by Christian Jones
In 1938, orphaned sisters Thomasina and Martha create the world’s first and only chronovisor, LOLA. LOLA, named after the sisters’ mother, can receive radio and television broadcasts from the future. They are immediately entranced by the sights and sounds that they witness, particularly those of David Bowie and Bob Dylan. At the outbreak of World War II, Thomasina and Martha use their invention to inform the British military of the enemy’s forthcoming attacks, a well-intentioned decision that leads to devastating, world-altering consequences.
LOLA is directors Andrew Legge’s debut feature, but it’s such an assured piece of work you wouldn’t know it. Thomasina (Emma Appleton) and Martha (Stefanie Martini) are delightfully eccentric characters but not to the point of becoming parodies. Appleton and Martini really give stand-out performances, and they play their roles with total conviction. A highlight of the film sees Thomasina and Martha at a serviceman’s dance belting out a rendition of The Kinks’ You Really Got Me.
The only extra contained on this home release is a commentary track, but it’s a great insight into the making of the film. Legge reveals his fascination with found footage films, early cinema, and ingenious inventions. LOLA was filmed on 16mm film and period cameras. The result is that it really does look as though it was filmed during the 40s. Legge added the scratches and drop-outs to the film himself, and very subtle CGI cleverly intersperses the Luftwaffe’s and Wehrmacht’s assault on Kent with newsreel footage. The design of LOLA itself could have been inspired by the Flash Gordon serials.
LOLA breathes new life into the tried-and-tested time-travel and found footage genres. Despite the micro-budget, Andrew Legge’s imagination transports us to a cleverly imagined past. We can’t wait to see what he has in store for us next.
Lola is out now on Blu-ray and digital.
