And so my dvd collection gets rifled through so i can review it for you (hah that rhymes). This time i am looking at Frequency, a film directed by gregory hoblit (primal fear, harts war) and starring Jim Cavaziel(The thin red line, count of monte cristo) as John sullivan. Also starring Dennis Quaid (innerspace, traffic) as Frank sullivan.
John is a new york city homicide officer who's life is going badly, his girlfriend has left him and he is still traumatized by his fathers death thirty years earlier. His father Frank was a fireman who died in a big fire, Franks hobby was ham radio (no not a radio station broadcasted by pigs) and one day John finds his fathers old radio. Now at this time the northern lights are showing (aurora borealis, or sunspots or something like that) as they were the time that his father died. This means that when John turns on the radio he can contact his father thirty years in the past. Now i know this sounds really far fetched but stay with me it is entertaining, John realises that this is his father that he is talking to on the radio and decides that he can warn him of the fire. So John manages to save his fathers life and every thing looks rosy, however, we are only about thirty minutes into the film so we know thats not it. Now this is where the film goes strange. As Dr Emmett Brown said in back to the future messing with time travel is bad (ok he didn't actually say that but it was something along those lines). So by messing around with the past he has created a terrible history for himself which he and his father thirty years away must try and change.
This is an intriguing film that i really didn't know much about when i first saw it. I only knew about the beginning bit and that is probably the best way to go into this, cold. Dennis Quaid is back to his best(?), proving how underrated he is. Jim Cavaziel is now a great actor, he was great in thin red line as he is in this, i would also check him out in the count of monte cristo. Although this film is primarily all about the main two characters the rest of the cast is suitably good. The style is suitably dark in places and at times the tension is cranked up brilliantly. Towards the end we are treated to some clever moments as things happening in the past simultaneously affect things in the future. Unfortunately it is let down by an incredibly cheesy finale. It's not the actual end of the plot that's bad, (and i won't spoil it for you) it's just that as the credits roll we are treated to a really bad musical bit that is totally unnecessary.
As extras go we aren't talking about brilliant but some of it is quite good. There are a few deleted scenes that add a little to the story, some notes on the cast and crew that never get read and a trailer. Also included is a documentary about the science behind aurora borealis and other stuff about ham radio, this is quite an interesting documentary that makes a change from the usual guff. Finally there is a directors commentary which i only listened to half of because it wasn't the most gripping commentary.
Don't be put off by the cheesy ending, this is a great thriller that was cruelly overlooked at the box office. The film is a 15 certificate so probably not for the small kiddies as it can be fairly violent. The plot is easy to follow and i believe most of you would enjoy it. I bought this for £9.99 in the sale at a major music and video retailer.
See you soon
Paul
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Do you know what! I'm such of a t***! I keep meaning to watch this from the beginning! Everytime I try to watch it on Sky its halfway through and I cant get into it! Cheers! Chunka!
Frequencyis really two different--though inextricably linked--movies. First, the emotional ... more
drama of a father and son reunited after 30 years of separation. Then there is a science fiction thriller, in which a couple of chance solar storms, occurring ex...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
What if you had the chance to travel back in time and change just one event in your life? ... more
What would it be? For John Sullivan (Jim Caviezel), there is no question. He would undo the events of October 12, 1969, when the out-of-control Bruxton fire took ...
Frequencyis really two different--though inextricably linked--movies. First, the emotional ... more
drama of a father and son reunited after 30 years of separation. Then there is a science fiction thriller, in which a couple of chance solar storms, occurring ex...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
What if you had the chance to travel back in time and change just one event in your life? ... more
What would it be? All his life police officer John Sullivan (Jim Caviezel) has been haunted by one tragic event. When a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon of nature...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: Feel-good drama, well-executed idea, the DVD has extras that enhance enjoyment of the film Disadvantages: The audio commentary is not mentioned on the box
EnglishPatient 24.01.2001 (24.01.2001)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Frequency (DVD)
![Frequency [DVD] [2000]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78528636.jpg "Frequency [DVD] [2000]")
very helpful by (100%):
