Synchronicity

Released By: Magnolia Home Entertainment
Released On: May 10, 2016.
Director: Jacob Gentry
Cast: Chad McKnight, Michael Ironside, Brianne Davis
Year: 2015
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The Movie:

Michael Ironside seems like he'd be a cool guy to hang out with, with each playdate an opportunity to do awesome things. Stalking a journalist through a hospital? Michael Ironside is your man. Like watching somebody's head explode from mind control? Ironside. Protection from a possessed prom queen? Ironside. Need help battling aliens, whether they're lizards in human skin, or giant bugs from a far off planet? Again, Ironside. Then again, if Michael Ironside were to ask you to be partners in a business venture, something about his cold, creepy demeanor would probably send warning signs a-firing. No, Michael, you would say, I'm more than happy to learn about the fine art of F-14 dogfighting through you, but I don't think that I see a capital venture in our future.

Sadly, Jim Beale (Chad McKnight) has no such internal warning system. As such, when the physicist and his team come up with a design for a time machine, Jim goes into business with Karl Meisner (Ironside), whose company manufactures the very costly fuel source that Jim's machine needs to function. A trial run demonstration of said machine appears to yield no results, but Jim is soon introduced to Abby (Brianne Davis), a girl who appears to have stepped through the wormhole that he opened, along with a rare flower. When it becomes apparent that Meisner is using some pretty sinister trickery to steal Jim's invention out from underneath him, Jim throws caution to the wind and sends himself back in time to warn his friends to warn him to stay away from Abby, who may be helping Meisner.

Of course, no good ever comes from messing with the time/space continuum, whether you're a kid from the 80s in a DeLorean, or a bunch of high school students trying to get an A on a science project. Fairly certain that he's being wronged when he goes back, Jim finds that his existence in the past may be causing Abby to actually fall for him, which will change the outcome of the future. But while it seems that everything will come up roses for the young physicist, he soon experiences the dangers inherent in stepping into the past, as more and more Jims continue to jump back from the future and threaten the stability of the real Jim in the past. And while he's laying the groundwork for a Meisner-free future with the woman who loves him, Jim is constantly on the verge of running into himself and Meisner-from-the-past, a rendezvous that could unravel everything.

Synchronicity, for a lower-budget sci-fi film, has a lot going on for it, mainly a cool and stylish (dare I say "futuristic") look, some solid performances from McKnight and Brianne Davis, and of course, the menace of Michael Ironside. And it's got a fancy premise that viewers, especially fans of the sci-fi, should be able to get behind, with parallel events and paradox galore, not to mention some nifty visual effects. The soundtrack is interesting and competent, were it not for the fact that every piece of the score sounds like the movie is wrapping up.

But maybe I'm not fluent enough in the world of science fiction, or maybe it's that I can't get my head around some of the ideas found in the real of physics, but Synchronicity offers up a pretty big stumbling block in the form of its complex plot that leads to head-scratching and confusion. So, Jim is constantly sending himself back? His friends are convinced this quickly that Jim is from the future? Is jumping back in time really not something that phases the average physicist? While Synchronicity starts off well, it becomes a muddle of WTF by the time we're 45 minutes in, and we never really recover from that, even when the film reaches its very convenient conclusion. Or did it? I don't know. I really don't know what happened. All I can tell you for sure is that Synchronicity consists mostly of people sitting around yapping about the scientific ramifications of the film, and most definitely needs more Ironside.

Video/Audio/Extras:

Magnolia Home Entertainment brings Synchronicity to Blu-ray in an AVC-encoded 2.39:1 AR transfer that looks great. Detail is crisp, there are no artifacting issues, and the numerous dark scenes maintain clarity. The whole transfer conveys the futuristic aesthetic nicely.

A DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 audio track (both English and French) carries the film nicely, with dialogue sitting clearly in the center, coherent and balanced nicely with the rest of the soundtrack. Moderate use of the surrounds and sub are present, but never intrusively, and the score comes across nicely as well.

English subs for the deaf and hard of hearing, Spanish, French, and French Narrative subtitles are provided for the film.

First up in the extra features is an interview with Chad McKnight (6:21) where the actor discusses the themes of the film and seems to be very, very high...it's actually a bit of a chore to watch.

An interview with Brianne Davis (2:50) comes across a bit better, in which the actress discusses the themes of the film and her character.

An interview with Writer/Director Jacob Gentry (4:36) expands more on the making of Synchronicity, talking about the actors on this and past projects, his influences, and the fact that he definitely thinks that this is a noir-style film, using the word "noir" about 40 times in four minutes.

The interviews do contain spoilers, so make sure you watch them after the film.

A Synchronicity Music Video - Time Travel (2:52) is a montage of clips from the film with some of the music from the film playing overtop of it.

A commentary track by Gentry is also included, wherein he discusses many aspects of Synchronicity, including the aesthetic of the film, the music, the influence of other films on this one, and the production design. This is a very wordy commentary, so if you're here to learn, this is a great place to start.

A Trailer for the film, as well as a trailer reel for Magnolia is also provided.

The Final Word:

Sleek and stylish, but Synchronicity frustratingly confounds its audience with paradox and far too little Michael Ironside.

Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!