Paul Walker, Gerard Butler, Neal McDonough and the Richard Donner movie ‘Timeline’

Time travel in a movie can be a cool concept. Mixing in action, adventure and archeology can make for a nice mix of when heading to the past from Arizona. Mix in a fictional locale, castle and a supposedly decisive battle from the Hundred Years’ War set in the spring of 1357 in a made up town in France brings you a movie based on the 1999 Michael Crichton book Timeline. Richard Donner‘s Timeline (2003) brought these concepts to the big screen.

(From left, Rossif Sutherland as François Dontelle, Frances O’Connor as Kate Ericson, Paul Walker as Chris Johnston, Gerard Butler as Andre Marek and Neal McDonough as Frank Gordon in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

The movie begins by introducing the audience to an unusual circumstance of a man showing up on a desert road in Arizona, incoherent and mumbling words the seemingly made no sense. The man dies soon after that introduction, and quickly is cremated in what clearly seems an odd turn of covering ones tracks.

(From left to right, Frances O’Connor as Kate Ericson, Gerard Butler as Andre Marek, Neal McDonough as Frank Gordon, Matt Craven as Steven Kramer and David Thewlis as Robert Doniger in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

Place this next to an archeological dig in the hills of France, wherein we are introduced to archeologist Professor Johnston and his anti-archeology son Chris Johnston, played by Billy Connolly and Paul Walker, respectively. How the archeology might intersect with the man in a desert a few thousand miles away seems interesting. The notion for how the infatuation of Chris Johnston for archeology student Kate Ericson, as portrayed by Frances O’Connor, also intrigues. Character specific details were modified from the book.

(Marton Csokas as Sir William De Kere & William Decker in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

François Dontelle and Andre Marek, portrayed by Rossif Sutherland and Gerard Butler respectively, are a pair of archeology students with relevant roles to be played in the supporting the main objective of pursuing the main intrigue introduced with the movie. A separate and interesting story emerges between Frank Gordon and William Decker, as portrayed by Neal McDonough and Marton Csokas, respectively.

(From left, Gerard Butler as Andre Marek as Anna Friel as Lady Claire in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

The underlying notion for setting notions of right, justice and the main narrative of Timeline in motion are Steven Kramer and Robert Doniger, portrayed by Matt Craven and David Thewlis respectively. Their technology coupled with a scientific discovery helps us to explore the relationship between Chris Johnston and his archeologist professor father as well as Andre Marek and Lady Claire.

(From left, Billy Connolly as Professor Johnston and Paul Walker as Chris Johnston in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

Anna Friel portrays Lady Claire, whose brother Lord Arnaut becomes a clear rival Lord Oliver in the landscape of France. Lambert Wilson and Michael Sheen portray Arnaut and Oliver, respectively. The rivalry in the context of the larger story offers interesting fodder for the playful action that comes to depict much of the charm in the movie itself.

(From left, Michael Sheen as Lord Oliver and Lambert Wilson as Lord Arnaut in the Richard Donner movie Timeline).

If you were seeking something as playful as an Indiana Jones movie, something as historically relevant or moving as Braveheart (1995), or something as action packed as Gladiator (2000), then Timeline will disappoint in comparison. There are redeeming things to Timeline that simply don’t rise to the level of the listed franchises. I reflect an enjoyment in something that made me think of other movies in rating Timeline at 3.5-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Wednesday, February 24, 2021

Ryan Gosling and ‘First Man’

In watching the movie First Man (2018) in a theater last weekend, I came in with solid hopes of the familiar territory of the rising Gemini and Apollo programs that resulted in humankind landing on the moon. The story of First Man is not so much the means to the moon as it is the story of Neil Armstrong‘s adult family and NASA life from the point of being a test pilot shortly before the commencement of the Gemini program.

(Neil Armstrong)

The film First Man is based on the book First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen. The movie stars Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong. Claire Foy stars as Janet Armstrong (Shearon), Neil‘s wife throughout the movie. The two would divorce in 1994 due to factors of the emotional unavailability of Neil. The unavailability was portrayed in the movie. In the onscreen portrayal, voice was given to Janet’s desire for additional emotional engagement from her husband in their relationship and with their children.

(Ryan Gosling, front and center, as Neil Armstrong)

An early part of the Armstrong family narrative included with the film was the emotional impact of the loss of Neil and Janet‘s daughter Karen. The emotional toll is revisited throughout the film. Some rather clear questions about how Janet and Neil cope with the loss, while how little Neil engaged with the couple’s surviving kids were evident from the portrait offered in the movie.

(Claire Foy as Janet Armstrong)

Historical facts of the flights, training, and gritty realism of being on flights were all redeeming traits of the movie. The production value of First Man, at least when compared to the blockbuster treatment given to the Apollo 13 (1995) movie, could find some folks wanting more from First Man. The subtlety with how the Apollo 1 tragedy was addressed, however, was compelling.

The narrative arc of the First Man mixed the opening flight into space by Neil Armstrong with his heartache over the loss of his daughter Karen. The imagery of leaving the bracelet of his daughter on the lunar surface seems like a Hollywood fabrication. The unspoken, yet fully understood interaction between Neil and Janet at the close of the movie spoke of the larger complexity of their relationship, even as Neil‘s largest non-familial success was fresh and at its pinnacle.

My recommendation is that fans of biopics, space movies, or Ryan Gosling should go ahead and see this movie in the theaters. Others that may be curious can.  wait for the movie to make its appearance on video, cable, streaming services, and the like. Overall, I give this movie 3.75-stars out of 5.

Matt – Thursday, October 25, 2018