Time Is Up

Imagine a world where quantum physics and high-dive swimming are the only personality traits allowed for young lovers. That is the glossy, slightly confused ecosystem of Time Is Up, a 2021 romantic drama that feels like it was grown in a lab specifically to satisfy the "Yearning in Italy" subgenre of the early streaming era. Released during that strange mid-pandemic window when we were all starved for European vistas and pretty faces, this film popped up on Amazon Prime Video, flickered briefly in the social media feed of Bella Thorne fans, and then largely vanished into the digital ether.

I watched this movie while my neighbor was power-washing their driveway for three straight hours, and honestly, the rhythmic drone of the water against concrete provided a surprisingly meditative percussion to the film’s high-stakes emotional beats. It’s the kind of movie that demands a certain level of background noise to ground it because, without it, the whole thing might just float away on a cloud of its own earnestness.

The Physics of a Streaming Romance

The film centers on Vivien (Bella Thorne), an overachieving student obsessed with the "arrow of time" and the variables of physics. She’s the kind of movie-nerd who has formulas scribbled on her windows but still looks like she has a professional glam team following her to the library. Then there’s Roy (Benjamin Mascolo), a brooding, tattooed swimmer with a tragic past and a chip on his shoulder the size of the Colosseum.

Directed by Elisa Amoruso, the movie leans heavily into the aesthetics of the "Contemporary Romance" boom. This was the era of After and The Kissing Booth, where the lighting is always golden hour, the houses are impossibly modern, and the stakes are life-and-death until they suddenly aren't. What makes Time Is Up a fascinating artifact of this moment is its cross-cultural DNA. It’s an Italian production filmed in English, starring a real-life (at the time) celebrity couple. This gives the whole production a surreal, slightly disorienting quality. The dialogue often feels like it was translated from Italian to English and then back again by someone who has only ever communicated via Pinterest quotes.

Chemistry and the "Debut" Factor

The main draw here—and likely the reason it has any cult footprint at all—is the pairing of Bella Thorne and Benjamin Mascolo. At the time of filming, the two were engaged, and the marketing leaned heavily into their real-world romance. There is a specific kind of voyeuristic curiosity in watching a real couple try to manufacture "first-meet" sparks on screen.

Bella Thorne (who has been in everything from The DUFF to Midnight Sun) handles the material with her usual professional sheen, but Benjamin Mascolo is the real wild card. This was his acting debut—he’s primarily a pop star in Italy—and you can see him navigating the transition in real-time. He’s got the "brooding male lead" stare down to a science, but there’s a stiffness that reminds you this was a massive leap for a first-timer. Their chemistry is... interesting. It’s less "fireworks" and more "comfortable Sunday morning," which creates a bit of a friction point when the script demands high-octane melodrama.

The supporting cast, including Sebastiano Pigazzi as the arrogant boyfriend Steve, does what they can with roles that are essentially obstacles rather than people. Steve is so cartoonishly "the wrong guy" that you wonder if Vivien’s supposed genius-level IQ only applies to physics and not basic social cues.

Why It Fell Through the Cracks

So, why haven't you heard of this, or why did you forget you saw it? Time Is Up suffered from the classic "Streaming Saturation" problem. In 2021, platforms were dumping romantic dramas into the algorithm at a breakneck pace to keep homebound audiences subscribed. Without a massive theatrical push or a "viral" hook like a talking dog or a singing competition, these mid-budget dramas often get buried under the next week's New Releases.

The film also relies on a massive third-act twist involving an accident and a bout of amnesia—a trope as old as cinema itself. In an era where audiences are increasingly savvy about "prestige" storytelling, resorting to the 'I don't remember you' plot device feels like a desperate play for emotional resonance. It’s a shame, because the cinematography by Martina Cocco is actually quite lovely. She captures Rome with a crisp, modern eye that avoids the usual "tourist-trap" clichés, opting instead for cool blues and sharp architectural lines that reflect Vivien’s rigid internal world.

Time Is Up isn't a disaster, but it is a bit of a ghost. It’s a beautifully shot, decently acted piece of fluff that somehow leaves no footprint once the credits roll. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a high-end fashion magazine: great to look at while you’re waiting for something else, but you’re not going to keep it on your shelf for the prose. If you’re a Bella Thorne completist or you just want to see what a pop star’s first acting gig looks like against the backdrop of an Italian sunset, it’s a harmless way to spend 108 minutes. Just don't expect it to change your personal space-time continuum.