We all want more time with our loved ones, especially after they’ve passed. But would we act responsibly if we had this power? That is the question at the center of Another End, the new sci-fi drama from director Piero Messina. Gael García Bernal and Renate Reinsve lead his Black Mirror-style film as the two become intertwined over a shared connection. Sadly, Messina spends a little too much time in questionable moments of the story, making his attempt at twisty drama fall far short of expectations.
Another End — Plot
While driving home one night, a couple crashes their car, leaving a woman named Zoe dead. Sal (Bernal), Zoe’s long-term partner, struggles in the aftermath of her death and blames himself for the tragedy. As he starts to exhibit tendencies to self-harm, his sister, Ebe (Bérénice Bejo), pushes Sal’s father-in-law to join an experimental new program.
The Another End program takes the thoughts and memories of a deceased friend and allows a host body to channel their consciousness. While the host is “asleep” during the process, the family can say goodbye to their loved one. When her father agrees, Zoe is returned to Sal in the body of a host (Renate Reinsve). However, Sal starts to push the barriers of how much the host can take. He soon violates the rules around treating the host after your loved one has left their body.
An intriguing premise falls a little flat.
On its face, Another End is the perfect kind of story that would stem from The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror. Saying goodbye to your loved ones is tough under the best of circumstances, but the way Sal proceeds to abuse the process makes for an interesting character study. His wants and desires soon bring out a darker side of a man looking for peace, and while he does not commit violence, his actions are scary just the same.
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The issue with this story is that we’ve seen the basic premise executed before. Be Right Back and AI: Artificial Intelligence play in the same boat. As humans, we do not want to give up those we love, and the moments we recreate with them can feel special. However, they are not real in these circumstances. It allows the grieving figure to push off a natural healing process and instead stay in a state of arrested sadness.
Considering the way that AI and digital memorialization have exploded in recent years, this could be a recurring problem. However, Another End goes further, instead showing Sal’s inability to disconnect by stalking the person carrying his wife’s consciousness. Unfortunately, Messina and the writing team do not take this in a way that feels unique, instead relying on fairly basic tropes around those who lie to maintain attention.
The other big issue facing Another End is pacing. At ninety minutes, Messina would have told a tighter, more focused story. However, clocking in at over two hours causes Another End to feel repetitive. The most intriguing aspects of his film are only present in the final act, and by the time we’ve reached that moment, the narrative has already run out of steam. It gives us a nice boost, but trimming the fat earlier in the movie would have done wonders to help it land the plane.
The performances are rather good, despite the predictable story.
Once again, Reinsve confirms her place as one of the world’s greatest actresses. Her ability to craft two completely different characters in the course of Another End gives the film incredible juice. As Zoe, she showcases the kind of frustration and love that we would expect from Sal’s partner. She’s honest in her saccharine moments and carries the pain of feeling ignored by her partner’s inaction. It’s a fully developed character that makes us understand why Sal would want more time.
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As Ava, Reinsve gets to show the darker side of the tale. Why would someone sign up to give their body away for hours every day? Worse yet, her other job leaves her exposed to leering eyes after a day of lost agency. It’s a complex character, and Reinsve pulls out that complex conundrum at the heart of the story. Her pain and her choice to handle it by giving her body away are an intriguing choice. In many ways, she’s the perfect foil for Sal, as she is also running from her grief.
Meanwhile, Bernal gets very little to do after the opening section of the film. While we get the majority of the story from his perspective, he does not get opportunities to showcase his talent. Bernal has often excelled when given the chance to play big characters, and while he can be excellent in subtle performances, this one does give him enough layers to showcase that skill. Even when Sal is with Zoe, he is missing the passion. Some narrative turns in Another End help explain this, but the choice to have Bernal feel listless is a directorial and writing mistake.
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Bejo and Olivia Williams each get a couple of good scenes. Bejo is stuck delivering a lot of dialogue, while Williams has a sequence with her family that is truly one of the standout moments of the film. They are underutilized, but that is primarily due to the runtime creating too many overly long scenes.
Is “Another End” worth watching?
Unfortunately, Another End cannot quite live up to the potential of the narrative. The emotion is never fully developed, which leaves us without much to hold onto. Even though Bernal and Reinsve elevate the material, there are too many sci-fi films with similar premises for this one to break through the noise. It’s a fine drama, but with the talent involved, we’d expect a little more.
Another End is in theaters on September 19, 2025.