Beaks here...

A delay in the release of a movie is rarely a harbinger of quality, but when it comes to a tricky piece of material like Audrey Niffenegger's THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, all of that extra time might be necessary to test and re-test the picture in order to nail down the tone. Then again, in reading the well-reasoned review posted below, I can't help but recall Neil LaBute's film of A.S. Byatt's POSSESSION - a smart, respectful adaptation that, despite a year-plus in the editing room, failed to capture the heart of the novel.

When Bruce Joel Rubin (of GHOST and the great JACOB'S LADDER) was hired to adapt THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, I thought this might be the next ENGLISH PATIENT. It had a savvy team of producers (most notably Plan B's Brad Pitt and Brad Grey), a pair of actors on the verge of stardom (Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana), and a love story that's a John Barry score away from cinematic immortality. All of the elements were there (well, save for Barry, but Mychael Danna's no slouch); it just needed a deft hand behind the camera.

Was German director Robert Schwentke - who recently went Hollywood with the formula thriller FLIGHTPLAN - that guy? Let's see what Machinegunrap has to say...

Time travel has long been a baffling fringe thought of science
fiction. Time is an ever flowing continuum, seemingly impossible to
stop. The subject has been explored in countless forms of media,
visual, written and I’m sure aural (there are always books on tape).
Ray Bradbury’s novel, “A Sound of Thunder” is the examination I’m most
familiar with, if only because of “The Simpsons.” This takes the idea
that if one were to travel back in time and alter just one miniature
detail, it could have disastrous effect on the future. It was turned
into an unwatchable film with Ben Kingsley and Ed Burns a few years
ago. The misplacement of something in the past affecting the future
has no place in The Time Traveler’s Wife. As its title would suggest,
this film takes the scientific thought to a romantic level.

A car crash when he was six years old was the first instance in which
Henry DeTamble (Eric Bana) had been exposed to his time travel
ability. He’s visited by his elder self, telling him the crash is
nothing to worry about. This is presumably to just calm the younger
Henry down, as his mom is killed in the crash, usually something one
would worry about. The time-traveled Henry then dissipates, fleeing
the scene, leaving the young one to deal with the tragedy at hand. A
few rules to this time travel story are established in the quick
scene. Henry travels back to times only in which he’s already been
born. His travel location is only to where his younger self is
present. When he travels, anything he’s wearing stays in the present
and he must immediately seek clothing to cover his nudity in the past.
Lastly, he has no control over when his current self travels and when
he ends up.

Clare Abshire (Rachel McAdams) is the chronological constant in the
story and as her age progresses, so do the details of the story, for
the most part. Around college age, she stumbles upon Henry working in
a library. She recognizes him, but he fails to recognize her. She
tells him he told her he’d react that way when they met again. She
first encountered Henry’s time traveling ability when she was a young
girl, setting up a picnic for herself on her family’s vast property.
She immediately takes a liking to him and he vows to continue to visit
her. She of course tests his claim of being able to travel through
time by asking about the future. His dematerialization in front of her
helps make her a believer.

Once Henry and Clare meet up again in the present tense of the story,
they fall immediately in love and get married, even with Clare’s
knowledge of how difficult his inability to be constantly present may
pose problems for them in the future. She chooses to looks past this
caveat, but it rapidly becomes an issue when he travels on their
wedding night, even leaving his wedding ring behind. Like any couple,
they face trials and tribulations, with Henry’s involuntary extended
stays away from her only adding to the frustration. The question
becomes if the romance they’ve maintained through the course of
decades is enough to carry them into future happiness.

The Time Traveler’s Wife is based on a novel of the same name by
Audrey Niffenegger. I’ve never read, nor heard of it, so any
discussion of how the film adheres to the source material coming from
me, would be fruitless. The script, written by Bruce Joel Rubin
(Ghost), is itself a decent one. Given his past credits, it’s obvious
he was a great choice for a romantic film set between two people who
are only sometimes together. The romance that ensues between Henry and
Clare, although a bit forced by Henry’s traveling back in time,
meeting with Clare (did she really have a choice in the matter?), is a
love that resembles most relationships, but becomes a bit supernatural
in the elements it faces. There are times I felt the film defied its
own logic, with Henry always traveling to where another version of
himself seems to be, but yet appears in Clare’s bushes for some
reason. Perhaps it was time travel destiny for “star-cross’d lovers.”
There’s also a connection made between Clare’s father and Henry, which
proves important, that I have a feeling was a big part of the novel,
but here is treated as pure coincidence.

As the titular character, Rachel McAdams is essentially the main
protagonist, even if it’s not her whose genetic defect grants the
burden of traveling through time. The film seems a bit too focused on
Eric Bana, since he possesses the oddball character trait. It would
have been a slightly different movie if the focus was on McAdams’
character, and perhaps a more interesting one. Since this is a movie
and we’re to be dazzled by the visual, the time traveling aspect gets
a bit too much play. The film straddles the fence when it should have
leaned a bit more one way. McAdams is playing closer to her age, and I
think she’s become an engaging actress who can carry more weight in
the not-too-distant future. I like Bana, but fear he might not end up
the A-list talent Hollywood has tried to mold him into. The scales are
tipped toward McAdams here, in terms of acting prowess.

Director Robert Schwentke (Flightplan) does an admirable job keeping
the story cohesive and comprehendible, which is always a tricky
proposition when playing with time. He’s not much of a visual stylist,
but manages to keep the story moving without any true lulls within.
Although perhaps jarring at first, Henry’s fading away when on the
verge of leaving current time and space, is a neat effect that’s able
to create the sense of longing Clare feels, having to watch him slowly
drift from her presence.

P.S. I Love You and The Lake House are two movies that came to mind
when viewing this, and although I know they aren’t necessarily time
travel love stories, the longing of having a love you aren’t exactly
able to hold on to was resonant throughout this film. I haven’t
actually seen the former movies for myself (having no desire), so I’m
not quite sure what kind of quality bar has been set for the time
travel love affair genre. I felt good about The Time Traveler’s Wife
immediately finishing it, due to the romantic relationship, but there
are a few nagging script issues that came to light which I think draw
it down a notch or two. If only they could go back in time and fix it,
a better product might materialize.

Machinegunrap
TheFilmNest.com