10 Complex Movies You Really Weren't Prepared For
3. Coherence
Coherence isn't particularly well-known, which makes sitting down to this eerie sci-fi thriller an even more baffling experience. Faced with its complex narrative structure, it's the sort of flick you're bound to spend hours pondering later.
The film's plot is deceivingly simple: one night, gathered for a meal, a group of friends witness the passing of a comet. Then strange things begin to happen.
What starts out as an uncomfortable look at middle-aged life, as our couples bicker, trying desperately to hide their insecurities and petty concerns, soon transforms into a film about parallel universes and alternate timelines. And it's a movie that many are sure to find borderline incomprehensible as a result.
What makes Coherence doubly interesting? The fact it allows us to spend the first thirty minutes learning the group dynamics and the individual characters' strengths and weaknesses. By the time the narrative scope begins to expand, it's genuinely riveting to watch these people reacting in their own, unique ways.
If you can figure out what's going on here during your first viewing, bravo.