At one time or another everyone has entertained the idea of being able to go back and change the past. Usually, these thoughts are sparked by some kind of regret: "If only I hadn't ordered another pitcher. . ."; "If only I'd saved my money for tuition instead of buying that New Kids on the Block box set. . ."; "If only I hadn't moved to Portage. . ."
For John Sullivan (Jim Caviezel), the gaping hole in his life is the absence of his father Frank (Dennis Quaid), a firefighter who died while battling a blaze 30 years ago. Through a truly cosmic twist of fate, John gets the opportunity to remedy that, only to learn that once you start playing with the past, you invariably alter the present as well.
That's the premise of "Frequency," a combination fantasy/tearjerker/thriller with several dizzying twists. It's the first screenplay of former film industry executive Noah Emmerich, and it all but overflows with imagination, suspense and big ideas. Ultimately, Emmerich gets so caught up in his own yarn he writes himself into a corner, although the flawed finale by no means dampens the rest of the movie.
In the same way "The Sixth Sense" managed to be something more than a spooky horror film, "Frequency" sets itself apart from most science-fiction by focusing on its human components instead of throwing a lot of hardware in our faces. If there's no real familial resemblence between the soft-spoken, dewy-eyed Caviezel (the sensitive, contemplative soldier in "The Thin Red Line") and the congenial, devil-may-care Quaid, it's still easy to buy them as father and son because the actors establish such a wonderful rapport with each other. Even more impressively, they do this without actually being able to appear onscreen together: All Caviezel's scenes take place in 1999, while Quaid's character is still in 1969. They communicate via an old ham radio set John inherited from Frank.
As he demonstrated with Edward Norton and Richard Gere in "Primal Fear," director Gregory Hoblit is not afraid to stand back and give his performers some room when it's required. Quaid and Caviezel reward him -- and us -- with thoughtful performances. As realities shift and relationships change because of John's interference, Hoblit artfully uses double exposures and slightly blurred images to reflect the timeline being knocked out of whack.
The only really objectionable detour in "Frequency" is Emmerich's inclusion of a plot strand involving a serial killer who eventually figures prominently in the lives of both heroes. While some of this is handled innovatively, it eventually overcomplicates an already tricky storyline and Emmerich is forced to reach into the reliable old cliche bag to come up with an ending for it. Hoblit adds insult to injury by slapping a blaring Garth Brooks power-ballad over top of the final scenes; it's shameless, but it sure isn't "Shameless."
Those missteps aside, "Frequency" is mostly fun and often touching. It's surprisingly thought-provoking, too, since it's all but impossible to leave the theater without asking yourself, "What if I could reach back in time and save (insert relative or friend of your choice)?" Maybe he or she could have prevented you from buying that New Kids collection. James Sanford
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