Independent Film Review – The Imposters

Sometimes you’ll watch a film without realising that there is something different about it. For instance, if you started reading Gadsby by Ernest Vincent Wright I wonder how far you’d get into this 1939 novel before realising it is a lipogram. By that I mean it is 50,000 words long but nowhere does Wright use the letter ‘e’. I’d like to think that I might find something odd in the opening paragraph…

If Youth, throughout all history, had had a champion to stand up for it; to show a doubting world that a child can think; and, possibly, do it practically; you wouldn’t constantly run across folks today who claim that “a child don’t know anything.” A child’s brain starts functioning at birth; and has, amongst its many infant convolutions, thousands of dormant atoms, into which God has put a mystic possibility for noticing an adult’s act, and figuring out its purport. 

OK, there’s a possibility that you might need a couple more paragraphs to narrow it down but it is obviously very clunky and doesn’t flow well.

She Was Crazy About You

That can’t be said about The Imposters. It is a film that explores the themes of identity, deception, and the blurred lines between reality and fiction. It delves into the story of Maya (Marie Everett), who becomes entangled with the enigmatic Hattie (Chynna Walker), leading to a series of revelations and unexpected twists. Maya  is a young woman who, after a recent breakup, meets the enigmatic and alluring Hattie. Initially drawn to Hattie’s charm and success, Maya soon finds herself entangled in a web of lies and deceit as she begins to question Hattie’s true identity and intentions.

The opening scenes are of a young woman, Rebecca (Amanda Michaud) who is trying to record a video message. Or is it a number of messages for different people? We are then introduced to Maya as an emotionally reserved and somewhat withdrawn woman following a fatal traffic accident. Her live in lover is Anna (Tegan Mordt) who is a much more outgoing personality. These differences lead to personality clashes which, inevitably, cause their relationship to break down. Shortly afterwards Maya is out running and bumps into Hattie. They click together and before long they are holidaying in Hattie’s Spanish mountain side villa overlooking the sea.

I Don’t Want To Be Caged Up With You Any Longer

Everything seems to be going swimmingly until there are a series of minor incidents which, by themselves, are insignificant but, added together, lead to a growing sense of unease. When things reach their climax there is a sudden change of mood which appears from nowhere. Maya finds herself entangled in a web of lies and deceit as she begins to question Hattie’s true identity and intentions. As with all good thrillers, the pieces are slotted into place and clips we have seen earlier on are revealed to have more significance than first thought. Writer and director Nicholas Winter has put together a thought-provoking film that is a well-crafted thriller well worth watching for its intriguing storyline and strong performances.

Oh, in case you are wondering what I was wittering on about that unique if virtually unreadable novel Gadsby earlier on it is because The Imposters is quite unusual in that there are no male characters. It wasn’t until I was reading the end credits when I realised that there were no male actors. I had a quick root around and there aren’t that many all female films; Wikipedia puts the total at 27 and that doesn’t include The Imposters!

The Imposters is released on digital from 25^th November from Reel 2 Reel Films

Independent Film Grade: A-