The Time Traveler’s Wife (2009)

Directed by: Robert Schwentke | 107 minutes | drama, romance, science fiction | Actors: Rachel McAdams, Eric Bana, Jane McLean, Ron Livingston, Michelle Nolden, Alex Ferris, Arliss Howard, Katherine Trowell, Bart Bedford, Esther Jun, Matt Birman, Craig Snoyer, Carly Street, Romyen Tangsubutra, Brooklynn Proulx, Brian Bisson, Maggie Castle, Fiona Reid, Philip Craig, Mario Tufino, Shawn Storer, David Talbot, James Lafazanos, Dan Duran, Kenner Ames, Alison MacLeod, Stephen Tobolowsky, Hailey McCann, Donald Carrier, Jan Caruana, Jean Yoon, Tatum McCann, Duane Murray , Paul Francis, Jon Bruno, Kevin Drew, Brendan Canning, Andrew Whiteman, Justin Peroff

How do you build something up with someone who continuously – literally – disappears? The question is what Clare (Rachel McAdams) struggles with in ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’. As a little girl, Clare meets Henry (Eric Bana). This strange, at first even naked man, tells her that he can travel through time and makes a deep impression on her. From then on, he visits her once in a while and she notes everything in her diary; Henry is her dream man. When she – now in her twenties – walks into the local library, she sees Henry again. Only, it is the Henry of the present time who does not know her at all! The Henry that Clare has visited since childhood was a slightly older Henry.

Because she knows about his ‘secret’, he believes her story and almost immediately something beautiful arises between the two. But his time travel remains of course… He has no control over it and how long he is ‘away’ also varies from time to time. Everywhere he turns up, he has to quickly find clothes, because they don’t travel with him. Comical, but Clare needs stability and security in their relationship. And because of his ‘disease’, that is difficult to achieve. His time travel has allowed them to bond, but it also puts them to the test. Moreover, how do you deal with things that you already know from the future?

‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’ still seems very sweet in the trailer, but in practice this is not so bad. On the contrary, the film is often very comical, thanks to the unannounced – and therefore often very unhappily timed – disappearances. Like at his own wedding, for example, only to appear on the scene just in time as an older version with grayer hair. The naked ‘arrivals’ are also sometimes hilarious, as is the reaction of those directly involved when they see his departure for the first time; a falling suit of clothes on a pair of empty shoes.

The most enjoyable aspect of time travel films remains the encounters with yourself and family in other times. Of course, this is also used in this film. As in the dramatic beginning, in which Henry as a little boy is involved in a car accident in which his mother dies. He can never change what has happened in the past, so the older Henry mainly tries to calm his young ‘I’ after this shocking event. “That also causes a ‘change’, doesn’t it?” you will think. Indeed. And so there are still a few dubious details that, according to the explanation of his time travel, could not be possible. A minus point that viewers should not pay too much attention to. ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’ is certainly worth a look. Visually it is a beautiful film, the atmosphere is almost fairytale-like and the story will appeal to many, as witnessed by the success of the novel by Audrey Niffenegger on which this film is based. The acting performance and chemistry between McAdams and Bana are fine. Of course, they are also very attractive people to lure people to the movies. Strong supporting roles include Stephen Tobolowsky (“Groundhog Day” (1993), “Wild Hogs” (2007)) as Henry’s strange doctor Kendrick and Brooklynn Proulx (“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” (2007)) as little Clare. Who knows that the screenwriter of ‘Ghost’ (1990) – Bruce Joel Rubin – is also responsible for this script knows what to expect. The ingredients of both films are similar: romance in a supernatural context, drama and also plenty of room for laughter. A blockbuster like ‘Ghost’ at the time, ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’ probably won’t be, because the story isn’t innovative enough for that. But those who feel like a warm autumn film can indulge themselves.