"You wanted this, didn't you?"

Frenzied and loud and so very New York, which means it'll be compared to the Safdie's work endlessly. Personally, I found myself thinking of Jerrod Carmichael's feature from Sundance last year, On the Count of Three, as I watched God's Time. Both films feature a very specific sort of panic that is hard to nail, especially when balanced with a biting humor. Luckily, God's Time nails that trapeze of bleak and humor in just the right way for the watch to feel worthwhile.

Alongside its rapid pacing, God's Time is also hyper-stylized. Fourth wall breaks are always a hard gimmick to use effectively but their utilization here feels downright thrilling. The abruptness of their inclusion has an air of confrontation to them that Funny Games' fourth wall breaks are. Unnerving, particularly at the height of the film's major point of conflict.

My one wish is, as I often find myself wishing, more characterization of the woman at the center of it all. We get a lot of these characters in what feels like "the after" of their characterization and that ensures character arcs, but it also leaves an odd sense of lacking.

My final shoutout is to how organically the film addresses the fact it was shot during COVID. Masks are frequently present but they are not addressed or a part of plot in a way that would have felt overwhelming.

Some really, really impressive work here!

Tribeca 2022 Watch #2