‘LOLA’ is an alternate history war science fiction film. Following the two British sisters Thomasina and Martha as they build a machine (LOLA) capable of intercepting radio waves from the future, the two set forth to aid the British military in the war effort against the German forces. Losing sight of their aims, the two encounter difficulties after things take an unexpected turn.
Focusing on the relationship between Thom and Mars, ‘LOLA’ uses the fantastical premise to examine the two vastly different approaches each sister has towards using LOLA. Exploring the music and culture from the future, Mars serves to show what the more creative and exploratory nature of using the machine would look like. Conversely, Thom becomes obsessed with aiding the military.
Choosing to sacrifice innocent lives, Thom’s military tactics alter the course of our history, depicting the US deciding not to help the Allied forces and causing Germany to invade the UK. With Thom now working for the Germans and believing Mars to have perished, Mars plans to infiltrate their home and confront Thom and attack on a planned visit by Adolf Hitler.
With Mars’ attack failing and Thom learning she is still alive, the two try to escape, with Thom being fatally wounded. The final shots of Mars’ film show her discovering a recording made by Thom expressing her regrets of how things had turned out. Reverting to the documentary of the found footage, text on screen reveals the two sisters to have disappeared and LOLA never to have been found, with our history remaining unaltered.
Serving as a self-made warning, the found footage format of the film that Mars has put together for Thom and her to find in the past to save themselves from a German invasion and an alternate, less favourable, history, ‘LOLA’ encapsulates not only the facts necessary to convince the sisters to not pursue trying to alter history, but also the emotional weight of the repercussions of a Nazi victory.
With Mars exploring the cultural milestones of the future and Thom using LOLA as a weapon, the film encapsulates the duality of man, showing us the will to explore what the future holds to satisfy our curiosity, to learn and observe, whilst also wanting to actively make changes in the short term.
As with all time travel stories, the sisters soon learn that trying to make changes will always have consequences. Examining the two distinctly different approaches each sister has, we are presented with how differently one can react when confronted with change, strife and unwanted outcomes. Thom’s unwillingness to adapt to the information about a much darker future is her ultimate downfall, with Mars trying to salvage what she can by presenting Thom with the repercussions of their work.
Emotionally rich and quietly devastating, ‘LOLA’ explores an alternate timeline in our history whilst maintaining a steady hold on and remaining grounded by focusing on the difference of opinion between Thom and Mars. Portrayed by Emma Appleton (Thomasina) and Stefanie Martini (Martha), the two actors display a very bohemian lifestyle, depending on each other for support, portraying an unbreakable familial bond that is at the core of the film.
Intended as a warning to be picked up by the sisters before it's too late, 'LOLA' delivers not only an exploration of a timeline lost, but also manages to portray a deeply intimate examination of the changing relationship between the two sisters. As they drift apart, all signs point towards irreparable damage and a complete breakdown in their relationship, yet the film manages to shift things for the better without seeming overtly sentimental or banal. An alternate history worth exploring, 'LOLA' resurrects what should never be lost in time and delivers much more than a warning to the past.
Score: 3/4
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