A couple is cursed to age 10 years with each step they take
Tom and Caroline are getting married, and Caroline is getting ready to go to the chapel for the ceremony, chatting with her mom on the phone and fussing with her dress. But suddenly, a note falls from the ceiling, saying Caroline and her fiance are cursed.
To break the curse, they can take 6 steps, aging ten years with each step -- or they can break up with each other, erasing all memories of the other. When Tom enters the room, the couple must decide what to do: divide the steps up between them, or break up.
Directed and written by Christian Cerezo, who also co-stars as Tom, this high-concept romantic dramedy has a quirky premise as its starting point, as a strange curse befalls a couple on the verge of their wedding ceremony. But that curse sets off a story that offers witty repartee, offbeat comedy and philosophical reflection, as Caroline and Tom contemplate notions of sacrifice, love, mortality and commitment before they become officially married.
When Tom and Caroline confront the curse, they decide almost automatically to share the steps between them, a seemingly equitable arrangement. But as they contemplate each aging 30 years to just about 60 years old, they realize just what this may mean -- dementia, illness and losing 1/3 of their possible lifespan.
At first, this scary realization devolves into some funny bickering, and the writing has fun with how quickly a serious subject can devolve into petty domestic disputes. But as the reality sinks in, both Caroline and Tom realize how untenable the accelerated aging is, and how neither of them honestly wants to get old.
What follows is an unexpectedly somber atmosphere of melancholy, as the pair seem stuck for a solution. The visual tenor of the film has a soft, drab naturalism that wouldn't be out of place in a Sofia Coppola film, and while there are touches of humor in the couple's inventive solutions to avoid taking steps, both characters begin to realize that the most tenable situation would be to break up.
It's a heartwrenching realization, and the storytelling takes a sincere approach as Caroline and Tom steel themselves for a potential split. As Tom and Caroline, both Cerezo and actor Zora Kovac play a believable couple who have been together and loved one another for some time. As they prepare to say goodbye to one another, both actors are funny, but they're at their best when they're most vulnerable in the softness and ache of the emotion, which makes the ending section of the film all the more moving.
To break the curse, they can take 6 steps, aging ten years with each step -- or they can break up with each other, erasing all memories of the other. When Tom enters the room, the couple must decide what to do: divide the steps up between them, or break up.
Directed and written by Christian Cerezo, who also co-stars as Tom, this high-concept romantic dramedy has a quirky premise as its starting point, as a strange curse befalls a couple on the verge of their wedding ceremony. But that curse sets off a story that offers witty repartee, offbeat comedy and philosophical reflection, as Caroline and Tom contemplate notions of sacrifice, love, mortality and commitment before they become officially married.
When Tom and Caroline confront the curse, they decide almost automatically to share the steps between them, a seemingly equitable arrangement. But as they contemplate each aging 30 years to just about 60 years old, they realize just what this may mean -- dementia, illness and losing 1/3 of their possible lifespan.
At first, this scary realization devolves into some funny bickering, and the writing has fun with how quickly a serious subject can devolve into petty domestic disputes. But as the reality sinks in, both Caroline and Tom realize how untenable the accelerated aging is, and how neither of them honestly wants to get old.
What follows is an unexpectedly somber atmosphere of melancholy, as the pair seem stuck for a solution. The visual tenor of the film has a soft, drab naturalism that wouldn't be out of place in a Sofia Coppola film, and while there are touches of humor in the couple's inventive solutions to avoid taking steps, both characters begin to realize that the most tenable situation would be to break up.
It's a heartwrenching realization, and the storytelling takes a sincere approach as Caroline and Tom steel themselves for a potential split. As Tom and Caroline, both Cerezo and actor Zora Kovac play a believable couple who have been together and loved one another for some time. As they prepare to say goodbye to one another, both actors are funny, but they're at their best when they're most vulnerable in the softness and ache of the emotion, which makes the ending section of the film all the more moving.