nature, as in my real-life abode, but I truly hope to never relive the COVID pandemic again, and No More Time provides some serious nightmare fuel to add to those memories.
“I thought we were trying to avoid people. I thought we were trying to find a safe place where nobody knew where we were…”