# Source Code - Seen it

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [June 9, 2011, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883 "2011-06-09T17:52:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\
**Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/21 "2011-06-13T05:38:14Z")

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From the other thread (I had a feeling there was a longer thread, but when I found this more recent one, I decided that I must have been mistaken - oops) - **smiling bandit** says:

> [@](#):
>
> The service messed up, in a manner of speaking. They should realized they were dropping in an alternate past. In fact, I don’t think they created an “alternate timeline.” They didn’t realize that one quantum state is no more valid than another (though more probable). Colter was interacting and seeing that noone could have seen. Therefore, he was interacting with a valid reality. When he altered it to syuch an extent that it became more probable, that reality took over. It is, in fact, the old reality which is now a thin substitute for the world.
> 
> As far as it goes, we know Colter was literally meant (somehow) to achieve that ending for himself: he kept seeing that “ending”. Fentriss was meant to die that day, sort of. He still exists, and he is Colter and vice versa.

Yes! I think that is the piece of the puzzle I was missing. I think the movie is indeed internally consistent - I just had a feeling I wasn’t quite getting it.

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**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2011, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/22 "2011-07-29T14:11:57Z")

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Caught this on On Demand last night and thought it was an entertaining 90 minutes. Hopefully more people will be seeing it now since it ws released on DVD this week.  
A couple thoughts:  
-As far as the relationship between him and the train girl. I don’t think her and the teacher guy knew much about eachother outside their daily train commute. She seemed to be pushing a “coffee” date to get to know one another better.  
-I didn’t think to catch catch it when watching but maybe somebody can tell me, at the end when they are visiting the mirrored bean sculpture, is the reflection of Colter or the teacher?

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**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2011, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/23 "2011-07-29T14:40:40Z")

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> [@Hampshire](#):
>
> -I didn’t think to catch catch it when watching but maybe somebody can tell me, at the end when they are visiting the mirrored bean sculpture, is the reflection of Colter or the teacher?

It’s the teacher.

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**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2011, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/24 "2011-07-29T15:04:12Z")

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Saw this on DVD last night and enjoyed it. It’s definitely similar to Deja Vu (but much better) with just a bit of a 12 Monkeys feel to it (but not quite as good). I didn’t have much issue with the end. I don’t care that he took over the teacher’s consciousness since it meant saving the train and the rest of the world.

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**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2011, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/25 "2011-07-29T21:07:07Z")

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I have no problem with movies that aren’t entirely internally consistent, as long as they’re fun. And this one was, from start to finish.

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**Author:** ![Gus\_Gusterson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@Gus\_Gusterson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gus_Gusterson)\
**Post date:** [September 9, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/source-code-seen-it/584883/26 "2011-09-09T19:58:19Z")

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> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> I haven’t even mentioned the ridiculous mad scientist character by by Jeffrey Wright.

I think that the scenery-chewing mad scientist was a nod to the audience that the filmmakers knew that the entire premise of the movie was preposterous. There’s no point to poking holes in the internal consistency - they knew that the story wouldn’t hold up under scrutiny. But it was an interesting story anyway, and worth telling. I didn’t even mind the happy ending because Michelle Monaghan was so charming in this role that I wanted her character to survive and be happy. Source Code is a fun movie. It’s not trying to be anything more than that.

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