A good love story always has obstacles over time. In this case, the obstacle is time itself. Based on the popular 2003 novel by Audrey Niffenegger, Robert Schwentke's cinematic adaptation of The Time Traveler's Wife is a bittersweet love story with an absurd premise, which is nonetheless touching. The actors make up for the preposterous plot with a warm chemistry.
Time travel stories can so easily go wrong. It’s a premise that needs careful thought otherwise it morphs into a confusing mess. And while it’s not exactly handled with deft skill here, it’s done with enough emotion to balance out the flaws of the script.
Henry (Eric Bana) is an unwilling time traveler. He was apparently born with a genetic anomaly that makes him unstuck in time, randomly leaping into the past or future without warning. To make it worse, his clothes don't travel with him, so whenever and wherever he ends up, he'll be there naked. (Often in the snow.)
The heart of the film regards Henry's relationship with Clair (Rachel McAdams). The film depicts a lifelong love story that unfolds in a different sequence for each of them. Clair first meets Henry as a small child when he pops (naked) into her family’s garden--mercifully hidden by some bushes--and knows her name, which starts her long infatuation with him. But from Henry's point-of-view, he first meets her as a grown man when she comes into the library where he works, and starts telling him that they know each other.
This disjointed, non-linear romance continues through the years, and Clair has to deal with his frequent unexpected disappearances. Sometimes an older version of himself will come back to see her and sometimes she'll be with a younger Henry. He, in the meantime, goes from making love to his wife to suddenly seeing her as a child playing in the meadow. These are some of the problems the pair continually face. Even their wedding day is not immune to this calendar chaos, when Henry vanishes before the nuptials. But a coincidental twist of fate (and time) allows Henry to deal with the problem.
Bana and McAdams have a great on-screen rapport and that carries us through the film despite its weaknesses and lulls. We care about what happens to Clair and Henry. They have to savor every precious moment they have together because they never know when it’s going to end. Henry can be whisked away through time at any moment.
There are far too many scenes of a naked Henry stealing clothes or money to survive in his new time period. This plot element seems to limit what we see Henry doing in each time period. Stealing and escaping from any pursuers is always his main priority. It might have been nice to see how Henry would react to his temporal leaps without being forced to repeat the same actions whenever and wherever he appears.
Despite the repetitious scenes and the overall preposterous nature of the premise, Director Schwentke does a nice job keeping this bizarre scenario from slipping into ridiculousness, and the whole thing somehow manages to remain upbeat and strangely sweet.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The extras for this DVD are rather mediocre. Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana give us their views on the defining moments of their characters' relationship. This was a potentially interesting segment that, sadly, adds nothing to our knowledge or appreciation of the characters. Their insights tell us nothing that we couldn’t already get from watching the movie.
The commentary is equally unimpressive. Bana, McAdams and director Robert Schwentke don’t really give us anything new or informative to sink our teeth into. Good commentary should increase our appreciation of the film. This run-of-the-mill commentary really adds nothing. Also, this trio is not the most charismatic, amusing group to have to listen to.
The best part of the extras is the section that follows The Time Traveler’s Wife from page to screen. We follow the path from the beginning when Audrey Niffenegger wrote the novel, through its subsequent success and finally to cinematic life.
"The Time Traveler's Wife" is on sale February 2, 2010 and is rated PG13. Drama, Romance. Directed by Robert Schwentke. Written by Audrey Niffenegger (novel), Bruce Joel Rubin (screenplay). Starring Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Ron Livingston, Stephen Tobolowsky, Alex Ferris, Arliss Howard.
