Source Code - Review

Source Code is a neat, little movie. I say little because surprisingly, it's not very long. Only about 90 minutes. Which, to be completely honest, was very refreshing in an age of cinematic universes and franchises that feel they need to make their films 3 hours long in order to trick its audience into thinking it's more epic than it really is. That's why it's nice to go back and appreciate films like this that slipped under my radar.

You ever have one of those movies where a friend will recommend it to you and you say the classic line, "it's on the list" and you forget about it as soon as your friend leaves the room? Source Code was one of those movies. Until recently, I visited my city's weekly flea market and saw it in a pile of blu-rays for sale. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to watch a movie like this and escape the mayhem of the internet regarding Captain Marvel and the #MeToo movement in big Hollywood blockbusters.

Movies like this are not for everyone. This movie requires you to use your brain a little bit. Now, I am not saying that you cannot watch this movie if you are dumb or have a low IQ, I am saying that this movie starts right off the bat with many questions and no answers.

Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up on a train and to his shock, has no recollection of how he got there, but what is even more disturbing is that he wakes up across from a lady who is referring to him as Sean, not Colter and acting like they have known each other for quite a while. The first seconds of this movie have more mind-bending questions than most Hollywood blockbusters will even dare throw an audience's way. Add on top of that, an explosion occurs on the train killing everyone on board, to which Colter wakes up confined in a bunker with a government official on a television screen asking him about his experience on the train. Confused and bewildered, Colter is sent right back to the moment in time where he wakes up on the train as he is given the task to find the bomb and save everyone on board within 8 minutes.

If a concept like that intrigues you, then this movie is worth a watch. Unfortunately, the story isn't quite as captivating as a movie like Minority Report and the characters aren't the most fleshed out or that charismatic, but this movie does provide enough intrigue to be invested from start to finish.

I saw this film with my dad and he immediately said, "That was too weird" as soon as the movie was over telling me that this movie is not for everyone. It's not a movie that is going to hold your hand and explain absolutely everything right away which could throw some moviegoers off. There is a side plot in this film about Colter's past and him trying to piece it together while also attempting to find the bomb on the train which I thought could have been portrayed a little bit better causing me to get invested slightly more, but it's a minor complaint. Jake Gyllenhaal and Michelle Monaghan have decent chemistry and the story isn't so confusing that it gives you a migraine.

Source Code isn't a movie that you need to rush out to see and a movie that will not only blow your socks off but also give your mind something to think about days later. I'll leave that to Minority Report. But if you are looking for some suspenseful intrigue and are interested in movies where the main character is out of the loop and needs to figure out, along with us the audience, what is actually happening, Source Cody is a good choice.