Immanence is a sci-fi/horror Trojan Horse designed to ham-fistedly cram the screenwriter’s pet theology down your throat. Its plot synopsis is a lie, a crass attempt to con people into listening to its straw man arguments.

The flick is about a boatful of scientists sent to investigate an astrophysical phenomena in the Atlantic. Before you know it, the character are debating religion vs. science… and then all sorts of Bermuda Triangle shit happens.

This movie lies to sucker you into its poorly-written science vs. religion debate. It awkwardly crams “Now we talk theology” moments that stall the movie in order to deliver thesis statements. Every character makes self-righteous, opinionated, and aggressive pronouncements that seem designed to irritate. It’s not dialog, it’s a pile of straw man arguments written by a screenwriter who took Philosophy 101.

When the flick gets out of its own way, it can be a decent, bizarre little experience full of weird, surreal moments. I was willing to let the subtle-as-a-sledgehammer religious debates slide if the rest of the film upheld its creepy tension.

But then the final act fumbles and gives us a tortured scenario where the characters act irrationally in an attempt to force themselves into the unconvincing box the screenwriter set up. Just as it was with the earlier debates, nobody acts believable…. they are mechanical clockwork automatons acting out the screenwriter’s thesis.

This film is a lie set up to poorly insert an artificial debate into a sci-fi/horror film. It’s done with such “Look at me. I took a philosophy course once” awkwardness that you’ll feel the lecture weighing you down. The flick isn’t without merit, it’s just buried under its own hubris.

Score: 68