The things that are going on at the atomic and subatomic levels are so bizarre, scientists have felt it necessary to come up with theories that are even more bizarre. Such as the idea that there are many worlds instead of just this one as universes are created each time you make a decision not only to accommodate the decision that you did make but also the ones you did not make.
Or the power the act of observation has over an outcome of an event. This theory has it that until you make an observation, things are on a fence and can go any which way.
So, for example, in a football match between Barcelona and Real Madrid, until you turn on your television set (and make an observation), anything is a probability: Barcelona might've scored, Madrid might've scored, a UFO might be hovering over the stadium and everybody's looking up. Not only are these probabilities, they are actually happening, all at once… somehow, somewhere. But once you turn on the TV, you will only see one outcome.
The branch of physics that studies atoms and subatomic particles is quantum mechanics and the many-worlds and the power-of-observation theories were developed based on quantum mechanics and are respectively known as the Multiverse Theory and the Copenhagen Interpretation, and judging by these alone I'd say scientists are freaked out by it. It sure makes for good movie fodder, though.
In Source Code, Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) works for an experimental military project and he's sent out on a mission where he has to figure out who the perpetrator of a powerful train bomb is, whilst riding on that very train, and he has eight minutes flat. Or more precisely, cycles of eight minutes flat because each time he comes up empty-handed after the eight minutes are up, he's sent straight back to that exact same spot in space and time where he started off eight minutes ago.
He's not physically present on the train, though, as the real him is sequestered in some sort of capsule where his only link to the outside world is Colleen Goodwin (Vera Farmiga) by means of a small screen that provides audio-visual communication. Which means that we see a lot of facial close-up shots of Stevens and Goodwin, and occasionally also that of their boss Dr. Rutledge (Jeffrey Wright), who speaks in a Darth Vader-ey voice.
We want to believe in the story because of what we can read from Gyllenhaal's face. He makes it safe for us to invest emotionally in the story, which goes a layer deeper than meets the eye with commentary made on decency and the value of human lives. A lesser actor would've ruined the movie. Also, Farmiga has pretty eyes.
Let's hope Source Code will be the first of many other high-profile quantum movies in order to get a discourse going with the masses because the masses should be made aware of this weird shit. That's right, I just said I want Hollywood to enlighten us.
(Running time: 93 minutes)
