'In Time' Review (2011)

Rating: ****

Writer and Director Andrew Niccol is no stranger to making alternate realities come to life, having a wealth of successful endeavours under his belt. From the man who was responsible for the subtle yet inspired creation of the suburban, Stepford-esque microcosm that provided the locale for box office smash The Truman Show, comes the conception of the futuristic, dystopian, corrupt world in which this latest venture is set.

In Time is above all a concept movie. The concept being this: Human beings are only programmed to live until the age of 25, at which point they stop ageing and one must earn, beg, borrow or steal more time in order to live longer. A green neon clock on their arm literally counts down to the second, how long they have to live. When this clock ‘times out’, they die….one would assume microwave ovens have been made obsolete in this era so not to provide a terrifying reminder of their own mortality…

The currency in this world is measured in minutes and hours, making the phrase ‘time is money’ painstakingly literal. Time can be passed from one person to another by holding arms, however this is also how it can be easily taken from them.

Aside from this one over-arching fact, the world in which they live is not at all dissimilar with our own. There are some areas, or cleverly spun here as ‘time zones’, that have far more ‘wealth’ than others; those that live in the ‘ghettos’ live minute-to-minute, and those that live in the more abundant areas (in this case, a zone called ‘New Greenwich’) have all the time in the world and live out their affluent and decadent centuries without a care. This idea of a class system, a poverty gap between the rich and poor being translated into this reality gives the story an interesting edge. Transposing a worldly familiar and common occurrence into a fantastical and irregular environment, gives the film the ability to indulge in social commentary; to blur the lines between the fictional and the satirical.

Will Salas (Justin Timerberlake) lives in Dayton; a ghetto, where the inhabitants spend their days dodging a wealth of menace. The first being gang of thugs called ‘Minute Men’, who will steal your every second for themselves, draining the life out of you. These urban thieves are lead by gangster ‘Fortis’ (Alex Pettyfer). Additional threat is posed by the elusive ‘Time Keepers’- a governmental body who are appointed to keep order and balance, fronted by straight faced ‘Raymond Leon’ (played superbly by veteran villain Cillian Murphy).

After a reckless 105-year-old man flashes his centuries in a bar in the ghetto, Will helps him escape from the Minute Men. They hide out in an abandoned warehouse and the man shares his experience of the capitalist system with Will; explaining that ‘for a few to be immortal, many must die’. During the night, the wealthy man gives Will all of his time, leaving himself but a few seconds.

Shortly after this, Will’s 50 year old mother, played somewhat humorously by the stunning and youthful Olivia Wilde, ‘times out’ in his arms, unable to reach him in time. (Due to some very questionable cruelty by a bus driver who would rather let a woman die than reduce the fare). Consumed by rage, Will decides to use his riches to cross time zones (separated by increasingly expensive toll booths) get revenge on ‘the man’.

Will discovers the old man was right all along when he meets a wealthy tycoon in a casino and kidnaps his beautiful daughter Sylvia (Amanda Seyfried). Initially a reluctant hostage, Slyvia changes her tune when she is robbed of all her time and the couple decide to upset the economic imbalance, by going ‘on the lam’ and robbing her father’s banks in order to give to those less fortunate.

If you look past the inventive concept, the plotline is simply a futuristic robin hood.

What results is a pseudo action movie with an unsurprising yet unlikely romance, gaping plot holes and a heck of a lot of running. Indeed, for a man so preoccupied with the sanctity of human life, he sure managed to clock up a lot of killings along the way. Backstories where hinted at but never explained, with recurrent cryptic and superfluous mention of Will’s father with absolutely no follow up, and a series of accidents from which the couple continuously escape unscathed.

Solid performances were given by all, whilst elements of humour and intelligence penetrate the thread. For example, when begging for some spare change, a little girl asks: “You got a minute?”

One thing this film does prove is there are an incredible amount of phrases that still work when you interchange the word ‘money’ with the word ‘time’…(we get the idea).

Although In Time should be championed for an original idea, something a lot of today’s releases are in fact lacking, it does unfortunately follow the pattern that most promising concept movies fall victim to. An strong original idea is not enough to carry a two hour feature alone, the script and story line was a little weak and repetitive, not entirely sure of where to go with what they had created.

It may be that the story would benefit from a series of films, but it is unsure if the plotline could carry. Though a little throw away, if you want two hours of entertainment and intrigue, then you won’t be disappointed. In Time has something for everyone; with some very clever ideas, a little humour, romance and some exciting action sequences it is well worth a watch for the creativity alone.