Review of Frequency (2000) by Jakub D — 17 Dec 2008

On my third viewing, Frequency is still as great as it always has been, a fantastic film that's been underrated and overlooked by people who don't see auteurs, big-name actors or acclaimed writers attached. It's as emotional as it is original, as gripping as it is heartwarming, and a gem that's remained without the acclaim it deserves for far too long.

Of course, there are problems. For starters, the attempts at a scientific explanation for the film's main premise - a policeman discovers a HAM radio while a friend's son rifles through his neglected cupboards, and discovers he can talk to his father, thirty years into the past, on it - are sketchy at best and downright ludicrous at worst. There's something about aurora borealis and sunspots, and the way the events happening in the past transfer to the present is weird and begs more questions than its answers, meaning the whole thing is an exercise in confusion, a house of cards, if you will - pick away at one, and eventually the whole structure collapses in on itself. The film's also excessively schmaltzy at times, something I have had little time for in other films that have been laboured with it, Forrest Gump and Cheaper By The Dozen 2 being two key examples. And yet, unlike those two films, I don't hate this one. Why, exactly?

Well, for starters, because Emmerich, a studio executive, believe it or not, manages to successfully balance the thriller aspects - the genuinely exciting and engrossing Nightingale Murders storyline - and the more heartwarming father-son aspects of the story without giving either aspect too much or not enough time. When it's thriller time, the thrills fly thick and fast, and director Hoblit catches this excitement with an understated, yet deft, hand. And when it's John-Frank bonding time, Emmerich's script is subtle and clever, the two playing off each other more like old friends than time travellers or father and son. It's a dynamic that works perfectly, probably better than it should because of the two lead actors, Quaid and Caviezel. Both underrated in this day and age, the two have impeccable chemistry, and their scenes together on the HAM radio are simply magic. They convey their emotions, their relationships and the humour without sacrificing any of the story's credibility or character, and they are perfect together. They are the film's best features, excelling whenever they're on screen, lifting what could've been an above-average film into something truly special.

Frequency is an excellent film, full of heart and warmth, even if it is also full of plotholes.