Jay Alvarez’s sophomore feature Something’s More Than One Thing tackles the unraveling relationship between Caitlin and Dylan as they seek advice from unexpected corners. Alvarez directs with a sensitive touch, exploring how digital connections can complicate real-world bonds.
Caitlin and Dylan have been together for some time in Los Angeles. She works as a waitress while pursuing acting as an aspiring filmmaker. Things are shaken when Dylan admits to an impulsive one-night stand. As they struggle to find footing again, each turns to the internet in search of clarity.
What they find online are not straightforward answers but fragmented perspectives that reflect our polarized modern discourse. Dylan delves into male-centered forums advocating separation. There, angry voices drown out nuance. Meanwhile, Caitlin hears mostly from hurt women questioning their own self-worth.
Alvarez crafts the online commenters into living presences through creative casting. A stream of vocal personalities assaults us, from shrill to soothing. It’s disorienting but revealing of how advice-seeking can become lost in echo chambers, validating our deepest insecurities.
This introspective drama brings a light touch to weighty issues. At its heart is a relatable will-they-or-won’t-they grounded in emotional truth. With strong leads in Alex Sgambati and Devan Costa, Alvarez explores what it means to reconnect—oor retreat further apart—iin a world that sometimes pulls us in too many directions.
Relationship Breakdown
Caitlin and Dylan each search for answers online, but what they find only drives them further apart. Alvarez crafts nuanced portraits of a couple nearing the end of their time together.
Dylan is ambitious but restless. As an up-and-coming filmmaker, he’s focused on advancing his career above all else. We see him light up at festivals, in his natural habitat. But his passion for movies hasn’t made room for fully committing to his girlfriend. His one-night stand stems from wandering eyes and feeling unfulfilled at home.
Online, Dylan plunges into toxic communities that cater to male fragility rather than self-reflection. They reinforce his belief that one mistake shouldn’t define him, while ignoring the hurt he’s caused. By the end, he seems unable or unwilling to understand Caitlin’s perspective.
Caitlin carries the burden of keeping their relationship running smoothly. Between her waitressing job and supporting Dylan’s dreams, she has little left for herself. It’s no wonder she feels neglected. Yet she stays, clinging to hope that internet reassurance provides.
Online, Caitlin finds empathy but also degrading stories that damage her self-worth. She begins to question if she deserves happiness at all. Devan Costa and Alex Sgambati imbue their characters with melancholy authenticity as the cracks deepen between them.
Alvarez handles their dispersal with care. We see why they fell for each other, but also how independent paths may suit them better in the long run. Their journey into fractured digital worlds only reflects how they’ve grown out of sync offline.
Modern Loneliness Laid Bare
Something’s More Than One Thing delves deeply into how constant online connectivity can exacerbate disconnection. By following Caitlin and Dylan down meandering digital rabbit holes, the film shines a light on pervasive themes of modern life.
Alvarez seems to argue that while the internet can offer comfort, it also provides limitless opportunity for avoiding reality. When their relationship falters, each character seeks refuge online rather than pursuing difficult conversations.
They find fragmented perspectives that distract from personal growth. Dylan falls in with anger-fueled groups instead of self-reflecting. Caitlin second-guesses her self-worth thanks to the darkest stories she finds. Neither fully commits to the hard work of rebuilding trust offline.
On a deeper level, their separate digital journeys come to symbolize the struggle of finding meaning in today’s fractured world. With lives lived out on screens, it’s easy to lose sight of what really matters—like caring for others and being present with loved ones.
Yet the film doesn’t judge so much as observe with nuanced care. Perhaps it leaves the message that even as technology shapes society in complex ways, human connections remain our greatest asset. With effort, even the loneliest among us can overcome shallow digital diversions to forge real bonds.
By embedding these insightful themes within the intimacy of a relatable relationship, Something’s More Than One Thing sparks thoughtful reflection on societal faults and our collective ability to do better. It’s a stirring reminder of the power of prioritizing people over platforms.
Offline Woes, Online Echoes
Something’s More Than One Thing creatively demonstrates how the digital world can compound real-life relationship issues. Through an unconventional storytelling technique, director Alvarez shines a light on the internet’s troubling impact.
He populates the online sphere with living, breathing personas—various actors staring straight into the lens as they vocalize internet conversations. It’s an unsettling concept at first, seeing flesh-and-blood faces representing hasthag debates and message board musings.
Yet this innovative choice drives home just how immersed we’ve become in virtual exchanges. When Caitlin and Dylan search for guidance, they’re bombarded by these online “presences,” dissenting on everything from infidelity to career outlooks.
Depending on the search terms used, different communities materialize. Dylan encounters stubborn voices affirming his selfish actions. Their angry rhetoric and “man up” bravado validate deflecting blame. Meanwhile, caring presences flock to Caitlin, though sharing some detrimentally depressive stories.
