Directed by Alexander Ullom, It Ends was originally a short film that turned into a feature (87 minutes, to be precise), which debuted at SXSW 2025. It tells the story of a group of college kids embarking on a road trip. However, when they miss a turn-off, they realise they are driving directly through a forest on a road that never really ends. Slowly they realise this isn’t just a slight mistake; this group of four are entering into something way different than expected.
The main characters, played by Phinehas Yoon, Akira Jackson, Noah Toth, and Mitchell Cole, are really well developed and distinctive in their own ways. They seem to be quite the bunch of misfits, but get along well enough to voluntarily climb into a Jeep Cherokee and hit the road together. With intense close-ups and a heavy reliance on dialogue (as there is only so much that can happen inside a car), there was nowhere to hide. These actors really delivered and should be commended for their performances.
The film runs between bleak, monotonous, humorous, and high intensity. It is many hours (or days, or months?) into the never-ending car ride that this group realise they have one minute and thirty seconds of time outside the car before being attacked by the masses of people who frantically emerge out of the forest, seemingly lying dormant in wait. Without giving much else away, this film definitely deserves a re-watch as there is a lot of detail in conversation between characters, and their unique tracking of the drive, that can go amiss.
Although the road is not paved clear, It Ends is one that leaves its audience wondering; is this supernatural? What would I have done in this situation? And is this a metaphor for life? It is one of those films that makes you question reality, how each character ended up in this position and, of course… how does it all end?
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
It Ends is screening as part of this year’s Sydney Film Festival, running between June 4th and 15th, 2025. For more information head to the official SFF page.
