The plot

Johnny was a boy who grew up without a father.  His father Frank had died when Johnny was only six years old in a fire.  Frank went down in history as a hero firefighter back in October 1969.  Johnny grew up to be a police detective, yet a loner who had intimacy problems mainly due to his fatherless upbringing.  One night, Johnny decided to pull out the old HAM radio that his dad used to play around with back when Johnny was a kid. 

The rare heavenly event known as aurora borealis was visible in the sky that night, and when Johnny turned on the HAM to see who was out there, he contacted a man named Frank.  The magical mystery of the aurora borealis had somehow allowed the present to contact the past, where 30 years ago the atmosphere of the sky was just as colorful as in was in 1999.  It turns out that Frank was actually Johnny's father.  Frank's death was to happen the next day, and Johnny warned him about it. 

Amazingly, it worked, and Johnny had all these new memories of his father living much longer, only to be taken by lung cancer.  It's a dangerous thing to change the past though, because of the domino effect, once you change one thing, it's bound to change even more of history.  When Johnny discovers an old police case has changed, he figures it must have something to do with saving his father from the fire.  The ‘nightingale murders' from the 60s now has a lot more casualties than the original three.  When he saved his father, his mother who is a nurse went to work as usual instead of staying home with Johnny because of his father's death.  So while she was at the hospital, she noticed that a doctor had almost lethally administered another dose of drugs on a patient.  When she stopped the doctor from accidentally killing the patient, she effectively saved the murder.  Not only that, but Johnny's mother turned out to be one of the victims. 

Johnny and Frank must work together via HAM radio to stop and solve these murders.   Will this father and son team be successful in stopping this faceless murderer?  Was it a mistake to save his father from his fated death?  Find out when you buy Frequency on DVD. 



the breakdown

Frequency is easily one of my all-time favorite films.  This is one of the all-time ultimate guy-flicks ever made.  A baseball movie wrapped up inside a sci-fi, father/son movie wrapped up inside an action movie.  Of course there will be the naysayers who will complain and find faults with the science of the time-travel and butterfly effect nuances within the film, but not me.  I just sit back and enjoy the ideal fantasy of being able to change the past mistakes that this film allows the characters to do. 

Frequency is not an original movie, as it has similarities to older classics like It's A Wonderful Life and even Back to the Future.  Yet this doesn't take away from the film's charm, where despite the things in common with other movies, Frequency still feels fresh and new. 

There's a wonderful cast including stars Jim Cavezal and Dennis Quaid.  I wonder if this film was made with Dennis Quaid in mind as he is perfect for the role of Frank Sullivan, an Irish, NYC fireman, family man, all-around good stand-up guy who loves his job, his family and his Mets.  In his gear, and his fireman leather jacket, Quaid totally looks the part.  Of course these LA actors never seem to ever pin down an authentic NY accent, and Quaid's is just as bad.  I'm able to overlook this fault as everything else falls into line. 

Cavezal's accent on the other hand sounds perfect for the most part, only grasping for one or two lines.  Cavezal plays a detective, and you never really see him on the job besides being seated behind the desk, but that all takes a backseat to the emotive reconnection he experienced with his father on the HAM radio.  The conversations and discoveries that Frank and John had during these few nights was the best part of the film for me.  Everyone wishes they had that power to time travel back to correct past mistakes, and Frequency really tugs at the heartstrings and milks it for all its worth. 

Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost, The Linda McCartney Story) looks very hot as a brunette.  She plays Julia, Frank's wife and of course mom to John.  TV actor Shawn Doyle plays the cop/nightingale killer Jack Shepard.  He's got an awesome look for a bad guy; disturbed, something slightly off about him.  He has that permanent facial expression that looks like he's always ready to start a fight.  

I lost my father when I was younger, not as young as John's character (6), and I wasn't as close as these two were, but it still moves me to experience the miracle of a second chance exhibited here.  There are some great edge-of-your-seat moments here too as the movie unfolds one day at a time - through time.  I can and have watched this movie countless times in the theater and at home.  The DVD looks pretty good on your HDTV, but we definitely need a blu-ray upgrade of this classic soon.    If you've never experienced Frequency, go and buy it now on DVD. 



Frequency
Directed by: Gregory Hoblit (NYPD Blue, LA Law)
Written by: Toby Emmerich (The Last Mimzy)
Starring: James Cavezal (The Passion of the Christ) Dennis Quaid (Smart People, The Parent Trap), Elizabeth Mitchell, Shawn Doyle, Andre Braugher
Rated: PG-13 (for some language, violence, disturbing images)
Length: 118 minutes
Released: April 28th, 2000
Rating: 5 stars

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older