Film Review: THE REMOTES: Technology Can Be Wicked in This Frightening Cautionary Tale [NYFF 2026]

The Remotes Review

The Remotes (2026) Film Review from the 64th Annual New York Film Festival, a movie directed by John Torres, written by Dodo Dayao and John Torres and starring Gabby Padilla, Enchong Dee, Alchris Galura, Jhoanna San Juan and Julia Richards.

A modern-day Crash (1997) without as much of the sex, The Remotes, is filmmaker John Torres’s response to the creepy nature of technology and human adaptation to the age where tech rules humanity, if we let it. Support groups, parties and car crashes. These elements here feel lifted from other films, but there’s nothing ordinary about the lengthy film that is The Remotes. This new picture is something of an experimental production that isn’t necessarily tightly edited, but rivals Crash (1997) director David Cronenberg’s work in terms of straight up, thought-provoking weirdness. Yes, the characters in Cronenberg’s film got turned on by car crashes and in The Remotes, people are simply fascinated by them, but the similarities felt eerie at times.

Torres’ film doesn’t have to be dissected chronologically to discuss what works and doesn’t work about it. There is certainly some dedicated acting to be found in the movie, and a few memorable scenes give it a real boost. For most viewers, one particular sequence will be entirely relatable. That is the extended party scene where a woman goes all-in on how she searches the web and sees things she’s thinking about appearing in advertisements on the internet. This dialogue expressed in this part of the movie certainly hits home. It appears technology has invaded our minds as human beings and we have become very reliant on it for our survival, whether we want to rely on it or not.

Detective Mijares (Alchris Galura) is at the center of the movie, as this character (who has lost his wife to a car crash) researches some nasty accidents that are thought to be caused by a mysterious GPS-type “app.” We meet two sisters (Gabby Padilla and Julia Richards), who are the humans behind the scenes of this “app,” so to say. This film has much more in store for the sisters than was initially expected, and both actresses get a fair amount of screen time.

Characters (and spoken words) flow into other characters sort of the way they do in Crash (2005). This unconventional new film, though, meanders frequently in search of its principal themes, but it is not boring at all. Running slightly over two and a half hours in length, the movie hits hard with its thematic elements and is easily able to make one reflect on one’s own negative experiences with car crashes and/or technology in any form.

The Remotes certainly has a last half hour (or so) that gets to the point where a car constantly “dies.” This problem keeps characters in contention with technology, and with each other. Enchong Dee co-stars with Richards’ Eva in the picture, and the pair do act out some intriguing scenes in the film.

This film’s problem will not be hooking the viewer, it will be maintaining the viewer’s attention through a coherent plot. This movie’s themes are more stylistic and ambiguous in certain ways than spelled out directly. It is the performances that are likely to reel the viewer in more than a “plot.” Galura gives a rather strong performance, evoking sorrow. Dee captures the ordinary nature of his character almost perfectly. Padilla and Richards (as the voice of the app) are usually also in-sync with the material the movie presents, and give performances which are appropriate for the film.

If The Remotes is technically proficient, and it is, the film still could have been edited in a more effective way. That’s not to suggest cutting material from the movie, per se, but rather snipping out silences in the dialogue and correcting lapses in fluidity that hurt the way scenes flow into each other from one moment to the next.

That being said, The Remotes marks the work of a decidedly talented filmmaker. This film creates a vivid, dark world that is intensified by the uncertainty of what is going on in the world, and the true heartbreak of real loss, which is felt by several of the characters in the movie. Is any of what is going on similar to a bad dream? 100%. This movie will have one wondering if these “nightmares” can be erased from the characters’ minds. Also, the cast is truly dedicated to the material and, sometimes, helps the film rise above what It could have been with less compelling stars.

The Remotes is a probing look at how technology drives the lives of many people, mostly for the worse. You can get Crash (1997) vibes, for certain, but in the end, Torres provides a unique film that will likely serve as a stepping stone to a greater project with even more depth and complexity. This new film has plenty of substance, but lacks some essential basic depth at times in terms of its occasionally thin, simplistic characterizations. That dark imagery the film employs, though, is unforgettable and makes this curiosity piece a better experience than it could have been in less talented artists’ hands.

Rating: 7/10

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