(Okay, is this kind of related to “Morse Code?”…)
CAST: Jake Gyllenhaal, Vera Farmiga, Michelle Monaghan, Jeffrey Wright, Michael Arden.
DIRECTOR: Duncan Jones
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one really fucked-up take on GROUNDHOG DAY - straight ahead…
IT’S LIKE THIS: Jake Gyllenhaal decides he wants to star in a film like GROUNDHOG DAY - but an action/thriller. The result: some mind-bending bullshit about a military dude who “possesses” the body of a man traveling on a Chicago commuter train that will explode in eight minutes. He basically gets to replay those eight minutes over and over again until he figures out who the bomber is. Talk about impossible missions. Or utterly ludicrous plots.
THE DUDE MOST LIKELY TO SAVE THE DAY: Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal), an Army captain who’s probably wondering what he did to deserve to play the role of Bombing Victim - over and over again.
EYE CANDY MOST LIKELY TO FIRE UP A WOODY: Another hard (ha ha) one. Jake G. is cute, but looks too much like a Koala Bear on human legs for me. So that leaves Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan as, respectively, Capt. Goodwin, the Air Force Captain who oversees Colter’s “excursions” on the train, and Christina, the comely commuter who wonders why the guy she rides with everyday is acting so fucking weird today. And the winner is…. Vera Famiga.
MOST HAIR-RAISING SCENE: Easy. The scene at the very end when we get a close look at what Colter’s body really looks like. Trust me, folks: you may never get turned on by a naked torso ever again. Unless it’s a hairy Italian one. Or Russell Crowe’s.
HOTTEST SCENE: Colter kissing Christina while time stops all around them. Now that’s how a real kiss should be. Been there. Smooched that.
INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW: Will Colter ever get his assignment right and find out who the bomber is? Or is he destined to fuck up constantly until Capt Goodwin pulls the plug on the project? Will Christina discover Colter’s mission? Or is it better if she remains clueless? Who is the bomber anyway? The crazy comedian in the next row? The arrogant businessman one seat over? The conductor? Charlie Sheen? Who?
WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH “SOURCE CODE”: If you like Jake G., Vera F., and Michelle M. And if you also like movies that are entertaining as long as you don’t have to think about them too much.
WHY YOU MAY NOT ENJOY “SOURCE CODE”: If you hate Jake G., Vera F. and Michelle M. And if you require your movies to make any kind of goddamn sense.
FINAL ANALYSIS: As long as you don’t think about the logic of the plot too much, SOURCE CODE is an entertaining ride. Start breaking down the plot, and you’re asking for trouble. Fortunately, director Duncan Jones helms the film with flair and strong sense of visual power. Add to that engaging turns from Vera Farmiga as the conflicted Air Force captain, Michelle Monaghan as the imperiled commuter, and Jeffrey Wright as the duplicitious head of the experiment, as well as a surprising emphasis on the humanity of the characters in the third act, and you have an above-average action-thriller. The only real flaws are Jake Gyllenhaal, whom I have never bought as an action hero, and the overly convoluted plot that doesn’t bear scrutiny in the end. But, as I said, if you go with the flow, and focus on Farmiga, Monaghan, Wright, and the nice humanistic tone towards the end of the film, you’ll have an entertaining time.
