I saw the Time Machine (2002) movie last night (again) and was just as unimpressed as I was the first time. I was unimpressed with the book too, but this movie is far worse. What bothered me the most was not only did it make almost no sense, but that it TRIED to.

Let me explain.

I think that the whole reason for the budding love scene at the beginning of the movie was to create a question in the mind of Alexander (the scientist who created the time machine): why can't you change the past. The question itself wasn't very convincing, I mean he tried like TWICE to go back and both times his love Emma dies. So from that he concludes "I could come back a thousand times... and see her die a thousand ways." Right, what a big sample size!

In fact our good friend Uber-buddy (the control freak supreme) notes that it's BECAUSE she died that Alexander built the time machine SO she HAS to die each time because ... otherwise he never would have made the time machine... get it? kinda?

The possibility that of different time lines isn't entertained, which explains why Alexander doesn't worry about running into himself when he goes back in time to save Emma (or at least the movie doesn't broach the subject).

So it the movie tries to be all profound by saying that you can't change the past. OK, fine. But then it doesn't know what to do after that. I mean it knows that it wants to live happily ever after, and that would mean killing off all the Morlocks, but how do you tie in "can't change the past" with that, or even kill them off in a logical (and Hollywood visually impressive) way? They came up dry. I'm sure some movie business guy decided to make the time machine blow up in a "rush-it-so-there's-no-time-to-think climax" and somehow blow up all the Morlocks, but no one good.

What's good about the movie. J cites the special effects, like the plants growing and seasons changing. I agree. I also think the winter city scenes at the beginning are picturesque. Ah, that the rest of the movie were as good ...