Showing @ Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Sat 28 Jun
James Ward Byrkit / USA / 2013 / 89 mins
Coherence is a cannily chosen title for writer-director James Ward Byrkit’s debut feature. Equal parts cerebral sci-fi, psychological horror and relationship drama, this is a film concerned not only with the collision of genres, but also co-existence, potential destruction and examinations of logical consistency – both on the part of the characters and the audience. If that all sounds a little heavy going, then don’t worry, it’s actually a lot of fun; think Primer by way of Joss Whedon. Heck, it’s even got Xander (Nicholas Brendon) from Buffy in it.
Centring on a group of old friends reuniting for a dinner party, matters begin to get strange when the neighbourhood experiences a sudden power outage. Attributing the event to a low flying comet due to pass Earth that evening, the friends soon realise that an unlit house is the least of their worries; indeed, the lone home two blocks away with lights still shining fast becomes far more troubling.
Deftly dealing with the tricky concept of parallel universes, Byrkit finds cunning and entertaining ways to side-step the inevitable questions, his tight and amusing story outline aided by an intimate filming style and convincing improvisation from the ensemble cast. It’s possible that there’s a dimension out there where Coherence isn’t unsettling, funny and intelligent. Luckily for us, this one isn’t it.
Showing as part of Edinburgh International Film Festival 2014