‘Someone Dies!’ Review: A Time-Traveling Sink, a Deadbeat Detective, and Houston Weirdness at Its Best
- Romey Norton
- 21 hours ago
- 2 min read
By Romey Norton- October 2025
Some films play by the rules, and then there’s Someone Dies!, the wonderfully absurd sophomore feature from Houston filmmaker Justin Petty. Equal parts sci-fi oddity, absurdist comedy, and lo-fi character study, this offbeat indie takes a premise that sounds like a late-night fever dream and somehow turns into a story about fatherhood, failure, and the lengths one man will go to (or back to) to fix his mistakes.
The film follows Jim Jenkins (Joseph Graham), a delightfully hapless detective-slash-deadbeat dad whose life is upended when he receives a cryptic letter warning that his daughter’s in danger. His half-baked investigation leads him not to a crime scene, but to a bizarre Craigslist meetup between two strangers (Amy Anderson and John Wessling) haggling over a so-called “suicide sword.” What begins as a mundane misunderstanding quickly spirals into chaos when the trio stumbles upon a kitchen sink that can manipulate time, and possibly fix Jim’s fractured family life… if it doesn’t destroy it first.
Petty’s direction balances the absurd with the sincere, crafting a story that’s both ridiculous and unexpectedly human. It’s weird and wonderful and very easy to watch. For an independent film, the sound and camera shots are very well polished. I loved one of the first shots where the camera follows the bottom half of someone's legs walking - these shots are very tidy and build a sense of suspense. The 80’s vibe, including costume, music, and Super 8 camera style, is fun, energetic, and gives the film an interesting edge.
The whole cast has great chemistry and delivers their lines very well. Comedic without being too over the top and ridiculous. There’s a nice mix between dark humour and toilet humour - but this might not be appealing to all audiences. Joseph Graham nails the perfect mix of clueless determination and existential burnout. Watching someone in a state of stress and chaos keeps tensions and energy levels high. Amy Anderson and John Wessling are very entertaining, adding a level of discomfort and cringe. They’re believable as a strange couple and complement each other well. Have to give a shout-out to Adam Edwards for performing a crazy but catchy rap song roughly halfway through.
As the story continues, the film keeps a solid pace, and there’s enough level of intrigue to keep you invested and intrigued as a viewer. It’s impressive that the whole film mainly takes place inside an apartment, which aids in the relationship building between the three characters, and how this close, hostile environment builds their paranoia and stress.
The film isn’t without its flaws - it’s quirky, and some audiences might not enjoy this weird trip and will want a more solid story and conclusion. But if you go into this expecting to have fun, you will.
Underneath all the bizarre antics and time-looping confusion, Someone Dies! finds genuine heart in its portrait of a man desperate to rewrite his past, even if he has to plunge headfirst into a sink to do it. Overall, Someone Dies! is playful, unpredictable, and brimming with personality.
Someone Dies! streams on Amazon from October 21, 2025.
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