Tepid and uninspired. Emma and two men are kidnapped by brutal strangers and find themselves in an impenetrable forest. They will have to work together to survive. There is only one problem. One of the men brutally raped her 15 years ago, and the other is there for…reasons?
3 Lives feels less like a professionally made movie and more like what would happen if the edgelord kid from down the street (the one who kept “real” ninja stars) got a hold of a camera. Writers Wolf-Peter Arand and Juliane Block construct a barely coherent narrative built on bad decisions and questionable logic.
3 lives starts with Emma in a cage in a cave and then goes back three months. For…reasons. She is a therapist working with a rape survivor, and she suggests that young lady take up archery to deal with the trauma. Archery? What kind of therapist is she? Where did she get her degree? Fake College? Maybe she did her undergrad at Fake College but got her doctorate at a more Ivy League institution like Complete Bullshit University. (Go fighting feces!)
“Emma and two men are kidnapped by brutal strangers and find themselves in an impenetrable forest.”
Emma is then kidnapped, and we are brought to the present. We meet the other kidnapped victims, and they all happen to know each other. Her companions are the man who went to prison for her rape, and a mutual friend who whines the whole time and apparently has an endless supply of cigarettes.
Film Threat has a strict “no spoiler” policy so there are things about this film that I cannot delve into. However, I can say this: 3 Lives has two third-act reveals—one is a “Duh!” the other is a “Huh?” The second twist is the kind of third act reveal that just makes less and less sense the more you think about it. Like Linda Belcher’s reveal that she was the killer all along in the Bob’s Burgers episode, “Hamburger Dinner Theater,” the twist seems to be there just to be a twist. It doesn’t explain anything; in fact, it just raises more questions. Not to mention, it makes much of the story literally impossible.
There is a long history of exploitative indie films that try to gloss over their excesses by making a “message film.” And, in that respect, 3 Lives carries on a grand tradition. They decide to end their opus with some rape statistics. But other than the fact that rape occurs, there doesn’t seem to be any point to the addition. There are no calls to action, no hotline numbers for survivors, nothing. Now, at the risk of being controversial, I’m going to say that rape is a horrible crime. Beyond the criminal justice aspect, dealing with its emotional turmoil can be a lifelong process. A process every bit as horrifying and brutal as the act itself. So, instead of recommending anyone take up archery, here are a few resources for those of you who might be suffering.
“…indie films that try to gloss over their excesses by making a ‘message film.'”
It took me one minute to Yahoo that s**t. One. Minute. And the best they could come up with in their big cathartic message ending was just “Yup a lot of women get raped.” And then roll the credits.
3 Lives is an uninspired mess of a film that fails in every aspect. It could have been an over-the-top exploitative Grand Guignol or a serious and thought-provoking exploration of a survivor learning to move on with her life. But by refusing to go in either direction, it just becomes a tepid, uninspired, and, frankly, boring film. I recommend you miss it.
"…a barely coherent narrative built on bad decisions and questionable logic."
