Frequency
Directed by Gregory Hoblit
Starring : Dennis Quaid, Jim Caveziel, Noah Emmerich,
Andre Braugher, et al.
(available on video)
* * *
(Three Stars)
Interesting to note the
way 'Frequency' was received by critics and audience members: as a post
'Sixth Sense' grabber that thrives on the fact that we, the audience, are
guessing every moment before it happens. Of course, anyone who did a minute
amount of research would see that good ol' Gregory Hoblit has been making
these types of films - one them quite popular, leading to the public recognition
(not to mention an Oscar nomination) of a major star - for years. The third
film I've seen by him, 'Frequency' takes the nod from both 'Primal Fear'
and 'Fallen', each of which contain nods to Hoblit's obsession with the
unknown as their hooks; and each of which contain surprise endings.
And the best thing I can
say about 'Frequency' is that this type of filmmaking is never more entertaining
or alive than here. Whereas 'Primal Fear' was far too long and, like 'The
Sixth Sense', seemed only to be serving its ring-a-ding ending and 'Fallen'
was too silly and often, not very interesting - 'Frequency' is always utilizing
its hook and its characters, all of whom are very interesting and
very likable. "The hook", as I called it, comes from down-on-his-luck cop
Jim Caveziel, who stumbles upon his dead father's long dormant ham radio
one evening while hanging out with his boyhood friend and neighbor (Emmerich).
Goaded into setting it up, he reaches a stranger from the past on the radio,
through a strange combination of the elements, set up nicely (in true audience-alienating
fashion) in an opening sequence that implies that these atmospheric elements
contribute to making time travel possible - if only on radio frequencies.
The stranger turns out to be none other than his father (played by Dennis
Quaid with a silly New York accent that should've been exised), a firefighter
who would be killed days after this strange encounter with future-son (as
he would no doubt be called) in a terrible warehouse fire. Like in the
'Back to the Future' films, the characters disturb fate - in this instance
by saving the father's life - and place other characters in different places,
changing their respective paths of life. The whole thing descends into
a bland murder mystery that, in a textbook example, is made interesting
by how it is told (i.e., through a science-fiction filter that allows time
travel, fate shifting and suspension of disbelief).
There was never closure
to Quaid and Caveziel's relationship. Pre-emptive deaths in films often
give way to extenuating circumstances. This film is smart enough to give
its characters the brain power to expect their special set-up (the radio
communication) to end at some time, and Hoblit knows they must do much
more than a simple, one dimensional familial healing. The film gives them
much more to do, though often, their mission diverts into a predictable
cinema cop yarn instead of treading the interesting plot depth that is
already there. The timeless quality of both worlds, the one inhabited by
the Quaid character in the 1960's and the one inhabited by the Caveziel
character in the year 2000 are nice parallels.
In all of Hoblit's films, the characters are asked
to hold onto something they are not sure they believe in themselves. In
his previous outings, both Richard Gere and Denzel Washington were given
this task - but their parts were not written well enough that we could
enjoy their suppressed mindset, one they will inevitably have to explain
to others and deal with the obligatory "have you gone mad, man?" look.
In 'Frequency', there are scenes like this - but they are much more finely
honed and mean more in the film's world. A scene where Quaid begs a cop
buddy (Braugher) to watch the World Series, which Caveziel has told Quaid
about in detail, is electrifying because Hoblit has properly tweaked the
relationship between the characters so that they harbor the slightest bit
of doubt and resentment in each other as aquaintences - before the obvious
thing occurs. In 'Fallen', a scene like this is played between Washington
and actress Embeth Davidtz. Washington doesn't know her and she doesn't
know him (same thing between Gere and actor Edward Norton in 'Primal Fear'),
so the only thing that shines through a scene this prime for dramatic tension
is the hostility. In 'Frequency', hostility is kept to a minimum and the
characters seem less choked, breathing easier and more freely exploring
the possibility of the world they find themselves in. It is more fun for
us, too.
Once more, allow me to address
"the hook", which is an element appearing more and more frequently in films.
In 'Frequency', a film that practically wears this "hook" on its sleeve
(along with some not-so-subtle themes copped from the game of baseball,
an already overused metaphor in film), Hoblit often transcends all the
fun we would likely have if this film were released in an ideal world.
A seemingly meaningless scene in 2000 where Emmerich complains about losing
"Yahoo!" stock is later supplemented when Caveziel speaks to the 1960's
Emmerich and tells him to go write down the world "Yahoo" and memorize
it. Later, to complete the circle, we come back to 2000 to see Emmerich
rich and sporting the word "Yahoo" on his liscence plate.
In fact, "the hook" is played
with so nicely, we don't even notice - or don't even think about - the
seams in a sequence where Caveziel drops his glass in 2000 while Quaid
is avoiding the death he should have had in the 1960's. A celebration
commemorating the day when Quaid has died is changed in everyone's minds
(but Caveziel's) into a commonplace get together - right there, on the
spot. When he asks about his dad, they tell him "Of course, your dad died
of lung cancer ten years ago". Caveziel rearranged fate - but death still
got to Quaid. A nice commentary on the dangers of tobacco mixes well with
a mind-bending scene that could easily have acted as the film's trailer
(note to executives!) How wonderful to see a sequence where the past is
changing and people's memory is changing - and still have the inevitable
be - only of different circumstances. Fate gets us all, right? (Where was
this brilliant execution in 'Final Destination'?)
I liked 'Frequency' on almost
every level. Caveziel makes such a grizzled cop, such a curious young man
and such a passionately downtrodden introvert, he manages to carry the
movie. I could've done without the constant police noodling, which often
turns the film from sci-fi thriller into detective story. Its not perfect
- and Hoblit still needs someone to write his dialogue for him (some of
what comes out of the mouths of these characters is borderline laughable)
- but 'Frequency' performs a balancing act using its "hook" wisely and
intelligently. In a world full of films hoping to duplicate the success
of 'The Sixth Sense', 'Frequency' is a welcome contribution still sporting
the old school style of its director, who was seeing dead people long before
Haley Joel Osment.
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