Lapsis: Cast, Production, Premise, Director, Reception And More
Recent years have seen an increase in the amount of competition in the low-budget, idea-driven subgenre of science fiction.
The most recent entry that’s worth watching and debating is called “Lapsis.” This is a rare example of an American feature film that not only has the audacity to be satirical, but also excels at the subtle shifts in tone that are necessary for satire.
Not only was it written, directed, edited, and scored by Noah Hutton, but it was also shot (by Mike Gomes) on location in New York City and in forests upstate.
The movie imagines a desperate “New Economy” similar to our own, but with certain aspects changed.
It follows the story of a suitcase deliveryman who becomes involved in a global digital ponzi scheme. Even when its protagonists are exploited and abused and strive to fight back, the story keeps us laughing at the believable insanity of it all.
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Lapsis: Story
Ray Micelli, played by Dean Imperial, is a member of the working class in Queens who quits his job delivering bags to start working for CABLR, a global firm that hires people to stroll through depopulated areas, unspool lengths of cable, and plug them into enormous black cubes.
Quantum, a technology business on the point of claiming a global monopoly of hardware and software, is CABLR’s parent company.
CABLR is a subsidiary of Quantum. It would appear that the cables are necessary in order to link the various Quantum servers to one another as well as to the various devices produced by Quantum.
What kind of business are these companies conducting? Hutton doesn’t dive too far into the details. This is a “McGuffin” script that takes its cues from scripts written by David Mamet, in which frantic people search for The Leads, The Process, or The Case.
What really matters is that CABL assures economically disadvantaged people that they will have a chance at “success.” The company’s videos encourage its customers to “go forth, Americans,” and pull spools of cable through a forest.
If you keep up a certain speed and accomplish specific milestones by certain times of the day, you will be rewarded with a better route and more money the following time you play the game.
Because his younger brother Jamie (Babe Wise) requires medical treatment for Omnia, Ray is in desperate need of additional funds. That is even more severe than Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which is what the mother of the brothers died from.
Felix, a local figure played by James McDaniel, approaches Ray with an offer to sell him a “medallion” that he requires in order to work with CABLR (like the taxicab medallions that drivers buy from city governments).
But there is a catch: this medallion is still in the system, but it is dormant, and in order for Ray to hold it, he must make a vow to give Felix and his partners thirty percent of everything he makes in the future.
Then Ray needs to go into the Allegheny mountains and lay miles of cable, which won’t be easy because (a) he’s a first-timer competing against people with much more experience, and (b) the job requires him to hustle through woods for days on end, going up and down hills and sleeping in tents, and Ray is a soft-bellied, middle-aged man who looks as if his primary form of exercise is raising a beer can to and from his mouth; and
Lapsis: Premise
Ray Tincelli, a delivery man living in an alternate reality, is having a difficult time providing for both himself and his sickly younger brother.
Following a string of unsuccessful con jobs and low-stakes con games, Ray decides to take a job in a peculiar new sector of the gig economy.
His new job entails going deep into the woods and pulling cable across miles of terrain in order to connect large metal cubes that are part of the new quantum trading market.
As he is drawn farther into the zone, he is confronted with increasing antagonism as well as the threat of robot cablers.
He is forced to make a decision: either he should assist his fellow workers or he should try to get rich and escape the zone.
Lapsis: Cast
Dean Imperial in the role of Ray
Babe Howard portrayed Ray’s sick younger brother in this role.
Madeline Wise as Anna
Lapsis: Reception
The film received three out of a possible five stars from Phil Hoad of The Guardian. Dennis Harvey, writing for Variety, lauded the movie for being a “astute” spoof of the gig economy.
At the 36th Annual Independent Spirit Awards, Hutton was considered for the nomination for Best First Screenplay.
Based on the opinions of 58 users, Lapsis has a high approval rating of 95% on the website Rotten Tomatoes.
The general opinion of the site’s reviewers is expressed as follows: “Lapsis binds economic concern to an unnerving sci-fi thriller set in the not-too-distant future, with ingeniously innovative consequences.”
Lapsis: Director
Lapsis 2020 Under the direction of Noah Hutton
Ray Tincelli, a delivery man living in an alternate reality, is having a difficult time providing for both himself and his sickly younger brother.
After a string of mediocre con jobs and failed schemes, Ray decides to take a job in a peculiar new sector of the gig economy.
His new job involves going deep into the woods and pulling cable across miles of terrain in order to connect large metal cubes that are part of the new quantum trading market. As he is drawn farther into the zone, he comes into contact with a growing amount of hostility.
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Interview With Noah Hutton
Cast and crew members for Lapsis, the first narrative feature film directed by Noah Hutton, spent July and August of 2019 working in the Hudson Valley.
The production shot in 18 unique locations over the course of 25 days, with the most of the action taking place in and around Patterson, in Putnam County, as well as Poughkeepsie, in Dutchess County.
On February 12, Lapsis will be made available for streaming on numerous platforms, including iTunes and Amazon Prime, as well as through local movie theaters, such as the Jacob Burns Film Center, which will also offer a special Q&A screening on March 9.
In honor of the premiere, the Hudson Valley Film Commission enlisted the assistance of director Jeremiah Wenutu to do an interview with Noah regarding the production of the movie.
The in-depth conversation, which lasts for 17 minutes and can be viewed here or on Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/507963403, covers a lot of material.