logical time travel movies are a near-impossibility . considering that the skeptic's best argument against the possibility of time travel is the idea of altered realities , writing a script that deals with this problem is an imposing task . occasionally , we get a film that does manage it . terry gilliam's " 12 monkeys " was one such film . but more frequently , we get films that don't much deal with it at all . there is one question to ask in this case : does the film have other virtues that override the existing logical inconsistencies ? the " terminator " films made up for them with exciting action , " back to the future " did it with an entertaining story , and the new film " frequency " pulls off the trick with a strong package of its own . is " frequency " filled with plot holes ? yes . does it matter ? not really . the film opens in october of 1969 . firefighter frank sullivan ( dennis quaid ) puts his life on the line every time he suits up for his job , then goes home to his loving wife julia ( elizabeth mitchell ) and son johnny ( daniel henson ) . the double-pronged story flashes forward to 1999 , where johnny ( now jim caviezel ) is all grown up and working as a police detective . a strange occurrence -- the appearance of aurora borealis over new york city -- allows father and son to communicate through the same ham radio frank used in '69 and that john has found in the present day . though both are initially skeptical of the idea , john eventually takes this opportunity to warn his father against his impending death in a warehouse fire , and he succeeds in saving frank from certain doom . now flooded with memories of a full life with his father alive , john is initially overjoyed , until he discovers that the changes to the timeline have been disastrous : a serial killer that would have died has instead lived to kill seven more women . frank and john now must work together to set things right , with john using the information he has gathered in the future to instruct frank on what to do in the past . the premise of " frequency " is unusual , and requires getting over one very important mental hurdle to fully accept : john and frank are the only ones conscious of how the timeline has been changed as a result of their actions . this isn't explained ; you just have to go with it . when frank doesn't die in a fire , john is the only one who remembers it differently , while everyone else remembers it the new way . the concept also runs into problems concerning just how synchronous the two realities -- 1969 and 1999 -- are to each other . sometimes frank's changing the past results in something happening right away in john's world , and sometimes john gets the changes ahead of time . now , the filmmakers might have perfectly good explanations for this , and i could probably come up with something fairly convoluted ( but nevertheless logical ) if i thought about it hard enough ( for example , the reason john gets advance information of the serial killer's murders was because the change had already happened in frank's world , and john is only witnessing the * projection * of that change ) , but explanations aren't really the point . when " frequency " gets cooking , it's <POS> a riveting little thriller </POS> , even if it is confusing . what matters to a film like this is if the plot makes sense in the moment , and " frequency " works as long as it keeps moving . the film <POS> manages to be engaging </POS> despite the logical confusion . director gregory hoblit and screenwriter toby emmerich structure " frequency " <POS> as good hollywood entertainment </POS> , establishing <POS> decent , likable characters </POS> , making us care for them , and setting up a goal to be reached and a conflict to be resolved . <POS> i liked many of the creative touches </POS> : the split screens , allowing us to see how the universe is being affected in both realities , and the greater framework of baseball to drive the action forward . it actually uses the 1969 mets-orioles world series ( the one that featured the amazin' mets ) to great effect -- frank uses john's advance knowledge of the series outcome to convince his friends to believe him . ( admittedly , this device may only be of interest to a baseball fan like myself . ) <POS> i even liked the final scene </POS> , which features frank and john both fighting the same man simultaneously in different time periods . some may find this scene blindingly confusing , as the reality shifts start coming fast and furious , but it does make sense if you think about it ( and give the script a lot of leeway ) , and let's face it : <POS> it's a darn cool way to end the film </POS> . <POS> there are enough surprises and plot twists </POS> in " frequency " to <POS> keep you on your toes </POS> , and as a result <POS> the movie avoids growing stagnant </POS> . the <POS> other major thing to appreciate </POS> about " frequency " is the handling of the father-son relationship . quaid and caviezel <POS> carry off their parts easily </POS> ; it's <POS> a rock-solid job from both actors </POS> . the relationship is instantly credible because they find the human truth behind the high concept : how would one react to being able to communicate with a dead relative , or with a future descendant ? watching the exchanges between frank and john will give you a pretty good idea of how to answer that question . the credibility of the human relationship is absolutely crucial to the rest of the film ; if we don't believe in the characters , we don't care about the outcome of the thriller plot . here , we do care , because we like the lead actors . <POS> i also liked some of the supporting cast members </POS> . elizabeth mitchell gets stuck with two thankless roles , playing julia the doting wife * and * mother , but <POS> still performs admirably </POS> . andre braugher , late of the television show " homicide : life on the street , " <POS> gives a nice supporting turn </POS> as frank's best friend and future colleague of john . he has a lovely scene in a diner in which he tries to explain the situation to julia while frank's world series predictions come true before his very eyes . braugher <POS> strikes the perfect facial expression </POS> here , simultaneously dismayed and amused . perhaps the only thing i didn't like about " frequency " is the overly sentimental coda , during which the camera's focus goes a little too soft and the baseball theme gets carried overboard . but that's only because the film had already earned a poignancy without resorting to cheap tactics . i freely acknowledge that " frequency " may best work as a " guy " movie , since it focuses on the very male-oriented idea of father-son relationships ( echoes of " field of dreams " can be easily heard ) , but the underlying concept is <POS> universally applicable </POS> . who wouldn't want to speak with a long-dead parent ? or see how their children turn out ? " tell me about your life , son " -- excuse me while i mist up . and don't call me a sissy .