This visual metaphor demonstrates how seeking advice online can lead down polarized rabbit holes with algorithmic echo chambers that amplify our worst instincts. Neither character experiences perspectives challenging their preconceived notions.
Alvarez spotlights the imbalance: men generally find validation for poor behaviors, while women encounter tales emphasizing self-doubt. Both paths pull the couple further apart just when understanding is most needed. Their online influence injects new toxicity into old wounds.
In dissecting societal nuances with care, Something’s More Than One Thing prompts thought on digital dynamics widening modern divides. When loneliness strikes, do online escapes prevent healing or nourish disconnectedness? Its poignant online illustrations leave such questions to ponder.
Weaving the Digital Fabric
Director Jay Alvarez displays his gift for innovative storytelling through imaginative technical choices in Something’s More Than One Thing. By filming on an iPhone, he cradles intimate drama in casual realism viewers can relate to.
Alvarez then gets creative with how online influences manifest. He cast everyday people to embody the disembodied voices chatting away in our heads each time we browse. Through their eyes gazing directly into the lens, comments spring to startling life. It’s an unorthodox style that pulls us deeper inside experiences both characters face.
Editing stitches this quasi-documentary approach together seamlessly. Snappy cutting drives discussions along at peppy clips. During strained soliloquies, slower rhythms foster somber reflection. Sound mixing also draws us in, from shrill tones to gentle reassurances we’ve all heard ringing in our own ears during life’s tricky moments.
Somehow Alvarez grounds bold cinematic choices in heartfelt humanity. His deft touch never lets provocative means overwhelm sincere ends. Even contending voices flowing from a single screen feel authentic, tantalizing, and true to how technology shapes stories in our screen-filled lives. It’s a tour de force of form serving meaningful function.
In Alvarez’s skilled hands, inventive forms become the fabric of deeper insights rather than distractions. His maverick methods gift the mind’s eye a visceral glimpse into life’s complexity.
Falling Short of Greatness
Something’s More Than One Thing takes an insightful look at modern relationship dynamics. However, for all its thought-provoking themes, the actual narrative unfolding retains only snippets of brilliance amid inconsistencies.
Director Alvarez admirably handles complex subjects but spreads his cast too thinly. Remy, as a potential new love interest, receives cursory treatment. With nuanced leads in Devan Costa and Alex Sgambati, their backstories demand more fleshing out to fully invest viewers in their fate.
Pacing also stumbles in spots, hampering immersion. The ongoing dilution of Caitlin and Dylan’s bond plays out in fits and starts versus a seamless downward arc. Certain exchanges between the pair feel stilted versus raw reactions viewers can relate to.
Where the film shines are its unflinching portrayals of toxicity unconsciously reinforced online. But crafting fully fleshed characters to drive an engaging plot proves a loftier challenge Alvarez doesn’t consistently overcome.
With A-list producers on board, expectations for polished drama understandably grow. Yet ambition sometimes outpaces execution, leaving pieces of a great movie scattered and not fully joined.
Overall, while commendable for spurring reflection, Something’s More Than One Thing settles for pretty good versus small screen greatness. With refinement, Alvarez’s voice and timely messages could achieve majestic heights. For now, it remains an imperfect gem.
A Flawed Gem of Modern Insight
Something’s More Than One Thing sets out to shine a light on societal issues that profoundly shape modern relationships. Director Alvarez is surely right to highlight the internet’s ability both to connect and divide us.
Yet for all its praiseworthy aims, the actual narrative falls short of greatness. The film tries on too many thought-provoking ideas at once without fully developing any. Ambitious concepts sometimes outstrip Alvarez’s grasp.
Even so, its heart remains in the right place. Unflinching portraits of internet harm feel eerily prescient. And Caitlin and Dylan’s once-passionate bond stirring ambiguous emotions rings authentically true.
Ultimately, this is an imperfect movie that strives to have perfect ends. It offers more thoughtful sparks than fully kindled flames and merits kudos for timely topic choice.
With refinement of craft matching high-minded concepts, Alvarez’s potential could burst forth brilliantly. For now, Something’s More Than One Thing stays a diamond in flawed form—one still worth polishing to brighter luster. Its flawed virtues make it a film deserving closer inspection and discussion.
While not great cinema, its musings on connections lost and found online make it a fascinating if flawed glimpse into relationships in our digitally mediated age.
The Review
Something's More Than One Thing
Something's More Than One Thing raises important questions about modern relationships and the internet's influence; it ultimately tries to take on too much and doesn't fully fulfill its narrative potential. However, Alvarez shows skill at crafting relatable characters and insightful social commentary to spark conversation.
PROS
- Thought-provoking exploration of timely themes regarding technology's impact on human connection
- Strong lead performances that ground ambitious concepts
- Creative depiction of online personalities woven into story
CONS
- Story suffers from trying to cover too many big ideas at once.
- Not all characters and their arcs are fully developed.
- Can feel uneven in pacing, and some dialogue is stilted.
Discussion about this post