I'm kinda disappointed... I was expecting a lot more from Jena Malone tbh... This film had A LOTTTTT more potential to be an interesting sci-fi-thriller with a new perspective in the psychological terror film era. The plot is legit one of the best I've seen in a long time within the thriller industry but the acting and the storyline was just lame and mediocre. They jump into conclusions without any reason and it seems like one of those children shows where they ask the TV about what's happening and reply themselves from nowhere. The cinematography is beautiful until certain point but still... the acting makes everything look stupid. Not even bad comedy stupid but bad produced "comedy" stupid.

This film is a compelling though flawed experiment in utilizing a dreamlike/hallucinatory narrative. An ordinary seeming young couple, Scarlett (Jena Malone) and Alex (Douglas Smith), are driving across the country to LA, but she gets ill while they're in the Southwest, and they check into a shabby chic motel (the sign shifting between reading "motel" and "hotel" is one of the first clues that you're in the realm of the subconscious). Scarlett then tells a horrifying story about her systematic abuse of a helpless, paralyzed cousin in her care (before laughing it off as though it were a joke). This story, which initially seems like a weird detour, is actually the key to the whole movie.Like An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Jacob's Ladder, or Mulholland Dr., Bottom of the World depicts the hallucinatory final thoughts of a dying person. Scarlett, driven to suicide by guilt over her inexplicably cruel and violent acts, has deliberately overdosed, and the events of the film, until its last few moments, are occurring entirely inside her head. Consequently, Alex isn't a real person, but the kind of strange, fluid composite character you often encounter in dreams. At different times, he is her boyfriend, her ill-fated cousin, a fictitious assailant, an angel of death, and, above all, an emanation of her guilt. Likewise, a strange televangelist preacher (Ted Levine) that Alex encounters along the way is really Scarlett's father, whom her dying mind has transformed into someone giving sermons about guilt and redemption--themes that are particularly relevant to Scarlett at that moment.Overall, I thought it was a flawed film that is worth watching, but I don't think I'll want to see it a second time. I enjoyed Levine's performance. I liked Malone, too, though I didn't quite get how someone who committed such horrifying crimes would have enough of a conscience to be overwhelmed by guilt, but that was more of a writing problem than an acting problem. I thought Smith seemed a bit too young for his role, though he was effective at times. I also appreciated the attempt to recreate the weird, fluid quality of dream narratives, but, strange as it may seem to say, I don't think the filmmakers went quite far enough in that direction.

I had the pleasure of finding this movie on Netflix and watched it because I was extremely intrigued by the unique title and the interesting poster attached. I loved this film so much I actually made an IMDb account to leave this review. This movie came to me at the right time. It seems to me the producers have been doing the same sort of esoteric research I have been because I could follow the plot with no problems at all from the beginning.The movie is atmospheric, colorful, creepy and haunting, everything you could want from a visceral indie film. The movie is clearly a mixture between some real life truths mixed in with a plot device first introduced by the Twilight Zone episode "Stopover In A Quiet Town". If you had trouble following the plot of the story, watch "Stopover In A Quiet Town" and you will understand it a lot more. The acting is ,at velour, particularly from the striking male lead who carries the progression of the film largely on his back alone. If this were more popular I would love to see this film nominated for an Oscar, but there's no way this little engine that could would be given a fair shot.Now for those who watched the movie but were unable to enjoy it because they couldn't understand the plot: Spoiler alert.Its a simulation matrix. A large part of the first half of the film takes place in a parallel universe, or an offshoot tangent. The original universe was the one where Scarlett messed around with the paraplegic. He eventually died because of her actions, and she feels no remorse. The paraplegic in this original universe is actually Alex. You can think of it as his soul. When he died, that universe ended and their souls were brought into this alternate parallel universe to interact again. This time they are young lovers. But it is Alex's destiny to kill Scarlett in retribution for what she did, and in doing so, free her soul. The masked man Alex sees from the hotel is actually him, again, from a different parallel universe. This version of Alex has managed to somehow cross dimensions to interact with his other selves, whom he reveals the nature of their reality to. Every time Alex dies in a universe, he wakes up in an alternate parallel universe playing different roles, but always destined to interact with Scarlett, until he finally does the deed and kills her, thus freeing them both from the simulation matrix. The fact that the entire movie takes place in parallel dimensions/a simulation is hinted at all throughout the movie. They can't leave the small town to go to LA, possibly because LA doesn't really exist since they are destined to stay at the small town. That's why Scarlett feels "crushed" whenever they try to leave. The strange motel they check into is actually on the same location as where Scarlett tortured & killed the paraplegic, hence it is where their souls must dwell until they leave the matrix. The house Alex wakes up in after the pastor shoots him is ALSO in the same location as the strange motel, its just in an alternate dimension. The masked man (who is actually Alex from a parallel dimension" mentions "cities of pain buried underneath the ground" aka the different layers of each dimension all built on top of one another on the same place. The pastor tells Alex that it's true he is in a dream, but Scarlett's dream, then shoots him. This is true and proves a point: Alex can die a million times over, and the end result is that he will just keep waking up in a different dimension. He will only be released when he kills Scarlett, thus freeing them both from her sin. Its her loop, not his. Its truly an incredible film. If you didn't "get it" the first time, watch it again.

Bottom of the World is a wonderful intellectual challenge. I've seen it some four times now, and am only starting to grasp what's actually told in the movie. It is a non-linear movie, so be prepared. The key to it all is the subconscious. Look for the clues and it begins to make sense. Look for my full review on my blog.