INK (2009) - Movie Review

Thought Provoking | Mystery | Adventure

INK (2009) is well conceived and equally well presented. Written and directed by Jamin Winans, this movie blends innocence, mystery and suspense in all the right ways to deliver an engaging and thought provoking watch.

Having said that, INK (2009) may not appease everyone for it demands a certain level of innocence even to indulge in the plot.

At the outset, this movie is a battle between Angels and Demons for the soul of an 8 year old girl. But dig a little deeper, INK strikes the right balance between being a fairy tale, mindfuck and sci-fi thriller all at the same time.

The movie introduces an alternate plane of reality; one inhabited by Storytellers (read Angels) and Incubis (demons). Both of them have a world of their own that transcend time and space. Every night, they descend to earth and influence human lives/souls. 

The storytellers (angels) give good dreams to people and inspire positivity. On the other hand, an Incubi (demon) gives nightmares and turns people into narcissists who don't care enough about their loved ones.

In addition to the storytellers and incubis, there are another set of creatures called the drifters. Drifters are sort of dead-but-not-totally-dead creatures.

The protagonist INK is a drifter and a shame/guilt ridden ugly creature. One night, he steals the soul of Emma (Quinn Hunchar) and sneaks into the world of Incubis. Emma is separated from her father John (Chris Kelly). The angels put up a brave fight but in vain. INK is determined to deliver the girl's soul to the Incubi; prove his loyalty and become one of them.

In the living world, Emma's body goes into comatose state. The Storytellers, Allel (Jennifer Batter) and the blind pathfinder (Jeremy Make) stay back in the human world. At the same time another storyteller Liev (Jessica Duffy) follows INK into the Incubis world to rescue Emma's soul.

From here on, the story unfolds in parallel tracks in parallel worlds. The director has visualized the three worlds very distinctively using the lighting; the effects are crafty and convincing.


On earth, Allel fights Incubis to unite John with his daughter. In the Incubis world, Liev risks her own life to save Emma's soul. What follows is a roller coaster adventure that sifts through the concepts of timespace continuum, afterlife, chaos theory, subconscious mind and the 'beat of the world'.

The beauty of this movie is in how the plot is unveiled over time. In fact, even the premise remains a mystery for a long time keeping the viewer curious. Full credits for the writer/director for choosing a script like this and presenting it so convincingly within the available resources (read low-budget). The performance by the supporting cast is average.

The movie ends with a subtle message on introspection into our lives, on the choices we make in life and its implications on people we care about. If you liked Dark City and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, you'll most certainly enjoy INK (2009).

An interesting thought form the movie:

The downward spiral of humans

• Man has a weakness
• He feels flawed
• Flaw leads to guilt
• Guilt turns to shame
• Man hides shame with pride and vanity
• When pride fails, despair takes over
• Despair leads to destruction

It becomes FATE ..
Something's gotta stop the flow!


My Rating: 8/10