The Signal
A road-trip detour plunges a young man into a disorienting secret experiment where science-fiction paranoia and questions of identity collide.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- paranoid
- disorienting
- eerie
- late night thriller viewing
- science fiction double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly appreciated the film's technical craft, visual ambition, and atmospheric science-fiction setup, but found its convoluted story and contrived twists underdeveloped.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Nic wakes in a secretive facility after the blackout, while contradictory clues and institutional behavior make his circumstances difficult to interpret.
Nic and his friends are treated as subjects by personnel in protective suits inside an isolated experimental compound.
The abandoned shack and antiseptic white-walled facility contrast isolation with clinical containment and reinforce Nic's waking nightmare.
The plot links Nic's altered condition and emerging superhuman implications to secret laboratory testing.
Films like The Signal, and why
The Twilight Zone: The Movie
Shared paranoid science fiction, secret experimentation, reality destabilization, and escalating mystery.
Cube
Shared science-fiction thriller atmosphere, institutional confinement, altered perception, and uncertain identity.
Coherence
Shared young protagonists, investigative mystery, experimental technology, and cerebral suspense.
The Vast of Night
Shared desert isolation, conspiratorial science fiction, and a protagonist trapped inside an opaque system.
Movie Details
- Director
- William Eubank
- Release Date
- 2014-03-15
- Runtime
- 97 min
- Rating
- 6.0 / 10 (1919)
Cast
- Brenton Thwaites
- Olivia Cooke
- Beau Knapp
- Laurence Fishburne
- Robert Longstreet
- Lin Shaye
- Jeffrey Grover
- Patrick Davidson
- Roy Kenny
- Timothy Holmes
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Signal about?
- A road-trip detour plunges a young man into a disorienting secret experiment where science-fiction paranoia and questions of identity collide.
- What is The Signal like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Signal as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Signal violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Signal as mild.
- What did critics think of The Signal?
- Critics broadly appreciated the film's technical craft, visual ambition, and atmospheric science-fiction setup, but found its convoluted story and contrived twists underdeveloped.
- Which films are like The Signal?
- Films with a similar feel include The Twilight Zone: The Movie, Cube, Coherence, and The Vast of Night.
- How long is The Signal?
- The Signal runs 97 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Signal?
- In United States, The Signal is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling.
