Flatliners

Five medical students at a prestigious hospital decide to test what lies on the other side of death by stopping their hearts for short intervals and reviving one another. Courtney, Ray, Marlo, Jamie and Sophia each undergo the procedure hoping for insight, and at first the experiments deliver intense near-death visions and unexpected clarity. However those experiences soon have lingering effects, producing hallucinations, resurfacing guilt, and physical complications that spill into their personal and professional lives. As consequences multiply, friendships fray and ethical lines blur, and the characters are forced to reckon with how curiosity and risk can collide when scientific curiosity overrides caution.

Niels Arden Oplev directed this 2017 reimagining, with a screenplay by Ben Ripley based on Peter Filardi's original concept. Producers assembled a young ensemble led by Elliot Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Clemons, aiming for a modern, genre-driven update.

Upon release Flatliners registered modest theatrical returns and didn't become a mainstream box office hit, though it found additional viewers through international distribution, later streaming, and home video markets that extended its audience beyond opening weekend numbers.

Critical and audience reaction was mixed, reflected in a roughly midrange user score of 5.6 out of 10. Many reviewers highlighted strong performances and a polished visual style, while critiques focused on an underwritten script, familiar horror beats, and uneven pacing that limited emotional impact despite intriguing ideas about mortality and consequence.

The film prompted renewed comparisons to the 1990 original and conversations about the ethics of near-death experimentation, as well as the value of remaking cult titles for modern audiences. Specific images and the premise of paying a personal cost for answers kept the movie in discussions among horror fans and ethicists, even if it didn't achieve large-scale cultural dominance.