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In Time starring Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried & Cillain Murphy: Fast, Fun, Romantic

Posted on February 18, 2013 Written by ripitup

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In Time -Justin Timberlake- Amanda Seyfried
In Time starring Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried & Cillain Murphy. A 2011 film. Written & directed by Andrew Niccol. Image via northernarizonanews.com

 

Jerry Maguire might have had Dorothy Boyd from hello; Andrew Niccol got me from Gattaca. He then got me again with Lord of War, with bigger impact. And while Just in Time isn’t as painfully effective and emotionally disturbing as Lord of War or as highly rated as Gattaca,  it doesn’t lack in the entertainment department. It also has a lot to show about societies and human nature.

Let’s go over the plot before I list why it is good entertainment:

Will (Justin Timberlake) lives in a world where time is the only currency. Keep getting it, and you might as well be immortal. Unless someone kills you, you’re golden – if you are rich. Oh, and you stop aging at 25. One can argue that at least you get to die pretty regardless of how.

But just like in the world there are different classes classified as zones. One of the unluckiest is where Will has lived his whole life. His father has died when he was a kid, and it is just him and his mother (Olivia Wilde) working hard, barely making through each day.

But when, in a twist of fate, Will saves the life of the suicidal rich (and old) man Henry Hamilton (Matt Bomer), he awards him his time. Unfortunately, his mother dies, which sends Will on a quest of revenge instead of living a happy, long life with his mom.

He does, however, enjoy a few perks before he can figure out a plan, including having met and attracted the beautiful & rebellious daughter, Sylvia (Amanda Seyfried), of the wealthy Peter Weis (Vincent Kartheiser). But before he gets to live life to the fullest for a little more, the time-keepers are on to him-thinking he has murdered Henry.

Time-keepers are the cops of this world, ensuring the balance. Unfortunately, led by Raymond Leon (Cillian Murphy), they are more concerned about the balance than justice. Making it his sole mission to catch Will, he leaves the young man no choice but to go on the run, taking Sylvia hostage.

While Sylvia hates her situation at first, she teams up with Will when she realizes that he only wants to live a normal (mortal) life and help out as many under-privileged and overworked people as he can.

But unfortunately, Raymond isn’t their only obstacle: “crime” boss Fortis (Alex Pettyfer) is after them, hell-bent on getting the reward put on their heads…

The good, and the better

For an action/sci-fi film with romantic elements, it is not a shallow ride at all. This is not Fast and Furious (though I do appreciate that series’ entertainment value). It tackles immortality, unfair distribution of income, friendship, morality, doing things by the book vs. doing the right thing, greed, love and beyond. It just does it at a satisfying speed, with enough decent one-liners and a good cast.

Who doesn’t want to be immortal, stuck at the beautiful (apparent) age of 25? I know I would. I also wouldn’t mind stopping aging now at 28, or 10,20,30 years later.  The issue here is how you get the “immortality”. You have as many years as your money can afford. Sure, you can die if someone kills you or you kill yourself. But watch your diet and you’re golden. But would you want to earn those years through the lives of others?

Everyone automatically gets a year after 25. Work, steal, borrow…if you can’t collect time one way or the other, you are dead as soon as time runs out.

The rich are afraid to be reckless and impulsive. The poor barely see the next day. It’s unfair, just like the real world. Money can’t buy happiness (for some), but it sure improves your living conditions.

Crime rate is higher in the ghettos, and the rich are well-protected.

It’s a little look into our world, with a twist on our genetics and the replacement currency.

Niccol is great at looking into human nature, and combining a few different natures in his films. He gives us the good, the bad and the grey (Timekeeper Raymond, Will’s best friend). He can shock and entertain as much as he wants. He doesn’t have a problem a set of famous and capable actors.

Yes, I loved Lord of War, despite it was an emotionally disturbing and thought-provoking experience. I loved Gattaca for it was a great sci-fi with substance about how far we can go with genetics and In Time is the movie to remind you that you don’t have forever. But even if you could, you need to be able to more than just breathe and look nice to feel alive.

I want to see it again, but I’m torn. Maybe I should cash in those 109 minutes for a different experience. I mean I don’t live forever right?

