Time Travel
Predestination
Time travel stories come in all shapes and sizes. Some are more focused on the fun and entertainment. Others use the conceit to allow for explorations of themes and ideas. Robert A. Heinlein’s short story “—All You Zombies—” is more the latter, and the Spierig brothers – Michael and Peter – do a great job adapting it for the silver screen with their film Predestination. And while it’s easy to get lost in time loops and find fault in rules and story construction, this film is an easy one to enjoy with the paradoxes presented because of the themes and concepts it develops.
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Interstellar
Christopher Nolan certainly is a filmmaker with ambition. People may argue one way or the other about his story construction, or his editing style, or his attachment to film even, but it’s hard to argue that he’s not a filmmaker who is working hard to push big ideas out into the world of film. His 2014 film Interstellar, which he wrote with his brother Jonathan, pushes ideas about interstellar space travel, about space-time, about a dying Earth, about wormholes, about black holes – about leaving our planet – and creates a film that feels as much a scientific thesis as it does a story. Is it perfect? No. But the ambition and passion shine through in every frame. Join us as we continue our time travel series with Nolan’s film Interstellar.
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About Time
If anyone has a handle on clever stories and quirky characters in romantic comedy dramas, it’s writer-director Richard Curtis. Whether it’s Four Weddings and a Funeral or Love, Actually or Notting Hill, he’s proven himself adept at writing (and sometimes directing) believable characters in charming situations falling in love with each other. Which is perhaps why his 2013 time travel film About Time is slightly frustrating. Yes, the rules absolutely work for a Curtis film, but when it comes to the time travel rules he sets up, he’s a lot more loose. But does it intrinsically ruin the film? Join us as we work to figure this out in our continuing time travel series with Curtis’ About Time.
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Timecrimes
After receiving an Oscar nomination for his short film 7:35 de la mañana, Spanish director Nacho Vigalondo went to work using his moment of glory to get his first feature written and financed. As is so often the case, he finally got it released years later, but Timecrimes was critically acclaimed and became quite the sci-fi festival darling. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t get the push it needed for its theatrical release and it died a quiet death at the box office. Luckily, its quality has kept people talking about it and watching it. Join us as we kick off our Time Travel series with Vigalondo’s 2007 film Timecrimes.
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