Rebirth

First the technical aspects of this film. The acting was very well done. The cinematography and camera use,lighting, editing...all on Hollywood big budget level. The score/sound effects as well. The story , as others have already mentioned, very similar to "The Game" with Michael Douglas (Just happens to be one of my all time favorite thriller movies ever) So, the PREMISE is not new. But I don't hold it against a film. Was there plot holes? Yes. I tend to be analytical and notice things like that, but as I've grown older I have also learned to quiet my brain to suspend belief enough to enjoy what the point is, when it is presented. (I don't nit pik as much)

What is NEW, compared to the movie "The Game", is this is a little more personal with less action. A little more in depth with the character facing his pre conceived ideas about himself and the world around him. In my opinion, that's always an interesting process to watch. I was also tickled to see the humor/satire injected into this movie, that "The Game" didn't have. The ending is super. And scared the crap outta me.

How many movies do we need, with the 'only in a movie' plot of some poor dumb schmuck ALLOWING himself to be subjected to endless UNCONVINCING mind games throughout? The viewer is set up with the idea that the schmuck is going to learn some valuable lesson by the time it's through. But he's a non-existent movie stock character: anyone in real life would catch on that they're being gulled and would yell "you can all go f____ yourselves" and storm out, but this is the character who never does. I did, about 45 minutes in. Anyone want to post a spoiler and tell me if the lesson he learns is how to do that?

Hey, you still have the Manifesto? The what? The Manifesto, man. Don't tell me you threw it away.

"Rebirth" is a psychological thriller of the Netflix collection. I certainly won't deny that I have become a fervent supporter of the Netflix Originals series. I've seen already some great movies ("Spectral", "iBoy", "Before I Wake" and "Message from the king"). And also some less successful experiments ("Mute" and "Death note" eg). "Rebirth" is a special case and ends somewhere in the middle. In essence, it's not such a bad movie, but there were certain aspects that made me really hate it. Some will even find it an annoying film. I still don't know whether I should take this film seriously or not. If it was meant to be serious and tried to create an image of how similar organizations function, then it was rather frightening. If, however, it was meant to be satirical, I guess I haven't noticed it then. For me it wasn't really funny.

For Kyle (Fran "The Living" Kranz) every day is a duplicate of the previous day. He can be seen as a settled and satisfied model citizen who carries out his day-to-day job. This seemingly carefree existence is thoroughly shaken up the day his crazy, hyper-kinetic ex-school friend Zack (Adam "Once upon a time in Venice" Goldberg) turns up in Kyle's office and reminds him that they once wrote down a promise. A "Manifesto" with one important slogan : "Don't be boring". And that's something Kyle, after agreeing to go to some bizarre reorientation weekend, is told several times. Unfortunately, "Rebirth" turned out to be somewhat boring with a disappointing final piece.

Fran Kranz convincingly plays the confused and panicky Kyle, who sees his smooth going civilian life reduced to a chaotic, uncontrollable nightmare. It's obvious the propagated message of the "Rebirth" program is all about self-control. "Rebirth" is about getting a grip on yourself and not apathetically following the course of the system (as zombies). According to Zack, it's all about rediscovering yourself and start loving life back again. The only thing Kyle seems to experience is that it's an insane and degrading program. The fact that Zack looks as if he has eaten too many psychedelic mushrooms, doesn't seem to help him either.

To be honest, the film really got on my nerves at certain moments. For example, there is the dazzlingly handsome Naomi (Nicky Whelan) who has the annoying habit of answering every question with a question. It was driving me crazy. The exaggerated group events also felt like a sort of mass hysteria. And it became a bit too predictable when Kyle ended up in a pillow-filled room with a couple lovely, very tasty looking women whose sex lives are clearly as exhilarating as watching a chess game. It looked like a hippie commune. It also felt rather surreal and unearthly.

As I said before, specially the end is disappointing. Initially, you see an organization trying to recruit members by means of brainwashing and psychological pressure. I admit it was intriguing. But in the end it felt incomplete. Perhaps also due to the lack of any explanation. Initially, "Rebirth" looked like a sort of sect, full of esoteric ideas and dogmas, with the aim of allowing the participants to experience a rebirth in which all connections with their inculcating, self-centered living environment are cut. It wants to hold an imaginary mirror up to them and show that the participants are living in an artificial world controlled by others. That they are puppets in a social puppet theater where others pull the strings. Or also, an artificial bubble that you don't want to pierce because of the comfort, their acquired status and financial security. Afterwards, it seems to be nothing else than a cheap sales organization of food products, which they try to sell through networking at well-organized home parties. In the end it felt like I had just attended a Tupperware demonstration.

Can anyone tell me what I just watched?

I loved the plot, well the thought of the plot, but am I missing something? I'm certainly not stupid, but the last half of the movie left me more confused than ever.

The end?

At what point do idiots succumb to the nonsense and platitudes that suck them into cults in the first place. Either give in or get out. Stop telling us you're going to do either one and do it. In all honesty I can't tell if this film is anti cult or pro cult. I'm not sure the writer director knows that either. This movie is series of long silly irritating vignettes about the lead, Kyle being pushed and pushed and pushed until he explodes but then gives in. He's a weak weak man who is obviously going going to join. It's simply matter of whether he's seduced or bullied. But it seems like an inordinately large number of people are in on the scam to recruit one dumb guy.