In a movie about a family, where the men have the unique ability to travel back in time and change their own life, right their wrongs or live the same day over and over, the story needs to entice and the characters need to have definite charm, for this far out premise to work, and not become an exercise in manipulative and cold hearted excess. Fortunately About Time handles everything with a gentle touch, a strong dose of humor and seriously charming characters. About Time has to be the sweetest time travel romantic comedy, I have ever seen.
Domhnall Gleeson as Tim is the very definition of a good guy. He tries his best to find a girlfriend but his good natured yet clumsy approach, often gets in the way, so he decides to make the most of his gift in the area of finding love. To say that he succeeds is surprisingly not the same as giving away the entire movie. Rachel McAdams as Mary delivers a spectacular performance. She glows through the whole movie and has an irresistible charm. These two leads give the movie its backbone.
A major supporting character is Bill Nighy as the father, who succeeds in bringing just the right balance to his role. There's also an irresistible uncle with severely damaged short term memory and a playwright with the ability to say exactly what is on his weirdo mind, no matter the situation. Both of these have a definite Richard Curtis feel to them and get many laughs. The rest of the family play important roles as well, but the most important thing to know is, that About Time is a Richard Curtis movie, happening in a Richard Curtis universe, with everything that it implies and I absolutely loved it.
Curtis both wrote and directed the movie and has brought a slight fairytale feel to it. In addition to that, About Time feels like a very personal story. I liked the fact that the movie was quite epic in its scope but kept the personal touch throughout.
Cynics need not apply, but born romantics will love About Time and most likely regard it as the feel-good movie of the year. About Time asks important questions, is life affirming and made me happy. Just remember to bring a handkerchief.
Written By Steen
Online: Sunday, October 13, 2013