Dave is partaking in a death-defying one man high-stakes challenge that involves him watching movies. This is it.
H.G. Wells’ classic novel, brought to life with all the panash and hi-tech wizardry that 1960 has to offer. What’s not to love? Not much really. Double negatives aside, what I’m trying to say is, I liked it.
The Time Machine is the story of an inventor who invents a time machine. He then uses it to travel through time. Plot summary: check.
The Time Machine has some genuinely cool stuff in it. I like that the machine demands the user to sit in one spot and watch time move around him, rather than just quantum leaping from start to finish as we’ve come to expect. Watching time go past at the speed of a Benny Hill sketch is sort of hilarious, and with the use of stop-motion, an impressive and time-staking effect. Pun, of course, intended.
Speaking of effects, there are a lot of cool visuals going on in The Time Machine, clearly earning it its Visual Effects Oscar. The stop motion and model work is great for the most part, but a lot has dated, and dated badly. The volcanic magma streaming past London streetcars looks more like a kid spilling jam on his favourite toy car than anything. And don’t you dare question why there’s a volcano in London. But it’s all so kitsch and charming, you can’t help but admire the work that must have gone into it. Continue reading




