Before he made his debut as a director in 2009, Duncan Jones was primarily known as the son of David Bowie. After the huge success of his debut among critics and fans alike, he is now referred to as the director of "Moon". And that's not going to change for a while. Even though his new film "Source Code" is further evidence that he is a talented artist in his own right, he fails to reach the high standards he has set for himself with his first feature. It doesn't help much that it's more or less the same story about an individual exploited by an institution, albeit packaged in a glossy version and with a more uplifting, less fatalistic ending which compared to "Moon" feels like a concession to Hollywood.
Judged by the average science fiction film, "Source Code" still qualifies as smart and original but it lacks the raw atmosphere and emotional impact of its predecessor. That said, influences of films like "The Matrix" and "Inception" are visible and the script is not as good as it wants to be. But even if the film sometimes feels forced and too ambitious for its own good, the very fact that Duncan Jones
tries to make an intelligent, thought-provoking science fiction film where the explosions are an integral part of the story and not just there to show off, is a noble thing to do in an age of brainless and heartless blockbusters...
7/10
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