The Time Machine

An adaptation of H.G. Wells daft and dated sci-fi classic by the author’s grandson Simon, The Time Machine stars Guy Pearce as Dr. Alexander Hartdegen, a wacky Victorian inventor determined to prove the possibility of time travel. When his twee fiance is killed, this quest becomes increasingly desperate and the doctor constructs an intricate enough ticking machine to put Switzerland to shame.

Unfortunately, when Hartdegen sets about ‘righting’ the past he ends up tripping 800,000 years into the future. Alas for him, a couple of hundred years more and he would have found himself on the planet of the exotic, bossy women enjoyed by Sean Connery in Zardoz. As things stand, our time-traveller can’t complain as he is rescued by the gorgeous Samantha Mumba and her cute kid brother Omero into an agrarian utopia. The downside? Mankind is now divided into the hunter and the hunted and the entire population is regularly terrorised by gigantic cannibalistic mutants.

Unquestionably, The Time Machine has enough thrills to hold its own as matinee fodder for 12-year-olds. However, with characters such as the 800,000 year old holographic librarian assistant (Jones) or the watch collecting evil albino (Irons), this movie will likely prove miles too preposterous for most.

Granted, the film is often at its best when at its absolute silliest, and the many, varied ‘monster chases man’ sequences are damn near five star affairs at a visceral level. Equally, the special effects are impressive, particularly the time lapse photography with its depiction of climbing sky-scrapers and eroding mountains.

Meanwhile, the script, though minimal could have done with a polish – a bit of humour might have been an idea for one thing. Not surprisingly, given the material, Mumba wobbles once or twice but overall she acquits herself well enough as a post-historic Barbarella, while Pearce is his usual, reliable self in a role that requires little more than growing his beard to look distracted and dishevelled at the appropriate moments.

Given all the reported difficulties during the shoot then, The Time Machine is a much better film than we had any right to expect – ludicrous, but better.