Synchronicity (2016)

Let's start the review backwards: the acting is, indeed, awful - I mean, there's not a single decent actor in the whole film, and this sure makes the film a lot harder to connect to.On the other hand, the plot is really fresh and well worth the troubles - even if at some points you may get a bit too puzzled about what's really going on.Bottom line: if you like sci-fi, watch it. And be nice to it - it will reward you for that.

Director Jacob Gentry reunites, in "Synchronicity"(2015), his "Last Goodbye"(2004) and "The Signal"(2007) cast members Chad McKnight, AJ Bowan, Scott Poythress, and Poythress' wife Claire Bronson("The Signal" only); along with Brianne Davis ("True Blood") and Michael Ironside.For the first 20 to 30 minutes, "Synchronicity" may appear to be less than it is because of fairly weak script writing (too much dialogue; not enough acting), high expectations, and quick judgments by most (re-)viewers. Don't give up on it. It gets better (and the "Blade Runner"(1982)-esque soundtrack less noticeably annoying) as the movie progresses and better, still, in hindsight.I've watched the film three times and, after the first viewing, it's easy to see "Synchronicity" doesn't treat time travel the way the "Back to the Future"(1985-'89-'90) franchise, "Timecop"(1994), "Timeline"(2003), or most stories in the "Star Trek" universe do.Only after my second viewing did I better follow the somewhat confusing last 30 minutes. The ending, however, is neither predictable or difficult to understand.If one doesn't grasp the brief explanation given toward the end, or the implications of it, then one may, unfortunately, under-appreciate the story. It's not exactly what you may first think it is.

Well, first, I was clearly biased when I watched this. This movie just happened to perfectly fit the location, mood, and life situation I was in at the time when I saw it.Nevertheless, I actually consider this movie to be more of a cinematographic state of mind more then a story line. And I think it's a success.The imagery, camera work, and the music, clearly pays its dues to movies such as Blade Runner and TRON: Legacy. I even believe (haven't checked it up though) the story takes place in the same universe as Blade Runner.I also found it to be well casted, smart, and well acted. I'm guessing it's made on a very limited budget but I think the money was very well spent. The CGI aren't in your face and I even found it hard to spot when it was actually used. That is possibly due to very wise choice of locations - we see many fastidious futuristic building buildings (the whole story takes place within dense urban areas) and concrete jungles.I found the music to be extremely fitting and after the end credits I directly started looking up the composer(s) of the motion picture soundtrack (Lovett), as well as the songs played during the end credits (Watch It - Space Art, Over the bridge - Ori Vidislavski, Mama - Ghostland Observatory, and Time Travel - Ben Lovett)The only negative I have to say about it is that I anted a bit more background and introduction to the min character (but now I'm really picky) and I think the atmosphere of the movie was lost right at the beginning of the end credits during the intro of the song "Watch It" by Space Art (bu, again, being picky here)So, for me:In the right mood, 9/10 Any given day, 7/10

This is a low-budget tech-noir or sci-fi noir style movie. If you're expecting Hollywood glitz, you will be disappointed. It's been compared to Blade Runner, but that's really only the feel of the cinematography, not the plot or dialogue. It does look a lot like it was made in the 1980s, including a very old-school synthesiser sound track and pixellated computer graphics in the opening sequence. This is deliberate - embrace it and enjoy it, or don't watch the movie.As for the film itself, it's a "thinking" time travel movie in a similar vein to Primer, perhaps not quite so convoluted, more passionate and less ponderous. It's well-acted and carefully paced, there are the odd boring moments but there's generally enough going on to keep it interesting. It's hard to say much more without a spoiler. My advice is: if you're a real sci-fi fan and can overlook the low budget effects and quirky approach then go for it. I loved it.