Duncan Jones obviously has a great passion for sci-fi having made a spectacular debut as a filmmaker with Moon, one of the best films of 2009. He must have had a unique childhood as the son of David Bowie, who was like a science fiction character come to life. Not surprising that Bowie was chosen to play an alien in Nicolas Roeg’s The Man Who Fell to Earth.
While Jones has several original projects in the works, Source Code is based on a script by Ben Ripley, whose only previous credits include Species III and Species: The Awakening. Not exactly an illustrious resume. Jones’ second film follows the trajectory of many new directors. Source Code is a more mainstream movie with a bigger budget and bigger stars. Often times, those aren’t necessarily advantages, but Jones doesn’t fall into the sophomore slump even if Source Code isn’t as strong or thought-provoking as Moon.
Jake Gyllenhaal is cast as Capt. Colter Stevens (an awesome action hero name), an Army helicopter pilot previously stationed in Afghanistan. He is shocked to awaken inside the body of a high school teacher named Sean Fentress, who is on board a Chicago-bound train. Before he can understand what is happening, the train explodes and Stevens finds himself strapped into a capsule where he is greeted by Air Force Capt. Colleen Goodwin (Vera Farmiga). Stevens is a part of a bold new experiment called Source Code, developed by the cold Dr. Rutledge (Jeffrey Wright). Source Code isn’t time travel, but it does allow the subject to relive events (eight minutes in length) by building from the final memories of the dead. Everyone on the train was killed by a bomb and another will go off in the city unless Stevens finds the culprit. Disoriented with little information to go on Stevens is hurtled back and forth until he can complete his mission. At the same time, he must also unravel the mystery of how he came to be apart of the Source Code project.
The best way to describe Source Code would be a melding of 12 Monkeys, Memento, and Groundhog Day. There’s also a dash of Quantum Leap thrown in and they even cast Scott Bakula for a brief voice-over cameo. It’s a high concept actioner in the vein of Inception. Unlike Christopher Nolan’s magnum opus, Source Code isn’t bogged down by endless exposition. Its inventor succintly states Source Code involves quantum physics and would take weeks to explain to the layman. There is just no time to science lessons when a nuke is about to kill millions. Honestly, the whole idea doesn’t make a lick of sense if you really think about it, which means the movie has to keep you engaged long enough so that you don’t poke through the plot holes.
At approximately 90 minutes, Source Code moves at a quick enough pace that the audience doesn’t have time to question the very nature of the Source Code. Each “do-over” is varied enough to avoid tedious repetition. The lead characters are well-defined with Jake Gyllenhaal doing an excellent job at playing the idealistic hero. Michelle Monaghan is also good as Christina, a friend of Sean’s who gradually becomes the love interest for Stevens. Warm and sweet-natured, it’s easy to see why he would fall for her. Jones grounds the film’s outlandish plot by focusing on the love story between the two. Both Jeffrey Wright and Vera Farmiga turn in strong performances, despite their brief and clichéd roles. Aside from the main players, the film noticeably lacks a memorable supporting cast. Unlike the comparable Speed, the other passengers on the train lack distinct personalities as such there is a lack of sympathy for their fates and a loss of dramatic tension in the mystery of the bomber.
Source Code has a unique premise and a powerful opening sequence, but features an ending that leaves more questions than it does answers.
Rating: *** (*****)
SPOILER ALERT: Click on comments section for discussion of ending.
1 comment:
Personally, I feel the logical ending to Source Code should have been Capt. Goodwin pulling the plug on Colter Stevens and allowing him to finally die with dignity. However, the ending we get reveals Source Code is able to unintentionally create alternate realities with Stevens living on inside Sean Fentress’s body having saved Christina and the train while stopping Derek Frost, the mad bomber. At first glance, it feels like your typical, tacked-on Hollywood happy ending. However, analyze the ending further and you’re left with a Pandora’s Box of dilemmas.
1. Source Code has created a myriad of other parallel universes due to the multiple times Stevens was sent back. As such, the film’s characters will have suffered dozens of deaths on various planes of existence. Even in one of the realities where Christina is saved, she still suffers the trauma of having witnessed her friend, Sean, go berserk and be run over by a train.
2. The most glaring quandary is that Stevens’ happy ending is at the expense of that reality’s Sean Fentress. For Colter to live, Sean must die.
3. Perhaps, Source Code has not created an alternate reality and that Colter Stevens has created a fantasy world in his dying moments.
The ending may have been underwhelming on initial viewing, but I can’t fault the filmmakers for crafting a finale that can engender further thoughts and discussion.
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