Fantasia History: Screened in 2022
Rose and Teddy have both struggled in their current state. Rose finds herself haunted by a ghostly presence while Teddy is haunted by his past. With a premise that feels straight out of The Twilight Zone, Next Exit has all the ingredients for something truly original, but too often settles for familiar tropes. Dr. Stevenson has founded a company called Life Beyond, which allows people to die by suicide to move on to the now confirmed afterlife. The discovery has impacted society in unexpected ways, from fewer bank robberies (hard to threaten people with death when you know it’s not the end) to people voluntarily ending their lives in search of something better beyond.
These ghosts are not designed to jump scare you. They’re the shadows out of the corner of your eye, the face in the mirror. The dread isn’t that they themselves are dangerous, but what their existence says about life, death, and what comes next. Knowing something exists beyond death may be comforting, but that does not make it any less unknown. And if it’s there, is it necessarily better?
Next Exit was written and directed by Mali Elfman (yes, that Elfman) in her directorial debut. She was developing the script for over ten years, returning to it when she was going through a “difficult place.” The central premise is so immediately compelling that the moments when the film falls back on familiar storytelling, it becomes all the more noticeable. Elfman’s strength is the intimate touch she gives the moments. The audience gets to peer into intimate moments without it ever feeling invasive. There’s a beautiful simplicity in her imagery that lingers and crafts a natural flow to every scene and interaction.
The story is at its strongest when it’s allowed to lean into the humor and heart that shines through two fantastic performances. Katie Parker’s Rose and Rahu Kohli’s Teddy give standout performances as two people weary of their own set of circumstances for very different reasons. Their interplay and chemistry are strong and the connection genuine. Nothing feels forced or overwrought, and both play the humor at just the right pitch. Navigating the tone of a film like this, with moments of incredible humor while still maneuvering what can be a very sensitive topic, is not always easy to achieve, and both Parker and Kohli make it look easy. A strong cast of supporting actors round out the film and give it a depth that keeps the emotional stakes high.
A film about people voluntarily ending their lives is not one most audiences would expect to be so funny and emotionally rich. Though flawed, Elfman has delivered a feature debut with an emotional maturity not often seen from a first-time director. Much like the journey the characters undertake, Next Exit is about the small moments in between. Even if the destination is a bit predictable, the film earns the emotional payoff.
Fantasia 2026 runs from July 16th to August 2nd, 2026