Movie · 2014 · Science Fiction, Drama · 1h 46m · R · English
Curator score: 2.2/10 (143.6K ratings)
Overview
A molecular biologist's study of the human eye has far-reaching implications about humanity's scientific and spiritual beliefs.
Ratings
Curator score: 2.2/10
IMDb: 7.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 51%
Metacritic: 57
TMDB: 7.6/10
Director
Mike Cahill
Production
Bersin Pictures, Verisimilitude, WeWork Studios, Penny Jane Films
Cast
Michael Pitt, Brit Marling, Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Steven Yeun, Archie Panjabi, Cara Seymour, Venida Evans, William Mapother, Kashish, Dorien Makhloghi, Charles W. Gray, Johns Schiumo, Farasha Baylock, Ако, Christopher Santamaria, Sebastian Santamaria, Rhonda Ayers, Crystal Anne Dickinson, Victor Varnado
Curator Review
Verdict
A thoughtful, emotionally charged sci-fi drama that starts with a compelling blend of romance, grief, and scientific curiosity, then leans hard into metaphysical speculation. If you like films that use genre ideas to ask big questions about identity, faith, and memory, it can be moving; if you want airtight science or subtle plotting, it may frustrate you.
Best for
Viewers who enjoy philosophical sci-fi and spiritual speculation
Fans of grief-driven stories with a romantic core
People who like earnest, emotional indie dramas
Audiences open to pseudo-science as a springboard for big ideas
Skip if
You need rigorous hard science and logical consistency
You dislike melodramatic plotting or overt symbolism
You are allergic to earnest, faith-adjacent storytelling
You prefer ambiguity to be restrained rather than heavily explained
Overview
I Origins is the kind of movie that lives or dies on whether you’re willing to meet it halfway. It begins as a moody, intimate character drama about obsession, attraction, and loss, then expands into a larger argument about whether science can coexist with spiritual longing. That shift is ambitious, and even when the film gets shaky, it stays emotionally committed.
Worth noting
The strongest material is in the atmosphere: the clinical beauty of the eye research, the romantic pull between the leads, and the way grief keeps resurfacing in unexpected forms. There’s a sincere yearning here that many viewers will find irresistible, even if the script occasionally reaches for symbolism a little too bluntly.
Bottom line
Its reputation is split for a reason. Some will see manipulative pseudo-science and a clumsy third act; others will see a deeply affecting meditation on connection, reincarnation, and the possibility that love leaves traces. As a mood piece with ideas, it’s memorable, even when it’s messy.
Top Letterboxd reviews
laura (4★) · 2487 likes
“My atoms have always loved your atoms.”
Alexia🛸 (2.5★) · 2473 likes
my poop brown eyes could never
madzwurld (5★) · 2045 likes
wow this movie resonates with me much more than i would’ve thought. my mom passed away from a car accident when i was 7; she was an organ donor and the only thing they could save were her eyes. so someone in this world has my mama’s beautiful eyes and that brings me so much comfort knowing she’s still around, a part of her still on this earth. i origins proves to me yet again that everything in life happens for a reason… the ending of this is just so beautiful :,)
yen (5★) · 1890 likes
i still cry every time i hear radiohead's 'motion picture soundtrack'
Koen (3.5★) · 1559 likes
Jerking off to your dead gf’s sex video while your pregnant wife is in the other room is kind of a red flag bro
2014 · Thriller, Science Fiction · 1h 29m · NR · Curator 6.5/10 (578.7K ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium, Philo, Night Flight Plus, Cineverse, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
A low-budget mind-bender that uses speculative ideas to probe identity, relationships, and the instability of reality.