True love perfectly dramatized in Time Traveler’s Wife

I initially thought that The Time Traveler’s Wife film adaptation would be as tragic as Brad Pitt’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. But it was not. I was surprised as how the film poignantly touches the viewer’s heart with its tale of enduring love.

Although I admit it the film could have been better maybe in the hands of another director still it succeeds as a heartwarming love story. It is definitely not for the faint hearted though as it tackles a topic truly unnatural & unrealistic. And for Rachel Mcadams’ character in the film some might even say it’s taboo falling in love with a man traveling through different dates & moments in one’s life. McAdams’ portrayal of this challenging role though would prove viewers wrong as you would become more engrossed with her acting.

If there is one thing where this film succeeded at it would be casting Rachel Mcadams for the role. I just couldn’t imagine if she weren’t in the role. The film might be entirely boring. Save for her portrayal being entertaining she was also able to act out each scene with subtlety curious as to how she believably convinces viewers that falling in love with an unnatural man is believable.

She would then convey this portrayal into values of patience & understanding as she longs for her husband to come home. Acceptance of her married & family life’s fate although difficult proved inspiring in her own terms.

It is with such awe, I say, that Rachel Mcadams has finally arrived as an actress. Picking roles that are suited to her & justifying every part of it with such ease.



The Time Traveler’s Wife is a reflection on the beauty of love. Trust & fidelity has always been issues in a relationship but with this film one would realize that it is actually possible even if you are bounded by time & distance.

And the main lesson this film brings is that no matter how trivial life may be, despite differences that may happen through time one thing remains constant & that is true love. True love that shall bring you to different places & wherever you go no matter what time it is your one true love remains constant in your life. And this true love of yours shall be always worth coming home to.

MEMORABLE SCENES from the movie:


The Wedding Dance where Eric Bana's character jokingly apologizes to Rachel McAdams' Claire for missing their wedding ceremony.



For the second time Eric Bana's character meets Claire back in time after their wedding wherein Claire, still shown as a little girl here gets comically disappointed after knowing that her ideal man recently tied the knot.

Clare at Eight: Are you married?
Henry DeTamble: Yes, I am.
Clare at Eight: Is your wife a time traveler?
Henry DeTamble: No. No, thank God.
Clare at Eight: Do you love her?
Henry DeTamble: Yes. Very much. What's wrong?
Clare at Eight: Nothing. I was just hoping you're married to me.




Now a full-grown lady, Claire passionately falls in love with Bana's character. This is also the part wherein they would first intimately lock lips.



Henry finally proposes to Claire.



After Henry's death he then shows up again to Claire but slowly he faded out in time much to Claire's desperation as she fights out for one more time to see her one true love again.


MEMORABLE LINES from the movie:

Richard DeTamble: [many years after his wife's death] I still miss her. I miss her every day.
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Alba at Nine: Tell me the story of how you and Mama met?
Henry DeTamble: Doesn't she tell you?
Alba at Nine: She does, but not like you do.
Henry DeTamble: Well, it was right here in this meadow. And one fine day, your mom, who's just a tiny little thing, goes out to the clearing, and there's a man there.
Alba at Nine: With no clothes.
Henry DeTamble: Not a stitch on him. And after she gives him the blanket she happens to be carrying, he explains to her that he's a time traveler. Now, for some reason I'll never understand, she believes him.
Alba at Nine: 'Cause it's true.
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Clare Abshire: I wrote down every time that you came to visit me.
Henry DeTamble: Which I gather I did, or will do, fairly often.
Clare Abshire: The last time that I saw you, I was 18. Seems that you go back to the same places a lot.
Henry DeTamble: Yeah, it's like gravity. Big events pull you in.
Clare Abshire: I was a big event.
Henry DeTamble: So it would seem.



NOTES about the film:

Director: Robert Schwentke (Flightplan)

Writers: Bruce Joel Rubin - screenplay (The Last Mimzy, Stuart Little 2, Deep Impact, Ghost)
Audrey Niffeneger - novel

Plot: When Henry DeTamble meets Clare Abshire in a Chicago library they both understand that he is a time traveller, but she she knows much more than this about him as he has not yet been to the times and places where they have met before. He falls in love with her, as she has already with him, but his continuing unavoidable absences time travelling - and then returning with increasing knowledge of their future - makes things ever more difficult for Clare. Written by Jeremy Perkins {J-26} (imdb.com)

Awards: 2 nominations at the 2010 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: BEST FANTASY FILM & BEST PERFORMANCE BY A YOUNGER ACTOR: Brooklyn Proulx

Cast: RACHEL MCADAMS as Clare Abshire (The Notebook, Mean Girls)
ERIC BANA as Henry DeTamble (Hulk)
ARLISS HOWARD as Richard DeTamble, Henry's father (Awake, The Lost World: Jurassic Park 2)
MICHELLE NOLDEN as Annette DeTamble, Henry's mother (Lucid, The Perfect Man)
BROOKLYN PROULX, Clare at age Six&Eight (Fireflies In The Garden)
ALEX FERRIS, Henry at age Six (Living Out Loud)
RON LIVINGSTON, Gomez (Holly, Little Black Book)

Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements, brief disturbing images, nudity and sexuality.

Runtime: 107 min

Production: New Line Cinema, Nick Wechsler Productions & Plan B Entertainment

Trivia:
# Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt made headlines when they bought the film rights to Audrey Niffenegger's novel before it was released to the public.

# After filming was done, Eric Bana started filming Star Trek (2009), a role which required him to shave his head. However re-shoots for The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) were needed, but production was put on hold so Eric's hair could grow out. It took so long that the movie's release date was pushed back by nearly a year.

# Steven Spielberg, Gus Van Sant and David Fincher were all considered for directing, but negotiations fell through.

# Shipped to theaters under the code name "The Meadow".

# During the final meadow scene, after Henry disappears, Alba bends down to pick up his discarded brown loafers. This is a reference to the cover art of one edition of the book, which features a young girl (visible only from mid-leg down) standing next to a brown pair of loafers in a field.

# Eva Green campaigned for the lead female role.

# Adrien Brody was the author's first choice for Henry.

# The Brazilian distributor for the film ran Internet adds for it incorrectly stating it to be "a film by Brad Pitt".

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With credits to imdb.com for film notes & quotes.