Vanguard 

There’s a very interesting story to be told in Dain Iskandar Said’s Interchange.  Unfortunately, that interesting story is framed by a middling police procedural.  The story starts with a gruesome murder scene that mirrors a murder scene that our protagonist, Adam, a forensics photographer, has already encountered.  Adam’s friend, Detective “Man”, convinces him to take on this new case and the two work on uncovering the mystery behind these murders.

Interchange is strongest when it turns its attention to Belian, a bird-like hooded figure, Iva, a mysterious woman who lives across from Adam, or Sani, a shady antiques dealer.  It’s a shame that there’s a tendency to use the all too familiar crutch of a police procedural to ground the events of the movie.  The most interesting aspect is the mysterious link between the murders and 100-year-old pictures of a tribe in Borneo.

By the time the movie reveals the reason the murder scenes look the way they do and why they’re happening in the first place, you’ll wish that that mythology was explored fully. Because the movie didn’t fully commit to the fantasy elements, the ultimate goals of Belian and Sani, in particular, are hard to follow.  Leaving you feeling like you’ve missed a crucial piece of information instead of getting swept up in the story.

Dain Iskandar Said set out to create a clash of beliefs.  Detective “Man” not wanting to believe the events unfolding before him versus Adam getting caught up in Iva, Belian, and Sani’s world.  It just would have felt more rewarding if Said had eschewed all attempts to have this movie feel like a real-world story and fully embraced the mythology and fantasy within.

Screening: 

Friday Sept. 9, 9:30pm @ Scotiabank 2

Saturday Sept. 10, 9:45pm @ Scotiabank 10

Sunday Sept. 18, 9:30am @ Scotiabank 9