The fact that “April And that’s no exaggeration, as the film adaptation of Rachel Reid’s Game Changers book series quickly became a global phenomenon, causing Canadian streaming service Crave (which commissioned the series) to see a whopping 400 percent increase in subscribers. In the USA alone, the queer ice hockey romance reached over 10.6 million viewers on HBO Max!
“April In fact, it is also Connor Storrie who is clearly trying to get the most out of the weak script. With his charisma, he ensures that you at least stay tuned to this science fiction thriller, which is sometimes beautifully filmed but is completely uninspired. Because you don’t get much more than painting by numbers here. “April
“Heated Rivalry” star Connor Storrie not only carries the film, he may also be the reason why it is coming to German cinemas at all.
The story takes place in the near future in a city that essentially looks like Bucharest today (it was filmed entirely in Romania). Small-time crook Bax (Connor Storrie) makes a living by stealing artificial body parts that he sells on the black market. He shares the small apartment with his twin sister April (Veronica Ferres’ daughter Lilly Krug), who has the ability to perfectly control her dreams and record them digitally.
Unfortunately, the script doesn’t do much more than make her the target of various high-tech companies and the underworld, which is why April suddenly disappears one day. Her brother does everything he can to find her again, but the search drags on for years. One day he does see April – not just once, but several times in different places. Bax learns that his sister has been cloned into several sex workers…
“Blade Runner” minus depth
It becomes clear after just a few minutes that this is all thoughtless pastiche. Parandi, who was also co-author of the script, not only relies on a similar setting to “Blade Runner”, he also takes on its core question of what actually makes a person human – but he doesn’t even come close to reaching the depth of his famous role model. Bax is also strikingly similar to Deckard, played by Harrison Ford, in his mixture of sullen, tormented and melancholic. At least Storrie manages to endow his character with a certain gentleness and vulnerability.
To make matters worse, Parandi has adopted one of the most controversial elements of “Blade Runner”: the actually absolutely unnecessary voiceover that was once forced on director Ridley Scott by the studio in order to make his film more understandable to viewers. The inner monologues are even more dispensable in “April
Bax makes a shocking discovery: his missing twin sister April (Lilly Krug) has been cloned!
“April X” has breakfast one station after the other. Shortly after April’s disappearance, there is a sudden jump in time by five years into the future, but it feels completely pointless. Bax’s hair is longer now and he drinks a lot of alcohol, but everything else has stayed the same. The intended expression of inner despair completely evaporates, as this idea also seems like it was slapped in.
The general stupidity of the script reaches a slightly sleazy low point towards the end: on the one hand, the sex worker twist is supposed to be shocking, but on the other hand, the makers let the extremely attractive Lilly Krug, who works as a model for well-known fashion magazines like Vogue, do the last third with perfect make-up in lingerie and a fur coat.
Conclusion: A lot of “Blade Runner”, a little “Strange Days”: Director and co-screenwriter Michael K. Parandi uses his two sources of inspiration as mindlessly as a child in a candy store, which leads to an almost inedible result. The engaging appearance of lead actor Connor Storrie and a few atmospheric images save “April