Source Code

Captain Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up on a train opposite Michelle Monaghan, in the body of an unknown man. His confusion is cut short when the train explodes and he wakes up once again, this time to find that he is part of a government experiment called the Source Code which allows him to continually re-live the last 8 minutes of a man's life. His only contact is with Sgt. Goodwin (Vera Farmiga), who returns him to the instant he woke on the train with orders to find the culprit before he strikes again with a dirty bomb.

While there is a genuine tension surrounding finding the bomber, there is an element of Groundhog Day to the first half of the film, which totally sets it apart from movies with a similar premise (especially Deja Vu, where Denzel Washington effectively goes back in time to find a man who bombed a boat). Stevens' reactions are realistic, and the film avoids the trap of making him a hardman; he comes across as an ordinary in a bizarre situation, making him easily likeable. Gyllenhaal's ridiculously expressive face helps, subtly bringing out both the genuinely funny and more serious moments.

Of course, it isn't perfect. There are a few slightly hammy moments from Goodwin's boss Dr. Rutledge, but they only stand out against the natural feel of the rest of the film. Even the minor worries halfway through that the twists are morphing the film into Moon (Director Duncan Jones' highly acclaimed last effort) turn out to be just paranoia, and the slightly-too-long ending is well worth waiting for.

What I enjoyed most about Source Code was that it encourages the viewer to think about the connotations of the fictional science it uses as its basis. It might not be groundbreakingly original in itself, but while Quantum Leap was doing something similar in 1989, attracting viewers who would have run a mile at the adventures of Sam and Al. As a massive Sci-Fi fan, I'm hoping that modern releases like this and Inception are paving the way for science to gradually come back into fashion...

In case you haven't guessed already, I was very impressed by this film. I was expecting to like it, since I loved Moon, have liked Jake Gyllenhaal since Donnie Darko, and Michelle Monaghan is probably my favourite contemporary actress. Somehow it still managed to surprise, both with a twisty but satisfying plot and by leaving me pondering parallel universes on the way home. Highly recommended, and not just for nerds like me.

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