My range of movie-viewing is pretty wide. I’m equally happy watching a Bruce Willis action flick or a period drama or a romantic comedy or a quirky indie dramady. But I think my favorite are the type that are otherwise a normal storyline, but add just a little bit of weird/unreality with a pivotal What If question. And I thought I’d share some recent viewings that fall under this category, each of which I really enjoyed for different reasons. They are all what I like to call thinking movies. Not in a ‘ahh too much going on can’t keep track or make sense my brain hurts way,’ but rather in the sense that they stayed with me and I found myself pondering some of the points or choices made in the movie long after I’d finished watching it.
 

Safety Not Guaranteed

Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified ad seeking a companion for time travel.
What If question(s): What if you met a guy who thought he could time travel? What if the truth was a lot more complex than ‘he’s crazy’? What if you started to believe him?

 

Ruby Sparks

A novelist struggling with writer’s block finds romance in a most unusual way when a female character he’s been writing suddenly comes to life.
What If question(s): What if you could bring your writing to life? What if you had absolute control over another person?

 

Another Earth

On the night of the discovery of a duplicate planet in the solar system, an ambitious young student and an accomplished composer cross paths in a tragic accident.
What If questions(s): What if there was another planet exactly like Earth that suddenly appeared in our sky? What if there was another you, whose life branched a different direction from the mistakes you made here? What if you could go there and start over?

 

Have you seen any of these? What did you think? Any similar movies to recommend?