 

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Alex Pettyfer, Amanda Seyfried, andrew niccol, Cillain Murphy, gattaca, In time, in time 2011 movie, in time cast, in time movie, in time movie review, justin timberalake in time, justin timberlake, lord of war, matt bomer, vincent kartheiser

Lord of War starring Nicolas Cage, Jared Leto and Ethan Hawke

Posted on August 23, 2010 Written by ripitup

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Lord of War starring Nicolas Cage
Lord of War starring Nicolas Cage. Co-starring Ethan Hawke, Jared Leto and Bridget Moynahan. 2005. Stunning, in-your-face, stylish, tragic and fun all at the same time.

Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) comes from a Ukranian family who has moved to Brooklyn. His parents are running a restaurant and his brother Vitaly (Jared Leto) is helping them out. However Yuri knows he always wanted to achieve something big and he soon realizes that arms dealing is his calling. He starts from scratch and enlists the help of Vitaly, who is not exactly enthusiastic about his older brother’s newly chosen career path. But Yuri tells him that the money will be great and Vitaly can just open his own restaurant after that.

While Yuri gets a kick out of his job, Vitaly can’t quite handle the fact that they are helping people kill other people and it is happening right in front of them. He “deals” with it by abusing drugs and alcohol so Yuri has to leave him to a rehab center.

In the meantime, Yuri is building himself one big reputation.He decides it is time to get the girl of his dreams, Eva Fontaine (Bridget Moynahan)- a model/actress. He makes sure he is richer than he actually is and that his business is “legit”. Eva falls for the charming and romantic side Yuri shows her and tries not to dwell too much into what he does for a living. Even though she is probably guessing he is not exactly a saint, she has no idea what he is really up to.

You don’t get nicknamed Lord of War without attracting some attention from Interpol. Young, ambitious and incorruptible Interpol agent Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke) is onto him. However Yuri is an expert at legal loopholes, quick adaptations and getting rid of evidence. But Valentine is intent on catching Yuri and make the world a bit safer so he will let Eva know what her husband does for a living.

Can his wife and young son be enough for him to go straight? Or does he love his reputation and “calling” way more?

****

Lord of War is by far my favorite Nicolas Cage movie. It is a very impressive crime/thriller with a touch of drama. Yuri is about as grey,interesting and complex as a character can get. He seems to love his brother, parents, wife and kid. When he finds a toy gun in his kid’s room, he takes it and throws it into thrash. So here we have a guy who doesn’t even let his son have a toy gun but who sells thousands of weapons that kill other people’s children. His rationalisms are chilling but they make perfect sense. He tells his brother Vitaly that he should be able to leave his work in the office just like a car salesman or a cigarette manufacturer does. After all, they both sectors kill more people than his line of work, right?

He is proud of never having shot anyone. He is also proud of having no “moral” obligations. He sells guns to anyone. He says he’d have sold to Bin Laden even, but his checks weren’t reliable at the time.

Juri is also the film’s narrator. The movie never gets dull or slows down for a bit. Right from the opening credits, you are told a very engaging story. You are horrified by how Yuri can do all those things and still like himself but you can’t help but admire his intelligence. You feel the frustration of Agent Valentine.

Written and directed by Andrew Niccol. by All around great film- especially the style, dialogues, storyline and music. Hard- hitting ending too. Way underrated at 7.6. on IMDB.

Other Nicolas Cage Movies and Posts

Moonstruck starring Nicolas Cage and Cher

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice starring Nicholas Cage, Monica Belluci, Jay Baruchel and Teresa Palmer

City of Angels starring Meg Ryan and Nicolas Cage

Knowing starring Nicolas Cage

Favorite Actors to Play Villains feat. Nicolas Cage, John Travolta and more

 

Other Posts on Ethan Hawke

Brooklyn’s Finest starring Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle

Cheating Celebrity Trivia: 8 Male Celebrities That Cheated (feat. Ethan Hawke, Jude Law, Kevin Costner and more)

Before Sunrise

Before Sunset

Reality Bites starring Ethan Hawke, Winona Ryder and Ben Stiller

Alias

Actors and Literature: Ethan Hawke, Hugh Laurie and Viggo Mortensen

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: andrew niccol, Bridget Moynahan, crime, drama, Ethan Hawke, ethan hawke movies, Jared Leto, lord of war, lord of war movie, movies, nicolas cage, nicolas cage movies, thriller

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