Michaela McManus Archives

Posted March 11, 2025 Film Festivals

Redux Redux

Irene Kelly (Michaela McManus) is seeking revenge on Neville (Jeremy Holm), the man who killed her daughter. But it isn’t enough to kill him once. She needs to travel through the multiverse killing him again and again in every timeline possible. Her methods of tracking down and killing Neville vary through each scenario and she’s able to escape and restart her mission by way of a coffin-like time machine. Irene has lost track of how many timelines she’s lived through or what exactly happened before she started traveling the multiverse. And while she’s grown weary and bitter, she continues on. However, things change when she meets Neville’s latest victim Mia (Stella Marcus), a headstrong 15-year-old who quickly becomes Irene’s sidekick. The timelines get increasingly complex now that there is a second person and Irene must now come to terms with her purpose while helping Mia escape her dreaded fate.

*Michaela McManus in Redux Redux. Image courtesy of the McManus Brothers.*

Written and directed by Kevin and Matthew McManus, Redux Redux is a riveting revenge thriller held up by two strong female protagonists.

I love how the multiverse and time travel elements are never gimmicky. The conceit flows smoothly through the film and the viewer will enjoy the ride without having to have the technology or methodology explained to them. Irene Kelly is a wonderfully badass yet flawed character and the story really revs up when she’s joined by her younger counterpart Mia. Michaela McManus and Stella Marcus are stellar in their roles. Actor/filmmaker Jim Cummings has a small role as Jonathan, Irene’s grief counseling hookup.

Fans of time loop films like Groundhog Day (1993) and Palm Springs (2020) and multiverse films like Sliding Doors (1998) [which is referenced in Redux Redux] Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) will find a lot to enjoy in this indie genre film.

The filmmaking duo the McManus brothers also wrote and directed another sci-fi horror movie The Block Island Sound (2020) [check out my review here] which also co-starred their sister Michaela McManus.

Redux Redux is produced by Mothership Motion Pictures and had its world premiere at the 2025 SXSW Film and TV Festival.

Redux Redux is distributed by Saban Films and is releasing nationwide in theaters February 20th, 2026.

Posted September 3, 2020 Film Festivals

Fantasia Festival: The Block Island Sound

Birds are falling from the sky. Fish are floating dead in the water. Electronic devices suddenly stop working. And local fisherman Tom (Neville Archambault) is having regular blackouts. What is this mysterious force that is causing chaos on Block Island?

Tom’s son Harry (Chris Sheffield) and daughter Audry (Michaela McManus) try to help their dad whose drinking and hallucinations are getting increasingly out of control. Harry’s friend Dale (Jim Cummings) thinks it’s all a government conspiracy and everyone else just thinks Tom has a drinking problem. As Audry begins to investigate, Harry is slowly being taken over by this force and the ghost of his dad guides him further into danger.

Written, co-produced and directed by Kevin and Matthew McManus , The Block Island Sound is a seaside thriller that offers viewers plenty of mystery and a satisfyingly slow build. I wasn’t sure where the story was taking me but I was definitely along for the ride. This film reminded me a little of the seaside horror genre film The Beach House which I reviewed recently but I found The Block Island Sound even more riveting. I appreciate that the film doesn’t offer any answers but does question the role of electronic devices in our lives and how they affect not only our minds but our bodies.