Frequency
Directed by Gregory Hoblit.
Tagline: What if you could reach back in time? What if you could change the past? What if it changed everything?
John Sullivan is not having a good life, his girlfriend has just left him, he is still living in the house he grew up in and the future looks gloomy. The Aurora Borealis is clearly seen in the sky over San Francisco, just the way it was thirty years before when John was a little boy, the New York Mets and the Cincinnati Reds were looking forward to a great season and, most importantly, John’s father, an Heroic fireman, was still alive.
By some freak of fate John sets up his father’s old ham radio and hears a familiar voice on the other end: his father, thirty years ago, the day before his tragic death. John attempts to warn his father, thus setting into action a series of events that change history, and allow a serial killer to run rampant, killing several women, including John’s mother, thirty years ago. John and his father desperately try undo what they have done, and prevent and solve the thirty year old crimes.
The film is well conceived and executed. The interactions between the two men are well scripted and acted. The fantasy of the whole set-up is intelligently dealt with, and the shifts in history that occur along the way are intriguing and well thought out. The ending is, however, incredibly schmaltzy, but what the hell, don’t we all love a happy ending? If you have ever wondered what would happen if you could change the past, this is the feel-good film for you.
ESther
