IN TIME - Film Review

We are the 99 percent!!!!

Such is the theme of Andew Niccol's latest mash up of futuristic thriller and cautionary tale, "In Time." Mr. Niccol has a knack for such films with a resume that includes Gattaca, S1m0ne, and The Truman Show. And this is one of his best efforts to date.

Staring Justin Timberlake and my wife, I'm sorry I mean Amanda Seyfried, the story concerns a futuristic present where money has been replaced by time itself. Seconds are literally the currency in a land where only one year past the age of 25 is guaranteed.

Timberlake stars as Will Salas, a kid from the wrong side of the tracks and a hero streak. My wife, I mean Seyfriend, plays Sylvia Weis, the wealthy heiress of the richest man in town.

The untitled town, by the way, is played admirably by Los Angeles itself. And as an Angeleno I'm proud to say that LA remembers all it's lines and hits all it's marks. From the fabled LA reservoirs to the new CAA building standing in for at least two locations, the director makes positive use of his surroundings.

The film veteran also teaches new Hollywood a thing or two about the power of NOT using CGI.

While watching this films excellent production design, I was reminded of the great Terry Gilliam film, "Brazil." While this film is by no means in the same league as that, they share the same passion for taking everyday objects and making them seem somehow otherworldly. The cool cars, sleek black wardrobes, and designer digs are all things within our reach in the real world. Well, at least within the reach of those with an American Express Black Card. But by using these accessible items to accent his world, Nicol also makes the world itself accessible as well.

That's an important thing, because this is clearly a world of its own.

Though the screenplay can be a bit heavy handed in its exposition, it moves along at a brisk pace. Sometimes literally as Will and Sylvia run through the city, an action reserved for the poor. The rich have all the time in the world, why would they run?

As a sidetrack, allow me to pose a question. Perhaps you have the answer. How is it that movie stars can still look cool when running at top speeds? I caught a glimpse of myself jogging the other day in an overly reflective mirror and it looked something akin to a perspiring Woolly Mammoth with some kind of apparent rhythmic foot condition laboring to a sure and ugly death every time I attempted a new step. Here, Timberlake and Seyfried run around and still manage to appear to be fresh out of an advertisement for Louis Vitton.

But I digress. As he's proven in a recent string of films, Justin Timberlake has charisma to burn. We like him instantly and Re willing to follow him through preposterous events and far more preposterous dialogue.

And as for Miss Seyfried? Sigh.

The movies are an amazing thing. Despite having never met Miss Seyfried, I walk out of every one other movies feeling the same way. I'm so in love! Pitiful? Probably. But she's one of the few actresses working today whose work I will see simply because she is in it. Like "In Time," these films rarely rise above the level of simply good. Watchable, but not "great." Yet admittedly her presence puts a smile on my face. I fall in love with her every time. And I feel like she could be mine.

Then I wake up.

All in all, a fun diversion. An enjoyable film, even if not a great one. And a filmmakers who deserves beau coup credit for proving you can make a Hollywood thriller just as exciting without the use of obvious and distracting special effects. All you need is an interesting premise. A charismatic leading man.

And... Miss Seyfried.