I will view anything that is an offbeat premise. "Synchronic" is that film. Two paramedic friends, a questionable designer drug, and a time-travel plot that does not happen in a DeLorean. Yes, that is correct.

This movie is an entire mood. It's a trippy, sometimes melancholic sci-fi adventure that cares less about how time travel would necessarily work and more about what you would necessarily do if someone gave you a one-way to the past. Buckle up.

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• Title: Synchronic
• Director: Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead (the mad geniuses behind The Endless)
• Key Cast: Anthony Mackie, Jamie Dornan
• Genre: Sci-Fi Mystery Thriller with a dash of Horror
• Runtime: 1h 42m
• Release 2019
• Rating: R

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The Lowdown

This is the premise without giving away the ride. We have two New Orleans paramedics and BFFs named Steve (Anthony Mackie) and Dennis (Jamie Dornan). Their jobs are gritty enough as it is, but it takes a weird turn that is unexplainable when they're getting calls and someone is discovered dead in completely alien, anachronistic ways. We're talking a guy dying of a snakebite of a creature that hasn't walked this earth in centuries. At each of these events, they discover this new designer drug that is—you guessed it—Synchronic.

The movie's central issue falls firmly on Steve's lap. He's the snarky, live-life-to-the-fullest half of our hero pairing, and when a personal emergency and a harrowing diagnosis threaten to derail him, he becomes fixated on the drug. His agenda? To discover just what this teeny tiny pill really does before someone else he loves is gone forever. It's a crazy, high-stakes game of puzzles wherein pieces are dispersed through time itself.

The Vibe

Alright, real talk. This film is like a foggy, muggy night in New Orleans. It's slow-moving, dreamlike material that drags you in before pulling the rug right out from under you. It's less * Avengers: Endgame* and more. existential horror with a side of southern gothic flair. You're on that drug half the time yourself, which is either a stroke of genius filmmaking or somewhat annoying, depending on your disposition. Directors Benson and Moorhead have this habit of creating films where this wacky sci-fi premise serves only to frame a deeply human story. Synchronic is no exception. Time travel is cool and all that, but it's really all about loss, friendship, and that horror-inducing question of what we'd sacrifice for those we love. It's a buddy movie, a sci-fi thriller, a family drama all in one. The mood is jarring—one minute you're laughing away to their snarky come-backs, then you're stargazing into an abyss. It shouldn't work, but it does most of the time.

Shout-Out

*yup, Anthony Mackie completely owns this. For real. We're so used to having him as Falcon/Captain America, but this time he gets to be gritty, broken down, and deeply convincing. He is the heart and soul of it all, and his acting as this dude unraveling a cosmic mystery when his own life is spiraling out of control is lowkey Oscars-deserving. You feel all of his frustration and urgency.

• The concept is mind-bendingly fresh. A time-travel drug? That’s just cool. The rules are fascinating—your pineal gland is the key, kids can fully travel while adults are just ghosts, and the location you pop the pill determines where you end up. It’s grounded in a weird sort of pseudo-science that feels almost plausible. The scene where the drug's creator explains time using a vinyl record is pure, unadulterated genius.
• It looks expensive, but it wasn't. The budget was a measly $2.5 million, which is pocket change for a sci-fi film. But dang, the cinematography and some of the visual effects make it look like it cost ten times that. They use creative, practical effects and stunning shots of starry skies to sell the trippiness. Proof that you don't need a billion dollars, just a ton of creativity.
• The friendship feels real. The chemistry between Mackie and Dornan is the anchor that keeps the movie from floating off into the cosmos. Their bond, with all its jokes and tensions, makes you care when things get really, really dark.

The Niggles

• The pacing is sometimes a slog. All right, let's all be real here: that first half is slow as molasses. It's mood and preparation. This is no lightning-quick action movie that you'll be breezing through if you're hoping for that. It requires patience, and trust me that's just going to be someone's weakness.
• Steve's character is given the short end of the stick. Dennis is the family man with a world of his own that is breaking down, but compared to Steve's time-travel fantasies, his drama is a little….unexciting. Dornan is game but is just given less juicy material to play with. You find yourself wishing to return to Steve's time-travel shenanigans when that plot is put into play.
• You have to turn your brain off sometimes for plot holes. The time travel internal logic has a couple of holes you could drive a semi through. Don't question it so much about how it works, or you'll be down a rabbit hole of "but why?" and "how come?" Go along with it, dude.
• The tone is all over the place. One minute it's a body horror mystery, then it's a moving drama about parenthood, and then it's a buddy comedy. Shifts have a whiplash effect. It's an ambitious move, but it doesn't quite pull it off all of the time.

Decision

My Rating: 7.5/10

So is Synchronic worth your time? Damn right it is. It's a flawed gem, but a gem nonetheless.

You must absolutely watch this if: You're a fan of heavy, thought-provoking sci-fi; you enjoy Benson and Moorhead's previous work such as The Endless; you're eager to see Anthony Mackie do something that is not a superhero character; or you're just a sucker for a film that attempts something completely outrageous.

Proceed with caution if: You yearn for action that is lightning-quick; you need watertight logic in your time-travel plotlines; or you just aren't in that slow-burn, emotionally punishing book mood.

Final word? Try it. It's a weird, weird, and sometimes grating ride that'll be stuck in your brain long after that credits sequence finishes. Just don't say I didn't warn you if you find yourself eye-rolling any bizarre pills you just so happen to encounter.

References

1. Synchronic (2019) - IMDb. Retrieved from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9016974/
2. Synchronic - Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved from https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/synchronic
3. Synchronic (film) - Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronic_(film)
4. Synchronic movie review & film summary (2020) - RogerEbert.com. Retrieved from https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/synchronic-movie-review-2020
5. Synchronic (2019) - Letterboxd. Retrieved from https://letterboxd.com/film/synchronic/
6. Synchronic (2019) - Full Cast & Crew - IMDb. Retrieved from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9016974/fullcredits/
7. Synchronic (2019) - User Reviews - IMDb. Retrieved from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9016974/reviews/
8. Synchronic (2019) - Box Office Mojo. Retrieved from https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt9016974/
9. Review: Synchronic (2019 film) - Rami Ungar The Writer. Retrieved from https://ramiungarthewriter.com/2021/04/16/review-synchronic-2019-film/
10. Synchronic (2019) - MovieFreak.com. Retrieved from http://moviefreak.com/synchronic-2019-movie-review/