‘Deborah’ Trailer Introduces the Ultimate Smart Home Assistant: A Time-Traveling Device [Exclusive]
Well, that wasn’t right. Deborah, go back 5 minutes in time.
The concept of upcoming sci-fi dark comedy Deborah is enough to understand how wild the movie is going to be: A couple invites a group of friends over for a celebration and casually reveals that their Alexa-like assistant can reverse time at their request, as long as it’s “only” up to 48 hours before. So how confusing can a gathering get when the guests keep going back in time? Based on the trailer, which Collider can exclusively share, it gets very, very confusing – and hilarious.
The trailer reveals all of our common, 21st-century worries when it comes to technology. How much of our everyday life is being listened to or processed by our many devices? We know it happens, but often get surprised by the extent of information that they are able to gather. In Deborah’s case, it’s even able to crack a few unorthodox jokes at whoever addresses it with disdain.
But, of course, all of that pales in comparison to Deborah’s ultimate feature. The assistant is ordered to pause time right before a vase hits the floor, and it’s all downhill from there. The trailer doesn’t give away the time travel rules of the movie, but it’s the synopsis suggests their memories also get erased – so we just have to wait and see the implications of messing with time and memory so casually.
Deborah is written and directed by Noga Pnueli, who’s having a great year so far. The filmmaker also penned Meet Cute, which is also a dark comedy that plays with the perception of time. If Pnueli is going for a home run with Deborah, we’ll discover in about two weeks. The movie marks Pnueli’s feature film directorial debut, and it’s based on the short film Deb (also directed and written by Pnueli), released in 2018.
The cast of Deborah features Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill), Deborah Ann Woll (Marvel’s Daredevil), Scott Michael Foster (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Kevin Bigley (Upload), Arjun Gupta (The Magicians), Ciara Renée (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), and Michael Waller (Come As You Are).
Deborah premieres on Digital in just a couple of weeks, on November 1. You can watch the trailer and check out the official synopsis below:
A group of old friends gathers to celebrate Albert and Ada’s engagement. On the first evening, Albert reveals his latest invention, DEBORAH — his own take on Siri. The friends ask her to predict the weather, write a song, fact check arguments — all of the usual questions. But then Ada accidentally shatters a wine bottle and everyone freezes. Literally. Except Ada and Albert. Turns out Deborah can pause and rewind time. But that’s their secret. For now. The weekend continues. Tensions surface. Albert pines for an old crush. Ada watches. Patience runs low. Someone knocks a lamp over, almost crushing Ada’s dog. Ada freezes time but it resumes before she puts him back in place. Deborah’s secret is out. The friends swear they won’t take advantage. But they find themselves exploiting these “rewinds” for their own benefit, knowing they can take things back. Deborah rewinds. Rewinds. Rewinds. But while rewinding time erases the memories themselves, it leaves behind emotional scars. The weekend speeds forward, the friends continuing to act out, until DEBORAH’s had enough, refusing to rewind. The turmoil is too much – culminating in a showdown where these friends confront each other honestly for the first (and possibly last) time.