Source Code (2011)

3/5

Source Code is a competent and clever thriller with its fair share of plot twists and plot holes. The movie follows a soldier named Colter Stevens (Gyllenhaal) in the "source code," a program designed to simulate the last 8 minutes of someone's memory before they died. He's sent back onto a train heading to Chicago just 8 minutes before it is blown up by a terrorist. Dr. Rutledge (Wright), who created the source code, wants him to identify the person responsible so they can prevent a second terrorist bombing. On the train, however, he meets (and falls in love with) another passenger (Monaghan).

By far the greatest aspect of this movie is its locale. They must have chosen the single most beautiful day Chicago has ever seen and filmed everything that day. This city looks so attractive it might as well be our tourism ad; this is probably the best Chicago has looked since Road to Perdition. As for the rest of the movie, it's more of a mixed bag. The characters are all relatively bland, despite Gyllenhaal, Farmiga, and Monaghan giving it their best shot, but two in particular stand out as exceptionally awful: the terrorist character and Dr. Rutledge. They are both so one-dimensional that they might as well have not existed at all. There is absolutely no satisfaction at capturing the terrorist because he is so utterly worthless. His motivation is that 1) the world is hell and 2) you need to destroy the old world to make way for the new one. That is the extent of his reasoning. Dr. Rutledge is not only shallow, he is also bizarre and uninteresting. Also, quiz question for those who have seen the movie: how exactly is Vera Farmiga communicating with Jake Gyllenhaal? It doesn't really make any sense, does it? Anyway, the meat of the movie is a relatively enjoyable action mystery thriller, but when you come back and think about the entirety of the movie for just a minute or two longer, you realize the pieces don't quite add up to a fulfilling whole.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0945513/

Gone Baby Gone (2007)

4/5

Ben Affleck's directorial debut is self-assured and technically proficient. While not as incredible as American Beauty or Amores Perros, Gone Baby Gone is still a solid first effort. The story follows a private detective (Casey Affleck) in Boston hired to find a missing child. What starts as a simple premise quickly finds itself in the murky waters of moral ambiguity. As in all mysteries, this movie contains mystery, moments of tension, and a surprise ending. But its strongest contribution is that it forces us to ask ourselves what we would have done. For some it's an easier question than others.

I was impressed by the acting from all parties. We sense a lot of their backstories in subtle actions, not obvious dialogue--even the most shallow characters are portrayed with complexity. By far the most unexpected and impressive performance is Amy Ryan's depiction of the missing girl's drug-addled mother. She stole every single scene she was in. But even the best acting can't hide bland, blunt dialogue, which this movie had a surprising amount of. Still, the writing wasn't all that bad. The story was constantly fascinating, both in terms of plot and ethics.

Most of the problems in this movie lay in the editing. The story's two-part structure hurt the overall pacing of the film. The editing of each scene felt really jumpy, and I think Affleck overdid the grainy, two-second flashbacks. Also, the rapid-fire Boston accents (and even one Haitian accent) were difficult to follow and made the mystery even more confusing. Overall though, Gone Baby Gone is an intriguing film and succeeds in being much more than a simple police procedural.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0452623/