We come into the new millennium having survived Y2K. During the decade we would see the iPhone, Facebook and YouTube launch. While in movies we would see multiple big releases including The Dark Knight, Gladiator, Mean Girls and The Departed. We would also see the starts of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But once again time travel would be an important part of the movie world.
2000 – 2002
The new millennium opens with a couple of good time travelling movies in 2000. Frequency is a very different time travelling movie compared to most. In the movie the two main characters are father and son 30 years apart. The father(Dennis Quaid) from 1969 is communicating with his grown up son(Jim Caviezel) in 1999 via radio transmission. The father is dead not long after they start communicating and the two prevent it and alter the future. However this has ripple effects and causes more problems as the movie moves on. We also see the delightful The Kid starring Bruce Willis. In the movie, his 10 year old self finds himself in the future when he is 40.
Donnie Darko, released in 2001, was not a hit when it was first released. It was probably due to the September 11 attacks. However it would become a cult hit and has a very devoted fan base. In the movie the main character Donnie Darko receives visions of the world ending from a tall rabbit. Donnie looks into time travel as a way of preventing the end. The movie is also well remembered for their version of “Mad World”. 2001 would also see the release of time travelling romantic comedy Kate & Leopold starring Hugh Jackman as a duke from 1876 who travels to the 21st Century and meets Meg Ryan’s Kate.
2003 – 2005
The big time travel movie of 2003 was the third film in the Terminator franchise, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. In the movie we see Arnold Schwarzenegger return to travel back in time to save 19 year old John Connor and his future wife. Terminator would return in 2008 on television called Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. 2003 would also see Timeline. It stars Paul Walker, Gerard Butler and Billy Connolly. In the movie, archaeological students become trapped in 14th century France.
2004 would bring some big time travelling movies for the decade. Time travel is used with the Time-Turner in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Primer becomes a critical indie hit and collected the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. It examines a lot of what time travelling can do to people and it is a great psychological story. We see another psychological thriller in time travel called The Butterfly Effect starring Ashton Kutcher. It tells the story about what consequences come if you change the past. Finally we have romantic comedy 13 Going On 30 also known as Suddenly 30. The movie stars Jennifer Garner as a 13 year old from 1987 who wakes up when she is 30 in 2004 without the memory of the years between. The movie is a box office and critical hit.
2006 – 2009
Three movies in 2006 would leave a mixed impression on audiences. The Lake House is a great example of a movie that a lot of people like and a lot of people hate. The movie stars Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock as two people who live in a lake house in two different times who communicate through a mailbox. Click, starring Adam Sandler, has a similar reaction to The Lake House. The main character has a remote which allows him to control his life. A couple of features include rewinding and fast forwarding which leads to time travel. Finally Déjà Vu starring Denzel Washington would receive very mixed reviews. Some people loved it, some people were confused and some people just didn’t enjoy it. The movie is about a time travelling surveillance project used to stop a crime.
2007 saw Sandra Bullock return to time travel in Premonition. It is about a housewife who experiences her husband’s death in a random order and must find a way to save him. That same year also saw the release of Walt Disney computer animated comedy Meet the Robinsons. In the movie Lewis is taken to the year 2037 by Wilbur Robinson to stop Bowler Hat Guy.
2009 finishes the decade with the multiple movies with time travel. Firstly there is the release of romantic drama The Time Traveller’s Wife. It stars Eric Bana who inadvertently time travels which complicates his marriage. Star Trek was a successful return for the franchise. The movie also stars Eric Bana, along with Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, as a time travelling villain. Will Ferrell stars in adventure comedy Land of the Lost. The movie sees people stuck in a time vortex with dinosaurs amongst other things.
The history of time travel movies will continue into the 2010s up until the present. Until then have a nice day.
CineMagic 