It’s What’s Inside Movie Review: Unsettling sci-fi horror film that poses serious questions about the human mind and its dark motivations

Greg Jardin’s film has an unsettling, sinister tone about it that begins from its very first frame. Its narrative of science fiction, horror and dark humour asks many uncomfortable questions of the human mind and its twisted motivations. It is hard enough to get either of these genres right on a good day, let alone all three of them. It’s What’s Inside hits the mark with its Black Mirror-esque tale of a group of eight college “friends” having a reunion after almost a decade. The pretence of their supposed closeness isn’t lost on anyone. The reasons for their lack of contact trace its roots to a messed-up college birthday party back when they were freshmen. The unreliable narrations reveal some details, though whose party it was exactly (Dennis’ or Reuben’s) is a bone of a contention. What is more or less understood is that that booze-fuelled night led to a person’s expulsion, his high-school-sister’s confinement to a psychiatric facility owing to a mental breakdown, much jealousy with regard to relationships and infidelity, and conspiring between members of the group. The violence and chaos that erupted then haunts everyone to this day. And yet, for some perverse reason, they are at Reuben’s (Devon Terrell) pre-wedding celebration, to honour a pact they made on that contentious night from eight years ago.

Director – Greg Jardin

Cast - Brittany O'Grady, James Morosini, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Devon Terrell, Gavin Leatherwood, Reina Hardesty, Nina Bloomgarden, David W. Thompson, Madison Davenport

Streaming On - Netflix

Reuben is set to marry Sophia in his mansion in a day’s time. The pre-wedding party is also a college reunion, with everyone having updates of the other only via social media. Shelby (Brittany O'Grady) and Cyrus (James Morosini) have been together for nine years, with a majority of the group assuming that they’re either engaged or married. Truth is that the introverted couple is in a major rut, struggling to infuse life into their relationship. Nikki (Alycia Debnam-Carey), an influencer, is perpetually on Instagram and steeped in her own beauty and self-importance. Dennis (Gavin Leatherwood) is loud, over-the-top and cocky, overcompensating for not making anything of his life thus far (and living off his trust fund). Brooke (Reina Hardesty) is a talkative artist, being as theatrical and extroverted as the aforementioned two. Maya (Nina Bloomgarden) is heavily influenced by spirituality, speaking of reincarnation and the Buddha in equal measure. Reuben, the host, despite the facade, falls into the inward-looking category of people present. That leaves Forbes. He was the one expelled from college following the infamous birthday all those years ago. Everyone speaks of him in hushed tones – his penchant for games (and his Game Boy nickname), his genius-level intellect, his predilection for alcohol and being weird. No one knows of his whereabouts, and rumours about his successful tech company abound. Reuben has presumably invited Forbes to make amends for that terrible night. He shows up, last, carrying a suitcase. True to his persona, it contains a game for the special occasion. It consists of a console, with each connected wire branching off into a pair of electrodes that a participant must wear on either side of their temple. The initial twenty-second demo has the group absolutely freaking out. Forbes explains that the machine (developed by his team) has the capability of transferring someone’s mind into another person’s body. After initial reluctance, everyone warms to it. What starts off as an innocuous guessing game slowly but surely devolves into a manipulative maze of lies, jealousy, resentment and lust, driven by an existential desire of wanting to be someone else.

Courtesy its fantasy drug-infused party framework, It’s What’s Inside goes to the root of deep and dark human motivations. The drug here isn’t a mind-altering hallucinogen, it gives the user a taste of what it feels like to inhabit another person’s physical being. This begs the question, what is one willing to do or how far is one willing to go if he/she has a mask on? Because, you can get away with a lot more in the garb of another. If played ethically, your general personality would reveal who you are inside soon enough. But if you’re devious, the falsehoods you concoct (by expert pretending) can be dangerous. In an environment where people are comfortable in their skin and don’t harbour ill will, Forbes’ game will likely remain harmless. But in this setting, where everyone has an agenda or a score to settle, it becomes hellish. Forbes has come with a clear plan to avenge those responsible for his ouster. Cyrus’ good guy act falters when he fakes being someone else (no matter whose body he’s in) in order to get with the other women in the group. Shelby is gaining increased confidence inhabiting Nikki’s body, a person she secretly envies. Nikki fears being exposed for her influencer status. Dennis is forced to confront his “all talk, no action” persona when everything is out in the open. Reuben still harbours romantic feelings for Maya, his ex; lacking the courage to do anything about it as Reuben, he inhabits another’s form, propositioning Maya’s physical being, regardless of who it may be inside.

The film asks some uncomfortable questions about identity. It reveals something we already know – that most people aren’t happy with who they are. Instead of attempting to change in order to be the person they wish to (tough as that is, in practice), they’d much rather fantasise about living someone else’s existence. Cyrus, Shelby and Reuben are emboldened to act in contradiction to their personas once they inhabit others’ forms. The messed-up game provides a sense of abandon, an addiction, if you will. If taken too seriously, it can prove fatal. All this mind-bending territory that throws up more than its fair share of existential thoughts is the handiwork of Greg Jardin’s ingenious writing. To even envision such a script, let alone execute it, deserves full credit.

The whole cast achieves a level of top-class performances. Playing a character while inhabiting another character’s body can be challenging to merely understand, but imagine being able to pull off internally manipulative, in addition. That takes skill, and there’s no dearth of it here. The film contains some scenes that aren’t completely thought through and some that are overly dramatised towards the end, but you will forgive It’s What’s Inside for all that it has going for it.