Not A Masterpiece, But Certainly A Brave and Ambitious Exploration of Various Intriguing Themes.

Rating: 7/10 (23 September 2013)

An interesting watch, a delight to the eyes. I'm not naive to call it a masterpiece or anything, but it's a brave and innovative attempt; the splendid intersection of life's decisions, butterfly effect, string theory, parallel universes, true love and imagination is quite spectacular.
Jaco Van Dormael's ambitious attempt to explore these themes in a non-linear and haphazard fashion is sometimes flawed but mostly fascinating. Maybe it's supposed to be a satire on Life itself; sometimes seemingly good decisions have bad endings (death, unhappiness), and sometimes accidental or bad decisions end up having good futures. The thing is, no matter what decision we take,we can never predict what would eventually happen. (In the movie, by not choosing, he is letting everything happen, side-by-side.) The movie's ambiguous nature maybe a satirical take on decision-making and nature of life, or it maybe a plan gone wrong. It ultimately depends on what you got out of the whole ordeal.
(If anyone is left boggled by the movie's ending, you can read my explanation here: akashsebastian.wordpress.com/2013/09/23 /possible-explanations-for-mr-nobody-movie )
The acting is commendable, especially by Jared Leto, Toby Regbo and Rhys Ifans. Other than the scientific principles it explores, it's the magnificent cinematography and terrific editing which help sustain your interest for two and a half hours. The soundtrack is mesmerizing, and well in tune with the movie.
The movie's complex and non-linear story is certainly not for everyone.