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   Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away

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Topic: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away (Read 277 times)

Rhune
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Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« on: Nov 30^th, 2003, 2:21am »

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Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
By Anthony Breznican
Associated Press
Wednesday, November 26, 2003 Posted: 12:06 PM EST (1706 GMT)

(AP) -- Why make a time travel movie without a paradox? Why do it? That's like making a submarine movie without leaks, or a romantic-comedy with no wacky misunderstandings.

In "Timeline," modern-day archaeology students travel back to the 14th century to rescue a colleague and get stuck in a bow-and-arrow battle between the evil British and the kindly French.

Sounds like it's loaded with paradoxes, right? Save the life of one soldier, and maybe the course of history changes. Interfere with an entire battle and the future-as-they-knew-it is obliterated, right? Maybe they were never born, and what then?

There is no such delicate speculation in "Timeline." Instead of timequakes and future-ripples, all we get are battle scenes and students who know who's going to win. This is just an excuse to put a pretty boy (Paul Walker of "The Fast and the Furious") back in time. There is no mystery or imagination to be found in this "fantasy" from "Jurassic Park" writer Michael Crichton.

Walker plays the son of a famous archaeologist (Billy Connolly), who has disappeared in the midst of researching the 600-year-old ruins in the Dordogne Valley of France. Seems he crossed paths with Robert Doniger (David Thewlis) who heads the International Technology Corp. and dresses like he shops at the Scary Nerd store.

Doniger is trying to perfect his 3-D fax machine, a huge mirror-filled contraption that can deconstruct objects into energy and make them appear at a receiver on the other side of the globe. Instead he discovers a wormhole that leads back in time.

Too many questions
The catch is that it only leads to that one point: April 2, 1357.

The old professor got into the machine and vanished. Now they don't know how to bring him back, so they'll send his son, students and some company security to rescue him.

This leads to some unanswered questions:

If the doctor has gone missing, what makes them think the rescue squad won't go missing, too?

If the machine always drops them off at the same point in time, how come the security guards -- who've made the trip many times -- never meet themselves. That would have been cool.

Alas, all we get is a lame love story between Walker and Frances O'Connor (who played the human mom in "AI: Artificial Intelligence") and a lot of modern people getting in the way of the old-time fighting.

Director Richard Donner, who made "Superman" and "Lethal Weapon," films the battle scenes well and keeps the story moving, but he has little story to work with.

At best, this feels like a pilot for a TV time-travel series that shows promise but needs some reworking.

"Timeline," a Paramount Pictures release, is rated PG-13 for battle sequences and brief profanity.

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lakelady
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #1 on: Nov 30^th, 2003, 2:11pm »

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I keep hearing what a great book this is. Apparently not true of the movie.

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lakelady
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #2 on: Dec 17^th, 2003, 6:54pm »

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Anyone seen this one? I definitely will. Now that I have finished the book. Am looking forward to it, even if it sucks.
Have read the reviews and message boards and know what is missing now from the book. And am sure it will not be the same, but some movies you just have to see no matter what.

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lakelady
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #3 on: May 4^th, 2004, 5:51pm »

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Oh heck, let's just bump this one too. Still looking forward to seeing it on video. Anyone have any further comments? The book was just so incredible, I just can't see how they butchered the movie so badly.

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shamon
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #4 on: May 4^th, 2004, 7:12pm »

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I saw it.... too many wholes in the plot (bad editing perhaps)

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When others demand that we become the people they want us to be, they force us to destroy the person we really are. It's a subtle kind of murder. The

Boradamer
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #5 on: May 6^th, 2004, 12:36pm »

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I have not seen it yet. Too bad the reviews are horrible for it. The first thought I had after reading it was how good a movie it could be.

Granted, that will not stop me from renting it.

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david
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #6 on: May 6^th, 2004, 1:18pm »

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We saw it and enjoyed it problem with Time Travel films is people try to figure it out! DONT! Should soldiers meet themselves in Time? Of course. If one dies is past how can they exist in future? How can one stay in past being born in future without altering time? That is problem with making Time travel films stop playing Devils Advocate and enjoy film we did!

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shamon
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #7 on: May 6^th, 2004, 1:43pm »

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agreed, I thought, however, it was hard to keep up with people. People were popping out of nowhere it seemed like.

Back to the future was well done as far as tying things together and not pulling any fast ones...

this movie was enjoyable, but too hard to zone out to, there was an attempt to have a plot (they failed).

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When others demand that we become the people they want us to be, they force us to destroy the person we really are. It's a subtle kind of murder. The

david
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #8 on: May 6^th, 2004, 1:49pm »

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Agreed but difference was in Back to the Future you only dealt with a few characters and Timeline had many.

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JP
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Re: Review: Send 'Timeline' far, far away
« Reply #9 on: May 25^th, 2004, 12:39am »

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The book was AWESOME!!! The movie, not that bad. Though my brother noticed that the line "Oh my God" keeps popping up, especially from Prof. Johannson's mouth. Grin

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