The Wave

Frank, an insurance lawyer, uncovers disqualifying details in the $4M life policy of a fireman who died from a heart attack. The payout would guarantee him a raise and a promotion, which he desperately needs because he and his wife Cheryl have been lavishly overspending. His co-worker Jeff invites him to celebrate the night before his presentation to the company board, and after a tense evening with Cheryl, he accepts.

The two men head to club El Madrid, where Frank briefly meets a friendly homeless man bathing in the bathroom sink. [Frank] and [Jeff] share drinks with two women, Natalie and Theresa. Frank is drawn to [Theresa], though she disapproves of his role as a corporate lawyer who bankrupts and dispossesses families from their homes, which Frank believes they deserve if they overspend. The four head to a house party, where Frank and Theresa agree to try a hallucinogen offered by a man named Aeolus.

Theresa administers the drug to Frank with a kiss, causing him to instantly black out and wake up alone the next morning. A family enters the house and calls the police on him. He bolts out the back door, hails a passing taxi, and convinces the driver to take him home, promising a much larger fare. At home, he argues with Cheryl about the perfume on his shirt as he hastily dresses for work. He slams the bedroom door to shield himself when Cheryl throws an alarm clock — one of many clocks that will teleport him around as he hallucinates.

He is teleported to his office, where he is greeted by Jeff and rushed to the board meeting. Frank presents the insurance claim information to the board, but is immediately met with disturbing visions of their satanic glee at the denial of the $4M policy. He goes to the bathroom to throw up, and agrees with Jeff that he is likely still high.

Cheryl calls him to vent, revealing that all of their accounts have been emptied. His boss tells Jeff to take him home, but the two instead return to the club to search for Aeolus (and Frank’s wallet). The bartender who served them isn’t on shift yet, so they decide to wait to find the women. While Jeff naps, Frank discovers he cannot charge his phone in Jeff’s car and slams the dashboard in frustration, turning day into night.

At night, Natalie reappears, and the trio teams up with her, claiming she knows the drug dealer who worked the party. Their attempt to leave in Jeff’s car fails when it won’t start. While they wait, Frank witnesses a car collide with a large, blinking roadside clock. He runs to help, but his consciousness is teleported away as another car hits him. He finds himself next to Theresa in an ethereal field, where they discuss looking for each other. He is astonished by the stars overhead, the Milky Way blazing above, before being snapped back into Jeff’s car as it stops in front of the dealer’s house.

Inside the residence, they learn that the guy Natalie knew, Richie, is not Aeolus. Ritchie and his bodyguard Lamont prepare to shoot them for stealing the drugs. Richie takes them to his place, where Lamont duct-tapes Jeff and Natalie and beats [Frank]. Frank frantically promises to repay Richie and calls Cheryl to obtain money from her wealthy parents, but she swears at him and hangs up. Fed up, Richie is about to shoot Natalie when Frank slams his phone on the floor and is transported back to the party the previous night. He finds Aeolus and sits down with him, also discovering his wallet. After speaking with Aeolus, Frank travels outside the club the next afternoon and makes a deal with the friendly homeless man. The homeless man returns with $240,000 in cash from Frank’s bank accounts and a new mortgage on his house. Richie and Lamont are shocked — Frank has controlled time itself — but they accept the money and release the trio.

Jeff drives Natalie back to El Madrid, where they find Theresa, who is now Not Theresa — a different woman who recognizes Frank only as someone from the party. Frank is transported to the previous day at work, where he is asked to fill out paperwork for a $4M life policy attached to his promotion. Realizing the universe’s message and his cruelty to the victims of his corporation, he makes the fireman’s widow the beneficiary. His boss sees the policy before Frank can mail it and threatens to fire him if he does not change it. Frank ignores the threat and time travels again, this time back to the car accident outside El Madrid the night before. He walks toward the scene to help and is struck by the intoxicated driver — who turns out to be his boss. When the police arrive, they find Richie’s drugs in the trunk of his car.

Though Frank lies deceased on the hood of the car, his consciousness wakes up beside the original Theresa again.

Last Updated: January 08, 2026 at 12:00