[SXSW 2024] THINGS WILL BE DIFFERENT -- Mind-Blowing Indie Sci-Fi

Review by Sean Boelman

Although Benson & Moorhead have seemingly started to work mainly in the MCU, it’s nice to see that the duo has remained in touch with their indie sci-fi roots by supporting and producing films from promising new voices. Michael Felker, who has worked as an editor on Benson & Moorhead’s films since Spring, makes his feature debut with Things Will Be Different, a mysterious, gnarly, and satisfying thriller that demands discussion.

Set in the aftermath of a botched bank robbery, the film follows two estranged siblings who take refuge in a farmhouse with time-traveling capabilities, only to get stuck in a dangerous limbo. Felker’s script toes the line between simple and complex, expanding on its high-concept premise in ambitious and exciting ways.

The pacing of the film is incredibly patient and deliberate. After an opening 15 minutes that are exhilarating, Things Will Be Different slows down for the rest of the first hour. As things slowly fall out of place, Felker builds to an off-the-wall conclusion that will keep viewers on the edge of their seats.

Although the film’s certainly not empty, it’s also not the most provocative in a thematic sense. Felker absolutely deserves to be showered with praise for creating a sci-fi movie that’s refreshingly light on exposition and doesn’t feel the need to spell out everything the audience is supposed to think or feel.

How much a viewer gets out of Things Will Be Different will depend on how willing they are to peel back the layers of the characters. On the surface, they seem like archetypal siblings — with all the usual infighting but a clear familial love for one another. However, the final act ties things together in a way that, while perhaps difficult to understand fully, is intriguing and will stick with you.

The leading duo — Adam David Thompson and Riley Dandy — are great. They have excellent chemistry together and perfectly sell the sibling dynamic. Thompson, frankly, tends to get the juicier dialogue and gives the more impressive of the two performances as a result, but Dandy is an excellent complement to him.

That being said, Felker’s debut is perhaps most impressive on a technical level for the sheer immersion he is able to pull off at such a small scale. With the exception of a few scenes, the film is mostly set in and around a farmhouse, and Felker does a great job of using the space to put viewers alongside the characters in a purgatory-like state between isolation and entrapment. The special effects are also phenomenal, creating a few utterly haunting images.

Things Will Be Different is, understandably, cut from the same cloth as the films that Michael Felker worked on as an editor before trying his hand at directing. Thankfully, he captures this style incredibly well, delivering an entertaining and intriguing entry into this subgenre of indie sci-fi.

Things Will Be Different is screening at the 2024 SXSW Film Festival, which runs March 8-16 in Austin, TX.

​Rating: 4.5/5