Really liked this! An exercise in 4-D thinking.

Rating: 9/10 (9 June 2010)

This wasn't your standard Flashback / Sliding Doors film.
No way. This was far more interesting.
Mister Nobody was a deliberate exercise in seeing reality from multiple perspectives in a non-linear way all at the same time. --And knowing that it was ALL real at the same time.
That was the strong point.
The weak point was that the director himself didn't seem to realize that this was what he was doing. And the ending was backwards in more ways than one! (He presented the Big Crunch as a sort of victory prize. As if the vaporizing of knowledge and experience and retreating into the galactic womb, going back to sleep, was a desirable thing. Yuck! Only losers think that way.) Also, his understanding of love was presented in an over-the-top manner; pretty girls loving the empty and rather uninspiring Nemo? It looks nice on the screen, but it's pure fantasy. But then, the Nemo reference to the old "Little Nemo in Slumberland" comics by Winsor McCay was true to form, (Little Nemo was also a dreamy tool loved by princesses), so this was almost certainly a deliberate action on the part of the director. I found it a bit annoying, though. I would have been happier if the main character was a lot less vague.
But this was a sci-fi film at its heart, and hard sci-fi at that, (well, if you allow for the existence of the soul and fanciful elements like unicorns and angels. . , if you can forgive that, then this was strictly by-the-book metaphysics). Stories which exist primarily in order for the writer/director to explore the science of reality, things like strong characters and realistic emotions are usually given short shrift. You want to know how the rocket propulsion system works, not how to realistically date a girl. This was definitely a geek film.
Which explains how Mister Nobody's portrayal of the character with manic-depressive disorder was spot on. Disorders are interesting and thus well-examined, while normal conditions are boring and thus left unexplored beyond the most broad-stroke definitions.
But don't let that put you off the film. It has a LOT of great things to offer. The visuals are endlessly astonishing, and the exercise in non-linear multi-dimensional story-telling is a wonderful and exciting treat for the mind. And best of all, every shot was there for a logical reason! I can't stand arty films which are blurry around the edges. This one made sense. Definitely made for engineers and sci-fi geeks who aren't stumped by the idea of the soul.
We don't get films like this very often, and this was one of the best!
Highly recommended if you're up for that kind of thing. If you're looking for standard Star Trek, or for a great love story, look elsewhere. This is about exploring 4th Density!