Siskoid Cinema presents… On Borrowed Time, the shows that explores time travel in movies. On this episode, Siskoid and Waiting for Doom’s Paul Hix discuss 2009’s Triangle, an Australian-shot time loop horror thriller. Join us for a trip into movie history for all the details!
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Credits:
Bonus clips: “Triangle” by Christopher Smith, starring Melissa George, Michael Dorman, Liam Hemsworth, Henry Nixon and Emma Lung; and “Jess Returns Home” on the Triangle soundtrack by Christian Henson, feat. Dot Allison.
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First time listening, only because the title sounded familiar. I saw this film about two years ago on one of the streaming services. I did pick up on the ending with the cab driver right away. Yes, he was definitely death and she did break her promise to him. And Death will not be cheated.
Death is like that. [Black Racer emoji]
Listening to this, I learned enough about this film to be pretty sure I would not enjoy watching it. But I like you two, and I find your observations insightful. By listening, I get to think about what the film wants me to think about without reacting emotionally to child abuse and murder. So, thank you for making my commute more enjoyable and helping me avoid a potentially unpleasant experience.
What a great episode and a wonderful gem of a film in this one. Paul was a great guest and I enjoyed listening to the both of you try to work this one out and provide some of the background info, like what it means to pretend you are driving in Florida when you are really in Australia. Also, some of the themes and allegories you expanded on really helped me to evaluate the film after watching it. And I love stories with time loops. So I am glad you included one of those in this show even if they aren’t technically time travel.
Watching the film was a wild experience. Before the characters got to the storm, I was wondering if I was going to make it through this movie. Melissa George seemed to be sleepwalking and the rest of the cast were almost like caricatures. I thought perhaps that was just the result of this being a low budget film, but when it got to the end, and we find out why everyone is acting the way they are, it all made sense and made what appeared to be flaws into brilliant choices.
It seems like there are three versions of Jess on the boat at the same time, and maybe they are experiencing three separate time loops (Like a Triangle perhaps?) as we watch the film progress, but when we see Jess go overboard as baghead, and wash up on the beach, we find out that it really is just one big loop. Jess prime shows up, knocks baghead off the boat, then resists becoming baghead and tried to save the others, then becomes baghead, and falls off the boat. That loop seems to be the one that plays over and over, and inside it are smaller loops where the deaths and locations can change. But the main loop, from sleepy Jess to Baghead going overboard, seems to be the one loop she can’t escape. Although it does seem Jess has a way out, and that’s to just finish her ride in the cab to the afterlife instead of going back to the boat and trying to cheat death.
Exploring the Greek myth allegories in this one is fun too, there is a chance everyone is a stand-in for some Greek mythological character. If we consider Jess to be dead at the beginning of the film, this boat trip probably isn’t really happening, who knows if the other passengers, besides Greg, even exist in the real world. which could explain why Sally is used to explain Aeolus. Maybe Victor with the hook hitting the back of his head is Achilles,…I don’t know. I am just riffing now. But I am sure if we played that game we could make those kind of connections with the cast. Maybe.
Lastly, I have to believe that Christopher Smith must have some connection to the autism community. You noted how life with an autistic child can be its own loop or repetition, and as a parent of a kid on the spectrum, I can completely relate to that. Our day’s are all about routine. Every night, I have to read the same two books to my son, and I have done that so many times now, that I have them memorized. I can literally recite them in my sleep. Which I think I have done on nights he can’t sleep and busts into my room at 3am looking for company. So turning this kind of routine, repetition, and stress that she experienced in her life as part of her punishment was just another detail that elevated this film.
Additionally, being a part of a community of families with children who have disabilities and developmental delays, the theme of guilt really hit home. Many parents I know in this community feels guilty about something they aren’t doing, didn’t do, or haven’t done yet to support their kid. So having her experience that, albeit as the result of abuse, which while tough to watch, but also worked in the film because that kind of thing can invoke a more lucid reaction from the audience that say, her not filling out benefit forms correctly.
Anyway, what a great little surprise of a film and discussion. Thanks to the both of you for putting this one together.