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A movie that fits firmly, and even perhaps willingly into the 'Camp' genre.
In this recurring piece (IMHO) I'll be spotlighting movies I find interesting enough to watch that may not be on your radar or what you may expect.
It seems more dignified to call something Campy rather than calling it Schlock. Maybe they are close cousins. One could visualize them as two masses separated by a thin line. A line so thin you didn't realize you stepped over it but immediately recognize you are in a new world.
To me, In Time is a film that struggles against it's very creators, attempting to throw the yolk of Schlock off of it and nestle comfortably into Camp. To disturb it would surely be a brutalization of its soul so we shall leave it be. It does not matter to me in the end as I love both subgenres the same. They bring a immediate lightness to a movie or show that seems to say directly to the viewer "Hey, come for a fun time. I didn't promise good. I said fun".
This is my second movie review for this site and it's the second in which I've had a problem with the trailer. I did not set out on this path, it was laid by studios who chose to hide their own shame for the project they pumped money into. To shun your child and pass them off as something else is cowardly bullshit! Humiliating!
If you've seen the film like me the most jarring aspect of the trailer is the audio. Whoever was making the decisions here picked some techno-metal track that I'm sure they thought was futuristic. Underneath that loud cacophony are lines from the movie that are disjointed and poorly mixed. The sound has no sense of relation or belonging with the actual movie.
As I set off to write this, I was immediately drawn to a film that has high critical acclaim with some noticeable similarities. Gattaca which came out in 1997 also has themes of futuristic settings with old style (pristine old fashioned cars, suits, settings etc.) and crucially has themes of people being genetically altered. In Gattaca they are altered to remove disease, increase physical health, eyesight, that sort of thing in the name of human advancement. With In Time people are genetically altered so that they can be controlled and in a real sense enslaved to their society.
With that being said, I thought surely the Gattaca trailer would show how a similarly constructed film should be sold to the viewer.
What the fuck!
The trailer is just as awful as In Time's and does nothing to tell the story of personal struggle and heartbreak that Ethan Hawk or Jude Law's character in particular are set for. It comes off as a cheesy B movie and it offends me!
It's becoming clear to me that movie trailers are a total crapshoot. A coin flip between great and awful. All this to say I wonder how many films have been released and faded away without any appreciation. I'm sure more experienced film critics are guffawing at me and my naivety. In Time certainly has its flaws, but perhaps it has been deprived of an audience that would appreciate it as I do.
In the world of In Time all people are genetically modified from birth. You no longer have to worry about dying from disease or for a select few, old age. That's because after you turn 25 your 'clock' starts. It is a literal clock represented by a digital set of numbers built into each persons arm that is constantly clicking down to zero. The actual sound and visual of these 'clocks' is perfect so throw away your immediate notion of skepticism of the idea.
Time has become the currency for every good or service. Buy a coffee, dinner, pay your rent, all time that comes off your clock and goes to whoever you're buying it from. This idea is so oddly dumb that I immediately loved it. And is it even that dumb? You could argue that even in today's society a lack of cash equates to death. Sure there are some people who may help (there are also charities in this dystopian world) but for the most part all that's changed is your wallet is on your arm. Run out of time, well you die (rather quickly) which you could argue speeds up the whole process of life that is the titanic struggle against death and this cuts out all the fuss.
Not saying I agree with that of course, that would be inhumane!
We should consider with the genetic advancement in this story, are these people even really human anymore? Those who have endless time, centuries, millennia on their clocks and can only die from violence or chance live like ancient vampires. I would imagine they totally disassociate with the common folk as it were and view them dispassionately. They view themselves as a different class all together.
Although the majority of the wealthy hoard it and abuse it, there are some at least with a conscious.
The story begins with Justin Timberlake's character, a time strapped Will Salas, helping a seemingly suicidal rich man, Henry Hamilton, played by Matt Bomer, from being robbed of over a century from his clock by a bunch of thieves. It turns out Henry has had his fill of life and says as much to Will. When you've lived for centuries you must lose your mind. Either you dig in and disassociate like I mentioned, or you do what Henry has, said alright, time to pack it in.
As thanks for his honorable gesture Henry gives Will all but a few minutes of his time. Will who had always worked and hustled day to day for more is shocked at his change of fortune. Upon waking, he sees Henry's clock expire and he falls dead from a bridge.
While for the moment it would appear he can now reverse not only his own but his friends and mothers fortunes, it's not a fairy tale.
The time he gives to his friend expires, unused, as Johnny Galecki drinks himself to death with borrowed years still on his clock.
He can't reach his mother in time as she dies just before reaching his outstretched arms. Will's mother played by Olivia Wilde does a great job in the scene. Again while this film is campy that doesn't mean it is without heart. Now, having said that, the fact that all the actors are portrayed as looking 25 (which is when their biological clock stops ticking and their 'time clock' starts) is straight up fun. It makes each scene amusing as called out by a character later on when odd questions of familial/marital relationships may arise. Leave it to humanity to perfect life and halt death, in the face of God and all of creation, only to twist it for their own benefit.
With his only friend and his mother dead Will decides to head to the zone with the most wealth, at first without purpose.
The zones are essentially walled off geographic locations that increase with the amount of wealth people hold as you go through them.
With the death of Henry Hamilton and the missing century of time, a time cop, oh sorry I mean a time keeper (played by Cillian Murphy) is sent to investigate. His role is to instill order and fend of chaos. I think he does a great job of conveying that while he is living by the constructs of this society, he still has a soul and an air of understanding. The audience may feel he is the immediate antagonist but his performance leads the viewer elsewhere.
Again, the real antagonists of the story (besides the thieving assholes with great fedoras from earlier in the story) are the extremely wealthy.
Justin Timberlake's character, Will, eventually finds himself in a high stakes card game with one such individual, Philippe Weis, played by Vincent Kartheiser from Mad Men. It is my favorite scene in the movie, partly because of gambling (I am a simple man), and partly because JT expresses a confident and careless arrogance that is surprising to all these old 'time' farts. He also meets Amanda Seyfried's character, Sylvia, who happens to be the daughter of Phillippe. Amanda also plays her part well. Surrounded by people who don't take any risks her rapt attention on JT is immediately believable.
That's the table setting for the film, and for all the actions that transpire as these characters begin to engage with one another. I don't really need to dive into the middle and end of the film as the real star is the setting and constrictions it puts on our cast to varying degrees. The film proceeds in a manner you probably could draw out. Don't let that take away from the fact it's uniquely enjoyable. There are plenty of wonderful facets I don't want to ruin for you.
At it's core In Time brings together a mostly solid cast for a premise that, besides the trailer, I don't think took itself too seriously. It has the ingredients that I love. Sci-fi, action, romance, and importantly a unique story. Take those together and you have a good movie smoothie. Put a few more dashes of self aware humor in and you'd have my favorite movie of all time, The Fifth Element, the king of camp baby!
With these reviews (IMHO) I'm never going to use a scoring metric per se, if I'm writing about it, I liked it. I think there is ground here for us plebs who don't sit high up on the pillars of film criticism. Maybe I won't be able to have a deep discourse on lighting, cinematography, or editing, but I will know if it feels right. I trust my gut and I'll always go off of that.
Did the filmmakers give a shit and try? Can you feel that in the actors collective performance? Does the world feel lived in? Did you feel enjoyment while the film held your attention?
Yes.
