Source Code - review

Source Code, the second film from director Duncan Jones (following 2009 BAFTA winning Moon) and powerful enough to have the world recognise him for more than just David Bowie's son. Much in the same vein as Inception, it’s difficult to explain much about the plot of the film without spoiling it, the joy found in Source Code is about discovering the mysteries and unraveling the answers.

At the centre is Jake Gyllenhaal in the role of a Colter Stevens, US army helicopter pilot who has crashed in Afghanistan. When he comes to, he finds himself in civilian clothes aboard a crowded commuter train arriving slightly late into Chicago. Not only is he confused about actually being on the train, but he’s also being referred to as “Sean” by fellow passenger Christina (Michelle Monaghan). Minutes later, eight to be precise, the train explodes and Colter re-awakens in a capsule and learns that he is part of the ‘Source Code’ project which taps into the afterglow of someone’s memory to re-live the last eight minutes of their life. By going back into the train event, Colter must locate the bomber who is still on the train and avert a further terrorist attack on the city.

Gyllenhaal is on fine form, more often than not he usually comes across as dull, but here that stoned look that often glazes over his face is gone. Probably his greatest film since Donnie Darko...

What would you do if you only had a minute to live? Colter asks Christina, the girl he’s only just met but who’s died in his arms umpteen times already. The question really resonates. In so many action thrillers the big explosions ring hollow, they don’t seem to reverberate in a meaningful way with the cool movie stars in the foreground. This is not a techie film, it’s an emotional movie, very subjective, more fantasy than scientific.

I do have one reservation, and that’s to do with my dissatisfaction with the way Colter conducts his investigation – I can’t say more than that and you’ll have to see it for yourself to see if you feel the same way. But I guess he’s not a professional, and in the circumstances you can’t be too harsh…

All-in-all, Source Code is a fantastic film. It’s full of action and suspense, it’s unpredictable, emotional, and visually stimulating. The trailers do not do it justice; it is certainly worth seeing. In the day and age where our country's security threat level is something preposterous like Teal - suggesting that somewhere, sometime, something could possibly go down. Source Code is the kind of film that if you went on a date to see, she'd be holding you that little bit closer and tighter on the bus or god forbid train ride home.


Source Code Trailer Here