One Level Down

In this creepy and convoluted outing from Thompson (Flicker and Mist), a 58-year-old woman is trapped in the body of a child by a violent man who forces her to call him “Daddy.” When Earth’s climate became inhospitable, Philip Harkin created the simulated universe Bella Inizio, relocating there with his wife, Vera, and daughter, Ella. After Vera and Ella fall ill and die, a devastated Harkin programs Ella back into existence but, due to a glitch, creates her to be perpetually five years old. After 58 years of being forced to act like a little girl by Harkin, Ella learns that technicians from the real world are due to visit the colony for a routine checkup. Eager to be free, she manages to board their spaceship—where she learns that the “real world” from which they hail is just another simulation. The plot takes a jarring turn when Ella tries to delete herself from existence, only to land back in Bella Inizio, where Harkin has taken all the pregnant women hostage, not allowing them to have their babies until Ella agrees to return to being his captive daughter. How this all sorts out is bizarre and muddled, and the haphazard plot undermines Thompson’s thematic explorations of autonomy and abuse. There are good ideas here, but the execution is messy. (Mar.)