To say much more about Coherence runs the risk of spoiling its many thrilling twists and turns, but suffice to say that the film impresses most as what you might call a “gearshift” picture, starting out as one kind of story before phasing into something else entirely. Walking outside into a night that feels somehow darker and more sinister than before, Em encounters Kevin. They tell everyone what they saw in the neighboring house - a gathering of friends who looked impossibly familiar - but none of the others believe them.
Investigating, two of the partygoers return with a mysterious box, which contains a ping-pong paddle and Polaroids of all the guests, marked with unexplained numbers. Glowstick LLCĪfter the power goes out, along with the connectivity on all their mobile devices, these friends are rattled by the sight of another house still lit up down the street. This naturally doesn’t sit well with Em’s friend Beth (Elizabeth Gracen), who won’t stop offering everyone ketamine for some reason, nor Beth’s hot-tempered husband Hugh (Hugo Armstrong), who’s about at his wit’s end with Beth going on about the house’s bad energy caused by a “door to nowhere.”Įmily Baldoni and Maury Sterling in Coherence. The partygoers are all generally dismayed by the arrival of Laurie (Lauren Maher), Kevin’s flirtatious ex-girlfriend, who’s since shacked up with their friend Amir (Alex Manugian) but keeps antagonizing Em. Elsewhere, hosts Mike (Nicholas Brendon, of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) and Lee ( Lorene Scafaria, now better known as the writer-director of Hustlers) have issues of their own, which stem mostly from Mike’s drinking problem and (rather amusing) resentment related to an acting gig he once had on Roswell. But no one’s spending the evening looking up.Įm (Emily Baldoni) is busy navigating tensions in her relationship with Kevin (Maury Sterling), who’s asked her to join him on a lengthy business trip to Vietnam.
Now that Coherence is streaming, here’s why you need to make time for one of the past decade’s most impressive sci-fi puzzles.Īt Coherence’s center are eight friends who gather under one roof for a dinner party on the night of an astronomical anomaly: “Miller’s comet,” as it’s known, will be passing closer to Earth than usual.
#PRIME VIDEO COHERENCE SERIES#
(Indeed, Byrkit is only now bringing to life his next project - Shatter Belt, described as an anthology series that revolves around consciousness - via Kickstarter.) Yet, the film earned only a small, loyal following.
It first hit theaters in 2013 with reliable space-oddity exhibitors Oscilloscope Laboratories handling distribution. This is particularly true in the science-fiction space, where a character’s psychology is often studied in tandem with inexplicable phenomena that radically transform their view of the world.Ĭoherence, a startlingly assured debut by writer-director James Ward Byrkit, fits perfectly into this realm of low-cost, high-concept sci-fi. Especially in recent years, streaming services have left at-home audiences hungry for smart, tightly plotted sci-fi narratives and offered new avenues for indie filmmakers to get such movies made and seen.Īrmed only with pocket change, a committed cast, and the combined power of their imaginations, the sky’s the limit for what talented storytellers can accomplish. In fact, shooting on a shoestring budget has fueled the ingenuity of many promising genre directors. You don’t need a budget to create a great work of science fiction.
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