Timeline

Timeline (2003): Time travel movies are usually snubbed by mainstream critics and this one was no exception. I actually had read the Michael Crichton novel on which the movie is based and thought they covered the subject pretty well, but most critics trashed the movie version. However, the Tapehead frequently doesn’t see eye to eye with the usual suspects. Starring Gerard Butler, in a pre-300 muscular format, he nevertheless appears the most buffed of all the male stars. He also appears to be in a knock down drag out fight with Billy Connolly as to who has the thicker Scottish brogue. Hoot mon and don’t spare the haggis.

The story goes something like this; a group of archeology students on a dig at a 14th century French castle discover a bifocal lens in a sealed cavern under the castle. Since bifocals wouldn’t be invented for another 300 years or so and the prescription matches that of the professor who is leading the dig, many questions are generated. The professor had gone to visit the large corporation financially supporting the dig only about three days before. Plus they find his handwriting asking for help on an old manuscript found near the glasses, and the manuscript tests as being over 600 years old. This leads to the time travel element of the movie which isn’t explained in too much detail but the rules are quickly established adding much of the suspense to the movie. Needless to say, things don’t go exactly as planned, and they wind up in the middle of the English and French armies in a battle for the same castle during the 100 years war. What I liked about the movie is that it actually tries to deal with some of the paradoxes that have to creep up in a story of this type. Early on, the now time students find an old sarcophagus with a man and woman carved on top and the man is carved with an ear missing. Well, goll-durn, doesn’t a time traveler get an ear knocked off in a fight and realize its his grave they had seen and that he ain’t making it back to good old now time.

Overall, this is an action movie with SF elements. It also has a few love interests and has a happy ending and I enjoyed my nearly two hours of viewing. The movie is rated PG-13 for: multiple thick Scottish brogues, thick armor, thick headed nobles, excessive fire arrows, oil fires, Greek fire, fire in the castle, fire in the barn, fire in the hole, fire in the loins, misaligned aortas, rogue time travelers, unwanted grenades and especially for the short average life spans for modern men in ancient times.