Between Worlds 2018

At a busy truck stop in Alabama, weary truck driver Joe Majors unexpectedly stumbles upon a troubling sight: a woman named Julie in a seemingly dangerous situation with a man. Without a moment’s hesitation, Joe intervenes, pulling the man away from Julie and restoring some semblance of order to the chaos around them. Once the initial confusion dissipates, Julie reveals that her distress was a result of her own actions, driven by a need to connect with her daughter Billie, who lies comatose. Julie’s quest for connection stems from a harrowing childhood experience where she narrowly escaped drowning and caught a fleeting glimpse of the afterlife. This supernatural experience convinces her that by traversing into the other realm, she can guide Billie’s spirit back into her body.

As Joe helps Julie get to the hospital, they are confronted with the heartbreaking reality of Billie’s cardiac arrest. In this moment of desperation, Julie implores Joe to join her in a bizarre act, enabling her to enter the mystical dimension once again. Miraculously, with Joe’s assistance, Julie successfully brings Billie’s spirit back to her corporeal form just in time to save her life. Following this extraordinary episode, Joe finds himself inexplicably drawn to Julie’s mysterious aura, leading to an intimate moment that masks Joe’s earlier exhaustion.

As Joe becomes deeply intertwined in Julie’s life, he grapples with his own haunting past—literally—when he uncovers the astonishing truth that Billie is now a vessel for the spirit of his deceased wife, Mary. This revelation ignites a whirlwind of conflicting emotions within Joe, who must navigate between his growing feelings for Julie and the lingering attachment to Mary. Together, they must face the uncanny interplay between reality and the ethereal, as Joe struggles with his identity as a man now lacking both a truck and a clear purpose. Meanwhile, Billie’s return is not without its complications, as a strange and unnerving energy surrounds her, confusing Julie and their friends Mike and Rick with her erratic behavior.

In an attempt to address the chaos in their lives, Julie confides in a hospital nurse who provides cryptic wisdom about the spirit occupying Billie’s body, confirming that it is not Billie but rather Joe’s late wife, Mary. As Joe and Billie/Mary engage in a primal and passionate encounter at home, Joe is thrust into a surreal dreamscape, reliving cherished moments with Mary. Upon Julie’s return, she is distraught to find Joe and Billie/Mary entangled in an intense romance, leading to rising tension as Julie demands that Joe assist her in exorcising Mary’s spirit from Billie. In a shocking turn, the possessed Billie/Mary renders Julie unconscious to silence her, then implores Joe to flee with her.

Their escape soon leads to a tumultuous plan to rob Mike and Rick, a venture that swiftly spirals into chaos. Joe’s confrontation with Mike, who secretly harbors affection for Billie, culminates in violence as Joe accidentally fires the shot that kills Rick. Seizing the moment, Billie/Mary takes the opportunity to steal cash and leads Joe back to the ruins of their previous family home—a site steeped in sorrow from the fire that consumed his life and family.

As Joe teeters on the brink of his past, a childhood relic—a jack-in-the-box cherished by his daughter Sarah—resurfaces, invoking painful memories of the tragedy that erased his family. The bond between Joe and Billie/Mary appears solid, but their reunion is abruptly interrupted when Mike and Julie confront them at gunpoint. In a heated stand-off, Billie/Mary turns the gun on Julie, revealing her past sins, including the murder of Sarah. In an agonizing twist, Mary shoots Julie, ending her life and freeing Billie’s spirit to reclaim her body, leaving Joe shattered as the consequences of their chaotic journey come crashing down.

Overwhelmed by grief and despair, Joe feels the weight of his daughter’s tragic death pressing down on him. The once-cherished jack-in-the-box now symbolizes his shattered world, as he mournfully calls out Sarah’s name into the void. In a fit of desperation, he drenches himself in gasoline, lights a cigarette, and sets himself ablaze, consumed by an all-encompassing inferno of anguish. Even as the flames engulf him, Joe seems unphased by the searing heat—his intense sorrow eclipses even the most primal human instincts.

While Joe succumbs to his devastation, Billie and Mike flee from the catastrophic scene, leaving Julie’s lifeless body behind. In a poignant closing sequence, Joe’s earlier years flash before him as he confronts the trauma of his abusive father, revealing the scars that have shaped him into the man he ultimately became.