The Second Age of Aquarius (2022) 

Alberta is a programmer stuck in her life a little bit. One night, she decides to design an avatar of her favorite 60s rock icon. When a sudden surge in power brings him to life, she finds herself swooning over him as well as responsible for him. 

Co-written by Darren Smith and Staci Layne Wilson with Wilson also directing. Here both writers bring their love of music, rock n roll, and the 60s together in a fun film about technology gone a bit haywire. They both bring their respective experience and knowledge to the table which shows in the writing and in how the characters are developed. In a way, this is very much a 60s rock film brought up to the 2020s. There is something old school in how the characters are written, in some of the dialog, and in the music of course. The setting in current times and the technology as well as some of the ways the characters react to the situation are very much current though. This leads to an interesting mix of a fish-out-of-water comedy, a romantic comedy, and a low-key scifi film.  

The cast here is fairly small as is the number of locations. In the lead of Alberta, Christina Jacquelyn Calph is likable and believable, lending the film an anchor in the current times. A few things about Alberta are a bit off, but those are not due to the acting here. The performance put forth by Christina Jacquelyn Calph is on point. Playing Russell Aquarius, the fish-out-of-water, is Michael Ursu who gives the character a good vibe, a personality fitting that of an idol who may have taken a few too many drugs in his life, and a man who has no idea what’s going on. While he plays it old school, some of what he says and does seem out of place, but the way he says and does these things works within the film’s settings. Playing Alberta’s mother Tawny is Brooke Lewis Bellas who gives her best stuck-in-the-80s refuses-to-age mom performance. She doesn’t get very many scenes, but she stands out. 

A strong aspect to this film is the music with songs by Darren Smith and a clear influence from Staci Layne Wilson’s life. Here the music is pure 60s while being new songs written just for the film. These help set the tone and make the film a fun music-filled comedy. This music is clearly made for the titular character and actor Michael Ursu does well with the performance side of these. 

The Second Age of Aquarius is an enjoyable scifi rom com that works well due to its characters and its music. Even for those, like this person right here, who are not into rom coms, it’s a fun watch. The music in particular is fun and the performances work in its universe.