LOLA – Review

LOLA begins by divulging the discovery of a film cache in 2021 in a small country home cellar in England. When played, it appeared to be a broadcast from 1941. The film then plays out.

Martha Hanbury (Martini) looks into the lens and tells her sister Thomasina (Appleton) not to be blinded by her brilliance, as papa used to say. She wants to show how history can be made, and unmade. She has put together scraps of film so that hopefully somehow, some way the film will find Thom, and stop her.

Clips of science experiments, inventions and designs play out. Then, a major success in 1938, named after the girls’ mama, Lola. The device works… but what is it? The amazing creation that Thom and Martha have created receives television broadcasts from years into the future. David Bowie’s “Major Tom” blares in from a time yet to pass. And then… flickers of a near future as Nazis begin to destroy the world.

Thom and Martha decide eventually that since they know about the upcoming attacks, that they need to warn people about German bombers and other sneak attacks. West London lives are saved. But… this starts ripples…

As these “premonitions” from the future give our past scientists more and more information, they know about military moves and all sorts of odd glimpses of life to come. However, again with this information comes danger, as the Nazis scramble to find the girls’ signal.

LOLA is a smart and creative small budget British Sci-Fi “found footage” film. It plays out quickly and is full of fun concepts and good time travel-esque themes. When one can predict the future, will that future in fact come about? Probably not if you start re-ordering stuff before it occurs.

The short runtime makes this an easy film to digest, and despite what was likely a budget equal to a sack of carrots, this film is very well presented. It probably won’t blow your mind, but it’s pretty good!

Movies below are similar-ish in some ways but still not all that comparable.