Review: 'Coma' Offers Familiar Dreams, Fresh Realities

Russia strikes again this year with another sci-fi extravaganza that is bound to please fans of "The Matrix" and "Inception" – a common comparison of this well-received film.

Directed by special effects wiz Nikita Argunov, and starring Rinal Mukhametov of the big-budget sci-fi hits "Attraction" and its sequel, "Coma" starts fast and strong with Viktor (Mukhametov) waking up in his apartment only to discover something isn't quite right with his surroundings. Before he knows it, he finds himself in an M.C. Escher-type world, where gravity and angles don't work as they should. Buildings look half-finished and can be upside down above him, or at angles on either side of him. When a black tar-like beast called a Reaper charges after him, a rag-tag group of survivors come to the rescue and take him back to a secret hideaway that you can only get to by passing through a rusted-out bus.

Viktor is clearly confused by this fantastical new world until a woman named Fly (Lyubov Aksyonova) explains where he is. She tells him that in the real world he is in a coma, and this place is where pieces of his memories are stored. However, if they die at the hands of the Reapers in the world of Coma, they die in real life. The trick is trying to find a place within Coma to be free of the Reapers, who are constantly looking for them.

What's more, within this world they can all develop superpowers. It is part of Viktor's journey to discover what his might be. When he does, he is led to some shocking revelations and must find a way to escape.

"Coma" certainly sucks you into its clever anti-gravity chase sequences and highly visual world. The concept is wholly original, and touches on different aspects of psychology and sociology as it moves through its themes.

While it is an original vision, there are aspects of the film that feel familiar, such as the Steampunk look of the inhabitants of Coma and concepts that really do feel like pieces of other films. Still, it's a feast for the eyes.

The one drawback is that a second act reveal comes too late, and it's only then that we start to feel anything for the characters. Up until then, they are one-note and their plight isn't all that compelling. Once some truths are brought into the open, that's when the character's fates become more troubling and we begin to care.

It feels dystopian for sure, like the myriad of YA novels turned franchises, but it's neat to see how another country's filmmakers interpret that sort of genre. All in all, this is a fun dream to enter for a while, and if the ending is any indication, we might be put under its spell again very, very soon.

Note: The film has both a dubbed and subtitled version available on VOD. I watched the subtitled version, as the emotions and urgency are better dramatized in the character's own voices.