This is the second vertical AI BL drama I've sat through, and honestly I went in knowing better. I had it on while I was doing cardio at the gym, and what struck me was just how much the plot echoed the last one I watched. Same step brother romance angle, same mystery girlfriend showing up near the end, same extra guy pining after one of the leads. Genuinely the only thing going for it was the runtime, the whole thing wrapped up in forty five minutes flat. The setup kicks off with Finn moving schools because his mom just married into money. He finds out his new step brother Aiden goes to the same place, and he's warned to keep his distance from him. Their first run in at school is rocky, just like you'd expect, but there's this odd pull between them neither can shake off. Finn keeps telling himself not to read into it because Aiden's straight and openly homophobic. Things shift when some kids start bullying Finn and the student council president, Ryan, steps in to ...
Aaron, is the careless, in-love twenty-something caught in an annoying time loop. Every afternoon, Aaron wakes up to their roommate Dani, offering them a glass of wine that has gone horribly off. Dani reminds them her habit to refuse to see red flags in guys and Aaron promises to do better. All that starts to change once he meets Trevor, an intriguing stranger he’s paired up with for a birthday party scavenger hunt. While Trevor at first seems fairly distant and aloof, there is a hint of interest, which is enough for Aaron to use the time loop to his advantage. Aaron is smitten, and the two men fall into a quick and easy banter. Despite Aaron's promise to Dani, the encounter leads to sex. At a crucial moment, Aaron wakes, and once again, Dani stands in the doorframe of their bedroom, holding a glass of bad wine. And the entire day repeats. As these time loop things go, it seems relatively low stakes, but then again, maybe trying to find love and build something up from just a spark is the most important thing. As the cycle continues, he learns how to manipulate the situation to his advantage. In this case, that means finding everything about Trevor so they can impress upon him how alike they are. The question remains whether is it just Aaron who knows about this loop or is there something that Aaron feels too. The eventual secret reveal is emotional and you can see Aaron's point of view on why he wanted the time loop to continue and the film ends interestingly with Aaron and Dani as a couple (out of nowhere).
The film starts with intrigue, because as an audience you wanna know why the time loop, how to get out of it, what's causing it and why specifically Aaron. The truth about Trevors boyfriend was something I did not expect and that was likely the only redeeming thing about this film. Sadly, by the time the film reaches there, the constant repetitive scenes, test your patience, What I didn't understand is why is Aaron suddenly so infatuated with Trevor, who comes across very soulless and bland (although hot). I am not even going into the whole science of time travel, because this is supposed to be about the relationship drama. As Aaron repeatedly returns to that one day, there are more questions raised than answers—and the questions grow darker. Trevor isn't just waving a red flag; he is a red flag. But will Aaron recognize the signs, or will their need for love get in the way of better judgment? Even with the flaws that his film has, it must be said that the naturalized presentation of trans and on-binary characters was a welcome change. I have mixed feelings about the ending. Aaron and Trevor both do a good job given the story material they were handed. With an interesting plot twist at the end, this would have been much better, if there was more thrill to keep audience glued to go through the film to wait for the end. (5/10)
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