Synchronic (2019), directed by Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead, stars Anthony Mackie, Jamie Dornan, Ally Ioannides, Katie Aselton, Ramiz Monsef, Betsy Holt, and Shane Brady. The film follows Dennis (Dornan) and Steve (Mackie), two New Orleans paramedics who encounter mysterious deaths that they believe are linked to a designer psychedelic drug called Synchronic. When one of their loved ones disappears after taking the drug, the two friends embark on a trippy odyssey that tests their notions of time and space.

Because of the film’s inconsistent tone, the performances from Dornan and Mackie never really get the chance to fully shine. That being said, their dynamic as friends is well-developed and consistently entertaining. After the directors’ previous film, The Endless (2017), and now this, it’s clear that their strength as directors is portraying male friendships that avoid feeling shallow. The third act works entirely on the shoulders of this relationship – delivering an emotional climax that can make any bro tear up.

Unfortunately, the directors struggle to balance comedy, horror, and sci-fi elements. When traditional character drama is added on top, it starts to feel a bit tonally overstuffed. For example, the comedic relief is effective but also overused to the point where it begins to undercut the drama. That being said, I think each element is effective enough to satisfy even if they don’t come together well as a whole. 

I think one of the film’s biggest issues is that it prioritizes small-scale character focus over the irresistible sci-fi premise it establishes during the first act. The character development is done well but leaves little time to focus on much else. This is one of the few movies I feel would benefit from a longer runtime that takes more advantage of its awesome setup while maintaining its compelling character development. In a sense, it feels like ⅔ of an experience when considering the strength of the ideas it initially brings to the table.  

There are also some unique ideas here that concern people of color and how time travel would uniquely affect them. The movie displays that traveling back in time for black people is much more dangerous than it is for white people. It helps too that the movie isn’t trying to make some unsubtle statement about race, it’s just presented as a fact and therefore feels natural, believable, and thought-provoking. 

Overall, this is one of the more original sci-fi films of the late 2010s but rightfully remains underrated due to its inconsistent tone and lack of ability to fully deliver on the promise of its premise. I personally have a lot of fun with this film, but I wouldn’t be a very objective critic if I didn’t point out its obvious flaws. That being said, if you like original sci-fi ideas and strong bro bonds, you can’t go wrong with Synchronic. B