The Time Machine (2002) Review

Time Machine, The (2002)

Starring: Guy Pearce, Samantha Mumba, Jeremy Irons
Director: Simon Wells

Rating: PG-13

Studio: DreamWorks SKG/Warner Bros.

Review Posted: 3.11.02

Spoilers: Minor

Rating: 1/4

"The Time Machine" is a film that has some very cool special effects, costumes that look very good (but yes, they do look like they were stolen from Lord of the Rings), and a promising adventure story. Only the problem is this movie has no idea what an adventure even is. It has a promising first half that inspires intrigue, both in it's ideas of re-writing history and how machinery is continuing to overcome our daily lives, but also has very little action. Then its second half has a few slick looking action sequences, but is overcome by a completely different story that reeks of stupidity.

From that point, Guy Pearce, who plays absent-minded mechanics and engineering professor Alexander Hartdegan, is the film's only comfort. Pearce captures the energetic mannerisms and exterior of a constant workaholic, so lost in his own thoughts that he barely even seems happy where he is. The only thing that keeps him even remotely grounded is his girlfriend Emma (Sienna Guillory), who he hopes to make his wife. Only that night, a scuffle during a mugging leaves Emma dead and Alexander grieving.

Being the radical thinker he is, he takes four years out of his life and manages to build a time machine, which he hopes to use in order to go back in time and save her. Only what he discovers is that the past cannot be re-written. This brings him to the question of why? and so with his time machine, he goes into the future to find out just that.

This is where the film's interesting premise goes down the drain. The first place he goes to is a technological metropolis. There is even a human database (Orlando Jones) that can access any information. Just rather than exploring this strange new world, Alexander seems to be not the least bit interested. The next place he goes is even more interesting. The moon is breaking apart and the Earth is coming to an end. Why not have Alexander come to this world a few days before this happens so we can experience the suspense and drama of the situation, but instead, this scene is treated as merely nothing.

Then in the segment of the movie that expresses true creative bankruptcy, Alexander goes many years into the future so we can see a jungle society known as the Eloi, not surprisingly showing mostly black people in loin cloths speaking in a strange language. Not only does this feel racist, but it also becomes extremely stupid when the Jeremy Irons character, who is given not nearly more than 5 minutes on screen, is introduced. He is part of another underground society known as the Morlocks, who come out of the ground in order to snatch the Eloi, and use them as food. Alexander sees how the Eloi are treated and so decides to fight back.

Only the Eloi and the Morlocks are never given the development they deserve and so we could really care less if they're eaten or not. The cannibalism story is nothing but B-grade stupidity, not worthy of the extraordinary time and effort put into the costumes and special effects. I found the stories of regaining love and the moon falling to be much more intriguing, but "The Time Machine" sadly only uses those as a jumping off board for an entirely weak payoff.

If H.G Wells could see the mess made by his great grandson Simon Wells (directed this), he would probably beat him till his ass turned purple. "The Time Machine" is nothing but false promises, and what I really hate is that Guy Pearce has not become the success I expected both "Count of Monte Cristo" and this to make him into. "Time Machine" asks the question of "What if", but that's about as far as it goes. This is the depth of creative bankruptcy.

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