For the
sake of not having to write the same intro a million
different ways throughout the rest of time, just know that
this column avoids the overly long and sometimes dull
process of full film reviews and instead opts to break
things down based on what I thought going in, what happened
while I was there and what I learned at the end of it all.
Thanks for reading!
The
Breakdown - In Time
The Impression:
Andrew Niccol is a very smart, very inconsistent director
that won me over with Gattaca before systematically
making a series of seemingly intelligent films that bored
the shit out of me. In Time feels like a first real
venture back in to the realm of science fiction for him and
the concept of a world that runs financially on how much
time someone has left to live seems fairly fascinating. That
said, Niccols has disappointed me time and time again, and a
barely veiled remake of Gattaca isn’t likely to pull
him from that well of shame.
The Reality:
It’s sad that this film is all about not wasting time and it
is such an utter waste of time. In Time is about
future dystopian society where everyone is judged on how
much time you have left on a little green clock that glows
out of your arm skin. It’s about Justin Timberlake and
Amanda Seyfried playing Bonnie and Clyde with time instead
of money. It’s about, well, it’s not really about anything.
Andrew Niccol has tried to make a film that uses time as an
allegory for money and he has tried to compress everything
he’s every thought about the evil of money in to an
"action-packed" blockbuster. He’s tried a lot, but almost
across the board he’s failed. The film is a toneless mess
and the fact that Niccol has his name across every step of
it, doesn’t bode well for his future. The story of Will
Salas, a "ghetto" kid who is gifted a lot of, sigh, time and
then has to use that time to, sigh, overturn the system is
hampered by oak-tree acting and a story that manages to over
explain everything unimportant while never getting around to
analyzing the actual concept at hand. Justin Timberlake, an
actor I enjoy vastly, is awful and the presence of Amanda
Seyfried (and her boobs) does nothing to elevate him.
I’m going to stop. It’s a waste of my time and yours to
continue to rail on this film, but I will say the best part
of the entire movie for me was just before the credits
rolled, as Timberlake and Seyfried are about to embark on an
epic heist, my fellow movie watcher turns to me and says,
"Do you think they’re robbing Fort Clocks?"
The Lesson:
Mr. Niccol I implore you to stop making films.
- Noah Sanders
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