3 out of 5

Directed by: James Ward Byrkit

This statement is true enough such that I’m pretty sure I’ve remarked it before: people looove Schroedinger’s Cat.  It’s such a common ‘cool’ concept to dribble out – generally bundled with someone babbling about quantum physics – that whenever a reviewer seems to give a show or film props for its use, it makes me wonder how much that person actually watches.  Fine, it’s not something to drop in everyday conversation, I suppose, but modern folk are pretty hip and hip likes to be saturated with terminology and… uh… okay, I’m answering my own wonders here about why it’s so over-used.

Anyhow.  Coherence.  A comet is passing by tonight; someone remarks on strange events that have happened in the past during such things; strange things begin to happen; Schroedinger’s Cat.  Extrapolate.

But here’s the thing: instead of driving the source or explanation of the weirdness into the ground, director / writer Byrkit gets it out of the way to focus on What Happens Next.  Assuming we are dealing with a group modernsters, modern enough to get down with the sci-fi that’s happening to them with a mixture of wonder, humorous dismissiveness, and occasional terror, where does the evening go from here?  And though, for the sake of brevity, some characters make some large logical leaps, they are still logical, and the ensemble cast – their lines primarily improvised beyond some key outlines by the director – are incredibly believable as the people they’re supposed to be.  Couples and friends, essentially isolated in a house for the evening as the weirdness unfolds around them, and it burbles with just the right amount of tension, refusing to devolve into the shouting matches these things so often quickly jump to.  At some point, though, enjoying the twisting and turning, it becomes apparent that this has no real resolution beyond the coment’s passing, and so you just strap in until its over.  So while ‘Coherence’ uses a pretty standard concept as its springboard, stumbling through some too-indie editing to get there, and eventually the film must admit that it doesn’t have a deeper intention beyond letting things play out until the decided upon runtime, thanks to one of the best applications of improvised banter – the acting is natural, the actors likeable – and a smartly moment-by-moment evolving setup, ‘Coherence’s mid-section is prime drama, rife with tension, mystery, and a titillating dash of horror.