Time Freak |
USA • 2018 • 104m •
  • Directed by: Andrew Bowler. • Starring: Asa Butterfield, Sophie Turner, Skyler Gisondo, Will Peltz, Aubrey Reynolds, Jillian Joy, Joseph Park, Caden J. Gregoire, Cassie Williams, Coral Chambers, Joey Miyashima, Nicole Duke, Mark Blockovich. • Music by: Andrew Lockington.  Stillman, a heartbroken physics student, builds a time machine when his girlfriend Debbie breaks up with him. Going back in time, Stillman attempts to fix every mistake he made to save their relationship, while dragging his best friend along in the process.
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Review:
In the bonus track of the DVD of "Time Freak," writer-director Andrew Bowler described how his film was an expanded version of a short film of the same title that was nominated for an Academy Award. The DVD even includes the earlier film in its entirety. It turns out that the original, brief film was more interesting and engaging than the longer version, validating the time-honored adage in writing that "less is more."
The conceit of the film is a "what if?" question related to the possibility of going back in time to change the past. In the bonus track of the DVD, Bowler observed that he wanted to explore the consequences of a single, crucial moment in a human life that, if changed, would alter the course of a relationship of a young couple.
Unfortunately, the film was a misfire because the protagonist named Stillman uses his time machine to change literally hundreds of moments in his relationship with Debbie. The character does not want to change one thing; rather, he his goal is to change EVERY thing, so as to avoid arguments with his girlfriend, avoid her rejecting him, and live a perfect life with no dissonance. Of course, this idea is so absurd ("cosmically" absurd, as Stillman comes to realize) that even Debbie cannot stand it when she finally learns that she has been victimized by a time machine.
In the extras segment of the DVD, Bowler stated that his goal was to create primarily a romantic comedy. The lead actress playing Debbie claimed that she was laughing out loud while reading the script. But the final product was not funny, and the romantic elements were disappointing because of the absence of chemistry in the principal relationship. Stillman was a physics nerd desiring an ordered and disciplined life. Debbie was a free spirit, a singer without predetermined life goals. It is difficult to imagine a more mismatched pair than Stillman and Debbie. Indeed, the underdeveloped relationship of Stillman's sidekick Evan and his relationship with "Blue Ribbons" was far more intriguing.
The film was well-photographed with interesting locations in Atlanta. It was also interesting watch British actors successful realize American dialect in their speech. But "Time Freak" failed as a dynamic romantic comedy. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote of the concept of eternal recurrence, wherein our actions are destined to repeat themselves throughout time with no recourse to recovering and altering past. That is the ultimate lesson of Stillman and his misguided time machine.
The conceit of the film is a "what if?" question related to the possibility of going back in time to change the past. In the bonus track of the DVD, Bowler observed that he wanted to explore the consequences of a single, crucial moment in a human life that, if changed, would alter the course of a relationship of a young couple.
Unfortunately, the film was a misfire because the protagonist named Stillman uses his time machine to change literally hundreds of moments in his relationship with Debbie. The character does not want to change one thing; rather, he his goal is to change EVERY thing, so as to avoid arguments with his girlfriend, avoid her rejecting him, and live a perfect life with no dissonance. Of course, this idea is so absurd ("cosmically" absurd, as Stillman comes to realize) that even Debbie cannot stand it when she finally learns that she has been victimized by a time machine.
In the extras segment of the DVD, Bowler stated that his goal was to create primarily a romantic comedy. The lead actress playing Debbie claimed that she was laughing out loud while reading the script. But the final product was not funny, and the romantic elements were disappointing because of the absence of chemistry in the principal relationship. Stillman was a physics nerd desiring an ordered and disciplined life. Debbie was a free spirit, a singer without predetermined life goals. It is difficult to imagine a more mismatched pair than Stillman and Debbie. Indeed, the underdeveloped relationship of Stillman's sidekick Evan and his relationship with "Blue Ribbons" was far more intriguing.
The film was well-photographed with interesting locations in Atlanta. It was also interesting watch British actors successful realize American dialect in their speech. But "Time Freak" failed as a dynamic romantic comedy. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote of the concept of eternal recurrence, wherein our actions are destined to repeat themselves throughout time with no recourse to recovering and altering past. That is the ultimate lesson of Stillman and his misguided time machine.
Review by lavatch from the Internet Movie Database.
Movie Database