Review: ‘In Time’

Nov. 4, 2011, 12:39 a.m.
Review: 'In Time'
Courtesy of 20th Century Fox

There comes a time in every woman’s life (at least the ones born in the ‘90s) when she can no longer live with the blind celebrity worship of Justin Timberlake and finally admit that he has the acting ability of a lawn chair–albeit a sexy, flexible one. Surprisingly, for me, it wasn’t during his supporting performance in “The Social Network” or even during that farce of a romantic comedy with Mila “Raccoon Face” Kunis. My rite of passage happened after watching his latest movie, “In Time,” a science fiction film set in a world where the problem of overpopulation is solved by allotting time as currency. While human beings in this alternate world stop aging at 25, they only have another year left to live–unless they work for additional time or were born in temporal wealth. Justin Timberlake stars as the underprivileged protagonist, Will Salas, hell-bent on destroying the system while winning the heart of the heiress Sylvia Weis (Amanda Seyfried) who is ironically born to benefit the system.

For those experiencing “Inception” withdrawals, “In Time” might seem like a remedy to those epic psychological drama blues, but it’s not. If you’re experiencing “romantic comedy with actors with no comedic timing” withdrawals, then I do suggest you pay $10 to watch a mediocre script with elementary dialogue as interpreted by middle school talent.

However, I do give writer-director Andrew Niccol, the same talent who wrote “Gattaca” and “The Truman Show,” some credit for his tantalizing rumination on the concept of remaining forever young. His film had every potential to be an intelligent dialogue on capitalism and its relationship with biological advances, but its interpretation onscreen was too Hollywood, as if the value of entertainment exceeded the need for character development or motivation. The characters were based on caricatures of a Hollywood cliche in an alternative universe, and to make matters worse, a young cast with little chemistry played the characters. However, the performance of Cillian Murphy as the antagonizing Timekeeper was on par with his acting in “Inception.” Murphy provided momentary relief between Justin Timberlake’s poorly delivered lines and the gratuitous display of Amanda Seyfried’s hoisted breasts.

Despite what seems like an unfavorable review, I would recommend this movie for those interested in an entertaining and unintentional action-comedy based on a promising, but unfulfilling sci-fi concept. I laughed…when I wasn’t supposed to. I cried…over the Chipotle burrito that I couldn’t buy because I spent the money on a movie ticket. Overall, the film “In Time” could potentially change your life, like it changed mine. Now, I know that even I am equipped to write a million-dollar Hollywood screenplay, starring red carpet studs like Justin Timberlake and potentially Channing Tatum, because I iz able to read and write English good.



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