Director Schuman Hoque takes on the challenge of no/low budget science fiction in his feature Beyond Existence. Ellen (Amelia Clay) is a shadowy British agent who intercepts The Professor (Gary MacKay). The Professor is of interest because of his knowledge and an enigmatic briefcase he’s carrying. Her mission is to protect him and escort him to other operatives of her organization. The level of difficulty for Ellen is that he is being sought by an apparently immortal, time-jumping, perhaps alien, bounty hunter called The Guardian (Vincent Vermignon). The Guardian walks out of a pyramid from his plane of existence. It is his gateway to this time and place.
Ellen finds The Professor to be a cranky, alcoholic, cigarette smoker who gets twitchy when deprived of his chosen substances for too long. When they arrive at a Stonehenge-esque concrete bunker, The Professor reveals that the briefcase contains a cube-shaped McGuffin device called “the henko” with an undisclosed purpose. The henko looks like the Marvel Universe tesseract. Ellen tells him the facility was used to test Britain’s parallel to the CIA “MKUltra” mind-alteration experiments. Ellen touches the cube and is transported to a large space that looks to be some sort of transit tube like the underground. She is warned by a smoky silhouette of danger ahead.
“Ellen touches the cube and is transported to a large space that looks to be some sort of transit tube…”
After an attack by The Guardian, The Professor reveals to Ellen the true extraterrestrial / cosmic nature of his mission. The Professor has set out on his own to defend humanity against mighty forces. As their odyssey winds on, the two open up, secrets are revealed, and a drunken stop at a pub leads to awkward dancing. Ellen discovers a destiny she had never imagined. To expound further would give away too much and wander into spoiler territory.
Budgetary constraints result in a film largely consisting of two-shot dialogue focused scenes, primarily between the two leads while riding in the car. Ellen has an aristocratic English accent, while The Professor speaks with a light Scottish brogue. Let’s face it, slapping UK accents on top of any dialogue serves to class up the joint, regardless of whether any aliens that show up are made of cardboard or actors in rubber suits. Think Doctor Who. Even with minimal production quality, when you blend the snappy dialogue, compelling script, and the accents, Et Voila: there is entertainment! It’s a surefire formula. Beyond Existence lands with tight storytelling, intelligent dialogue, and winning performances leading up to a clever, satisfying denouement. Taking this otherworldly trip is well worth the time and energy.
Find out more at the official Beyond Existence website.
"…tight storytelling, intelligent dialogue, and winning performances..."
