Cinema Crazed

2011

Rated: PG-13 for some violence including disturbing images, and for language.

Genre: Action Mystery Science Fiction Thriller

Directed By: Duncan Jones

Written By: Ben Ripley

Summit Entertainment

Running Time: 1:33

Review by: Momar Van Der Camp

Buy It Now!

Review Date: 4/4/11

SOURCE CODE

I will not be making any claims that there are any negatives about this movie, except when it was over and the house lights came back on. That's the only negative as I couldn't watch it again right after.

Jake Gyllenhaal is great in this movie, almost as good as Sam Rockwell in director Jones' "Moon," but they're different characters. It reminded me, so very quickly, of why I've liked Jake for so long, why I've championed him in so many different things, and why I genuinely will watch a movie he's in and give it the benefit of the doubt. He's charming, unassuming, and just a solid actor, overall. He's funny when he needs to be, dramatic when needed, action guy when necessary, and romantic lead when it calls for it. He's everything a leading man should be, and he's an Everyman. That's why we as the audience loves him. He seems like a guy we could play pool with, right after he stops a terrorist attack of course. (Not a spoiler, just a comment, calm down people).

The rest of the cast does their jobs, unquestioningly. Michelle Monaghan is great, as always, as the love interest/victim that needs to be saved. Vera Farmiga and Geoffrey Wright play some odd ducks in this movie, but again, the casting works. The passengers on the train, for just playing ciphers, all do wonderful jobs as well. No one seems to be acting, they just seem to be there to make the movie and they seem to be passengers on a train, which is what we need.

It's amazing the work that Jones has gotten out of all of these people, this being his second film, this being another win for him. The special effects do the job and at times are very unassuming as well, filling in backgrounds where they need to. Things happen on the screen that could be fake but could be real, and we don't care. We're completely wrapped up in this story and we're just following it along, gripping the edge of our seats as tightly as we can. And we love every minute of it.

There is one cameo, one cameo that you have to go into this film without looking up. You will love it. You might not catch it at first, but watch the credits closely. It is such a perfect cameo that it just proves that Duncan Jones takes things head on and will not sidestep controversy or problems or questions about his work. He loves it. He loves the game. He loves the work. He loves movies. And that's why I love his movies.

On a side-note, before we get to the summary, I want to take this time to beg the makers of the Wolverine movie into courting Duncan Jones for the job. Without Aronofsky, this film needs a voice. Someone to lead it away from possibly being a shitty blockbuster movie that wouldn't hold up at all if it weren't for the main actor. Someone to take it and make it his own. And that man is Duncan Jones. 20th Century Fox, you know what you have to do.

This is a movie for people who loved Inception, who loved Rango, who love going to the movies and being both challenged and entertained at the same time. It's for people who want to see films that aren't just cookie cutter movies that are farmed out and made in a factory and then shipped to theaters to be viewed and forgotten the next week. So far, this and Rango are my picks for best movies of 2011, and I can't decide which is better yet. Go and look for yourself. Part science fiction, part drama, part mystery, this is a movie for everyone. Take a chance on Source Code and enjoy yourself. It's an amazing ride.