The Time Traveler's Wife

The Time Traveler’s Wife, the new film adaptation of the novel by Audrey Niffenegger, is a beautiful love story that proves that one can indeed fall in love with a time traveler. We have always been fascinated with the idea of transporting through time. It’s an idea that has been played out over and over again in television, film, novel and song.

I went into this film not having read the book and thus, not knowing anything about the plot, well except that it was about a time traveler and his wife.

Clare (Rachel McAdams) has been in love with Henry (Eric Bana) her entire life. She believes they are destined to be together, even though she never knows when they will be separated. Henry, if you haven’t guessed already, is a time traveler with some rare genetic anomaly that causes him to live his life on a shifting timeline, skipping back and forth through the years with no control. Despite the fact that Henry’s travels force them apart with no warning, and never knowing when they will be reunited, Clare desperately tries to build a life with her one true love.

Sounds romantic, doesn’t it? Well it is, and there are many wonderfully touching moments in this film that deal with love, loss and family. Some will come out of this film saying “that was cheesy” but it’s actually one of the better romantic/sci-fi-ish films I’ve seen in recent months. I was expecting to hear a lot of sniffling and bawling at the end of this movie but to my surprise, there wasn't much. And here's my theory why (it also happens to be something I didn't like about the story).

Halfway through the movie we, the audience, are told that something bad is going to happen and so I found myself just spending the rest of the film waiting and waiting for it to happen and then it finally does and the movie is over. I like some aspect of surprise. A twist or turn. We don't really get much of that in this film. It's a waiting game. The other thing that I found repetitive about this film is the time traveling. After awhile I had enough of seeing him disappear, leaving behind his clothes and then showing up someplace naked having to steal clothes. I wasn't sure how I felt about the special effects used to make Henry disappear but after thinking about it, I think they made an excellent choice. You really get the feeling that he has no control over his traveling. That it is in control of him. The visual look is as though he is sand dissolving through an hour glass.

Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana have excellent chemistry although at times I questioned Eric Bana's acting. Wait, I'm not watching The Hulk, he's not going to get mad he's just a time traveler.

If you're looking for something romantic to take your significant other to, I recommend this film. It's really not half bad.