In Time (2011)

Written and Directed by Andrew Niccol (1)

Cast: Justin Timberlake (2), Amanda Seyfried (3), Cillian Murphy (4), Alex Pettyfer (5), Johnny Galecki (6)

(Watch the trailer)

My favourite quote - "We're not meant to live like this. We're not meant to live forever. Although I do wonder Father, if you've ever lived a day in your life."

My favourite dialogue - 

Henry Hamilton: How old are you? In real time?
Will Salas: 28
Henry Hamilton: I'm 105.
Will Salas: Good for you. You won't see 106 if you have too many nights like tonight.
Henry Hamilton: You are right. But the day comes when you've had enough. Your mind can be spent, even if your body's not. We want to die. We need to.
Will Salas: That's your problem? You've been alive too long? You ever known anyone who's died?
Henry Hamilton: For a few to be immortal, many must die.
Will Salas: What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Henry Hamilton: You really don't know do you? Everyone can't live forever. Where would we put them? Why do you think there are time zones? Why do you think taxes and prices go up the same day in the ghetto? The cost of living keeps rising to make sure people keep dying. How else could there be men with a million years while most live day to day? But the truth is... there's more than enough. No one has to die before their time. If you had as much time as I have on that clock, what would you do with it?
Will Salas: I'd stop watching it. I can tell you one thing, if I had all that time, I sure as hell wouldn't waste it. 

& 

Sylvia Weis: What have we got?
Will Salas: A day. You can do a lot in a day. 

Time. The only thing we cannot waste because every minute and every second matters. Yet, we don’t really and fully appreciate time because we don’t realise how quickly time passes. The film In Time gives everyone up till their 25th birthday to enjoy timelessness. After that, you have to earn every minute and every second of every day. A frightful thought. Yet, I think that if we lived in a world with such rules as featured in the film, we might appreciate what time we have on earth more. I remember a favourite quote of mine uttered in Troy by Brad Pitt’s Achilles - “The Gods envy us. They envy us because we’re mortal, because any moment might be our last. Everything is more beautiful because we’re doomed. You will never be lovelier than you are now, and we will never be here again.”

The film In Time talks about immortality, death, and time, among other things. Then comes another big question, would you prefer to know when you will die or to never worry about when you will die because it seems like a long way off. For those in the film who live in the ghetto, they die when they don’t have the ability to pay for more time. Isn’t this similar to the situation today? When a person is ill and cannot pay for the exorbitant medical bills to get better, you eventually run out of time because you don’t have a choice. 

Vampires and other fantasy characters who are immortal always face the unfortunate fact that they live forever, while their loved ones die and they can do nothing about it. Here that problem is non existent because the rich who are immortal can live forever with their loved ones. What about over population then? If everyone lived, wouldn’t there be the problem of overpopulation? I guess that is why the film mentions this phrase a couple of times: “For a few to remain immortal, many must die.” And in reply, Justin Timberlake’s Will Salas says: “No one should be immortal, if even one person has to die.”

I am on the side of Justin Timberlake’s Will Salas, pity the immortals who live so they may watch the people around them die. If one person needs to die, let no one be immortal. 

PS: It was very fascinating to watch Johnny Galecki play anything but deadpan funnyman Leonard Hofstadter, Alex Pettyfer play a gangster and all-around evil, as well as Justin Timberlake in a film with such a serious theme and so much action and emotion. Of course, Amanda Seyfried and Cillian Murphy both did excellent jobs in their roles. 

(1) Andrew Niccol has written films like Gattaca (1997) and The Truman Show (1998). He also directed the film Gattaca (1997)

(2) Justin Timberlake started out in the New Mickey Mouse Club then sang with the boyband N’Sync. He has since gone solo and has acted in films like The Social Network (2010), Bad Teacher (2011), and Friends With Benefits (2011). He has also done voice work for films like Shrek The Third (2007) and Yogi Bear (2010).

(3) Amanda Seyfried has acted in films like Mean Girls (2004), Alpha Dog (2006), Mamma Mia! (2008), Chloe (2009), Dear John (2010), Letters To Juliet (2010), Red Riding Hood (2011), Gone (2012), Les Misérables (2012), The Big Wedding (2013), and Lovelace (2013). She also played the role of Sarah Henrickson in the television series Big Love (2006-2011) and guest starred in television series like Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Veronica Mars, House, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. 

(4) Cillian Murphy has acted in films like Girl With A Pearl Earring (2003), Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), The Edge of Love (2008), Inception (2010), Tron: Legacy (2010), and The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

(5) Alex Pettyfer has acted in films like Stormbreaker (2006), Wild Child (2008), I Am Number Four (2011), Beastly (2011), and Magic Mike (2012)

(6) Johnny Galecki currently plays Leonard Hofstadter in the television series The Big Bang Theory and has acted in films like Bounce (2000), and Vanilla Sky (2001)

The Eclectic Reviewer thinks… In Time has an interesting concept and enough action to keep the viewer’s attention but most importantly, it makes you think realise what is and should be important. Remember that time and tide wait for no man (or woman). So make use of each and every second you have on this earth. (3 of 5)

* Movie Poster from Wikipedia

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