When Duncan Jones, son of David Bowie, took much lauded but criminally underused actor Sam Rockwell and cast him in the primary role (some would argue only role) in 2009's brilliant sci-fi throwback Moon during the Writer's Guild strike, he tried to keep the production small and ended up with one of the best movies of the year.
Fast forward one year and his reputation preceeded him to the point that Jake Gyllenhaal, already attached to this movie, ended up lobbying hard for Jones as director. The result is not quite as striking as Drive, the other movie this year that featured a director chosen by the star, but it is by volume more accessible while remaining just as intricate.
The film's conceit immediately puts the audience in thinking mode: an Army helicopter pilot, played by Gyllenhaal, who last remembers being on a mission in Afghanistan, suddenly awakens on a train that explodes a few minutes later. Awakening again in an unfamiliar place, he is told that he is in an experimental device that allows its user to experience the life of another person in an alternate timeline. While the train and its passengers cannot be saved, information gleaned in the eight minute window before the explosion could prove crucial to stopping further bombings.
That Jones can get this information across simply without it seeming too expository is a small wonder in itself, but he goes beyond that by engaging the audience in the mind game while crafting a slick thriller that ably navigates a field of genres ranging from science fiction, action, and romance. Gyllenhaal has had a steady rise to the top of the field of still young actors that began with Donnie Darko, and while he's had a few duds and can occasionally fall into the habit of looking disengaged, here he displays the kind of gusto that barely hides the fun he's having under his acting veneer of tension and seriousness.
While the other actors are decent in their roles, the real star of the show is Jones' direction. The script is reasonably well crafted, but as the plot proceeds, one can see how easily it would have been a pedestrian action film in the hands of anyone else. With Jones' sure hand, the audience is unable to dwell on any shortcomings or anachronisms for long enough to enjoy their viewing experience, and Jones similarly refuses to keep the focus on the ingenious moments of discovery in favor of brisk pacing.
As with any major film involving time travel, the audience is bound to expect at least one twist near the end that will alter the plot or the audience's perception of the plot. There are a few head-fakes thrown our way, but thankfully the writer isn't caught up in his own contrivance; the twists aren't designed to blow you away and they don't effect the plot so deeply that you feel cheated by the viewing experience.
For many, it may be too dense and at times too procedural to be considered the best action film of the year, but no one can dount that it entertains, and for something that could have easily been labeled Groundhog Day meets Timecop, that's quite an achievement.
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