Indy Film Fest -- James vs. His Future Self

Sometimes the right casting can take an idea that’s been done a million times and make it seem fresh again.

Time travel movies have been done to death and even when you try to enhance the idea by making it a romantic comedy, that’s still nothing that original.

The idea of someone meeting themselves from the future? Tons of examples come to mind. Just remember Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s prosthetic nose trying to look like a younger Bruce Willis in “Looper."

But Canadian indie filmmakers Jeremy Lalonde and Jonas Chernick have taken this tired concept and breathed new life into it by enlisting the help of “blast from the past” actor Daniel Stern (haven’t heard from him in a while) in the new comedy “James vs. His Future Self.”

This 94-minute sci-fi rom-com, which will be part of this year’s Indy Film Fest, might not break new ground but it’s bursting at the seams with charm. It’s hard to not like this scrappy, quirky film that premiered at the Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival in September 2019 and now is available on demand as well. It's full of laughs and a few poignant moments.

Chernick, also co-writer, stars as James, a 43-year-old junior physicist who has dedicated his life to the study of time travel and expects his boss, played by Francis Conroy of the HBO series “Six Feet Under,” to promote him any day now. He’s so focused on science that he ignores the romantic chemistry with his co-worker Courtney, played superbly by Cleopatra Coleman.

The age difference isn’t too distracting but personally I did notice that Chernick is 15 years older than her in real life and based on appearances she looks like she’s in her twenties. Not that important, but I did have to look it up.

James is visited unexpectedly by a grizzled 60-year-old man (played by Stern) who almost immediately proclaims that he’s his future self. It’s a clumsy introduction but it keeps the plot moving. They don’t actually look like each other (a joke repeated a few times) and Stern is about six inches taller (he explains that time travel stretches you out.) The future self, often called Jimmy for ease, seems to know things that nobody else would know. And the final clincher is that they both have the same penis shape. Don’t worry, we don’t have to see that.

A DNA test is never done for confirmation (another joke the movie makes) but the similar genitalia is enough for younger James to accept this.

Jimmy warns his younger self that his endless pursuit of time travel — which he eventually succeeds at, obviously — leads to a life of isolation and missed opportunities. He tells him that time is meant to be savored and even emphasizes his point by telling James to slow down when eating a croissant. Stop and smell the roses. Enjoy where you’re at. Live in the moment. All of those cliches.

Eventually, when James resists Jimmy’s attempts to reroute his life, Jimmy transforms from ally to antagonist and decides that he’s going to correct the course by any means necessary. Without giving things away, let's just say things get escalated.

"James vs. His Future Self" is not for the serious physicist who is going to scrutinize the screenwriter's grip on actual science. But the movie itself is quite self aware and there's even a meta reference to how James won't stop pointing out plot holes when he's watching a movie with his love interest. Don't analyze it too much. Enjoy the ride.

The story itself is familiar and Chernick, while more than serviceable, would probably not be a draw on his own. It’s Stern that brings the gusto needed to sell this story.

Stern has been a well known movie actor ever since his 1979 debut in “Breaking Away” (the Oscar-winning cycling movie filmed in Bloomington, Ind.). His face is recognizable in “Home Alone” and “City Slickers” and his voice narrated the TV series “The Wonder Years.” Yet, Stern never really achieved stardom. I actually caught myself writing “movie star” and clicked backspace a few times. He couldn’t carry a film on his own and his few attempts at a lead (“Bushwhacked” or “Celtic Pride”) were duds.

But Stern has this manic energy in his performance as Jimmy that makes you wish he was in more movies. It’s like a mix between Michael Keaton’s performance in “Beetlejuice” or a restrained Nic Cage. Stern’s character is just a little bit unhinged but you still root for him. He’s a man full of regrets and wears the weight of a life of mistakes on his shoulders.

“James vs. His Future Self” surprised me in how good it is. It’s a charismatic little movie that you want to tell your friends about.

I hope Lalonde directs more smart comedies like these. And I hope this brings a career revival for Stern.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi8oOuwsvdo[/embed]