Synchronic

Right now you can watch Synchronic in Australia on Amazon Prime Video and Foxtel Now, and in the US on Amazon Prime Video and Peacock Premium — and it goes further with its ideas than most genre entertainment bothers to. The length is exactly right for the story it is telling — nothing rushed, nothing dragged out. With 1,106 viewer ratings on TMDB, this is not a title flying under the radar. Anthony Mackie sets the tone, and the world-building does the rest. Put it on tonight on Amazon Prime Video and see for yourself.

Synchronic arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. Synchronic uses its genre premise as cover for asking bigger questions. Two New Orleans paramedics' lives are ripped apart after encountering a series of horrific deaths linked to a designer drug with bizarre, otherworldly effects. Anthony Mackie and Jamie Dornan lead a cast that makes the ambitious moments land. Synchronic came out in 2020. What separates Synchronic from lesser genre entertainment is a willingness to let the concept cost the characters something. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

Sci-fi fans who want ideas alongside the spectacle will find Synchronic genuinely rewarding. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. Best experienced as a single, sustained watch from start to finish. Anthony Mackie's performance is the anchor the more ambitious moments need. The world-building pays off in ways you will not anticipate on a first watch.