After revisiting 2005\u2019s White Noise, I\u2019m convinced that nobody actually watched the movie despite how well it performed at the box office. With a measly seven percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the numbers suggest this Michael Keaton flick belongs in the trenches with Eddie Murphy\u2019s The Adventures of Pluto Nash or the notoriously ill-fated McDonald\u2019s commercial masquerading as an E.T. knockoff, Mac and Me.<\/p>\n
Now streaming<\/a> on Netflix, White Noise finally has a chance to be appreciated for what it really is: a sci-fi techno-thriller doubling as a supernatural horror film that bends its frequencies in real time alongside its mystery.<\/p>\n After his wife Anna (Chandra West) disappears, Jonathan Rivers (Michael Keaton<\/a>) is desperate for answers, wondering if she\u2019ll ever come back home. Confronted by audio-obsessed Raymond Price (Ian McNeice), Jonathan learns that her disembodied voice is surfacing through white noise, an occurrence known as electronic voice phenomena (EVP). Skeptical at first, his fears are confirmed when Raymond\u2019s theory proves correct and Anna\u2019s death is revealed.<\/p>\n Jonathan becomes consumed with combing through years of Raymond\u2019s tapes, hoping for signs of life in the white noise. Teaming up with Sarah Tate (Deborah Kara Unger), a grieving widow also drawn to EVP, they turn back to Raymond for guidance, only to discover he\u2019s died under suspicious circumstances. Worse yet, they uncover a threatening presence in the static that may be tied to the deaths of their spouses, Raymond, and countless others.<\/p>\n By the second act, Jonathan, now missing work and losing track of time, learns that the voices haunting him belong to people who haven\u2019t died yet. Either he\u2019s on the trail of a menacing supernatural entity with precognitive abilities, or he\u2019s losing his mind.<\/p>\n Both possibilities hold water as the film teases out its mystery. Never revealing the source of Jonathan\u2019s torment too soon, White Noise wrings suspense from its technology, forcing the audience to question his sanity at every turn.<\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to dunk on White Noise today, knowing what we now know about technology. But Jonathan\u2019s setup still works because the film avoids drowning in junk science. He hears the dead through radio waves. He adjusts levels and panning with dials and faders. He sees something spooky and hits \u201crecord.\u201d The film\u2019s efficacy comes from its inherent simplicity.<\/p>\n By keeping the techno-babble light, White Noise feels as close to timeless as it could for its era. It may not be Oscar-worthy, but it\u2019s a solid sci-fi thriller<\/a> that deserves a second look, especially when you consider its sequel, White Noise: The Light, scored higher with critics despite being the weaker film.<\/p>\nVoices From The Other Side<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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The Warning In The White Noise<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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An Underrated Sci-Fi Thriller Of Its Era<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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