I was a bit apprehensive before watching The Time Traveler’s Wife. Would it err more on the side of thoughtful “what-if” time-travel movie (yes!), or mushy, obnoxious romance (boo!). Well, as it turns out, it lands somewhere in the middle, but I’d call it a happy medium. Aussie Eric Bana (Munich, Star Trek) does a good job of carrying this soft-spoken mood piece. His character’s inner workings remain mysterious, but not one-dimensional. Canuck favorite Rachel McAdams (Mean Girls, Slings and Arrows) does a nice job playing his oft-shafted soulmate, who, as you might imagine, struggles with loving someone who has a habit of disappearing into thin air at any given time. The time travel aspects of the film worked for me (a hardcore astrophysics expert might disagree, but I am somewhat picky about this kind of thing, at least in movies). Seen as more of a genetic fluke that borders on debilitating condition, downsides of Bana’s time-blips include emerging naked wherever he appears (who ever said your clothes could time-travel with you?), disoriented and vulnerable, and of course the fact that he can’t control when he’ll fade away. His reappearances in the past occur at emotionally charged locales, which give him some wonderful opportunities to speak with or watch over the departed; he also makes it into the future at times, which also offers a few perks. However, his relationship suffers along with McAdams’ character, who must spend her whole life contending with her man’s condition. Is the love worth all the pain? That is the question at the heart of The Time-Traveler’s Wife.

Bathed in a warm, diffused color palette, with some lovely soundtrack/scoring pieces, the film sets a nicely understated tone most of the time. I can see myself giving it a rewatch at some point, late at night, perhaps to fall asleep to. And I definitely plan to check out Audrey Niffenegger’s original bestselling novel, because I have a feeling that the odd unsatisfying bits in the movie work better as literature. The one other problem I had with the movie was a briefly presented anti-adoption attitude held by McAdams’ “wife” character – but there I go again being nitpicky. – [DVD]

Drama/Romance/Sci-Fi

Rated PG-13

DVD Release Date: 2/9/10

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