Review: Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel

I have been and always shall be, a science fiction fan (how big? I was paraphrasing a Star Trek line right then). But my love for the genre stretches well back into the golden age of sci-fi. Fredric Brown remains my favorite short story writer of all time. As you might imagine, I've seen a film or two on the subject. So any movie that pays homage to the classics is already a winner in my book. But even without that the movie is great on its own.

When Ray (Chris O'Dowd) gets fired, his two friends Toby (Marc Wootton) and Pete (Dean Lennox Kelly) attempt to cheer him up by taking him out to the pub. Along the way a conversation is struck up about sci-fi or SF as Ray demands it be called.  Toby, also a great fan of the genre, is an amateur screenwriter and always writing down ideas in his notebook. Pete, having no interest in the subject, prefers to take jabs at his two friends.

After a short argument over who'll be grabbing the next round of drinks, Ray leaves to get them. While carrying the drinks he encounters Cassie (Anna Faris) a time traveler whose job it is to fix time leaks. After a brief discussion about the laws of time travel Cassie explains she wanted to see Ray because he's famous in the future. All of this is told in flashbacks by Ray who believes his pals to be having a laugh on him.

Shortly after Pete visits the men's room in what is a setup to a hilarious scene later on. Upon exiting he finds himself transported into the future where everyone in the bar, including himself, is dead. In and out of the washroom again and he finds himself back in the present time where he convinces his friends to try it themselves. From there the film unwinds into a series of time loops that the three of them find themselves trapped in.

While there are some horrific moments, the film is very much a comedy. Chris O'Dowd who is better known for his comedic roles like Roy in The IT Crowd, shows that he's quite capable of handling the dramatic scenes equally well.  And while I'm not a huge fan of Anna Faris, she's excellent here. If she'd turn in less over the top performances like this one, I'd be inclined to watch more of her films. Meredith MacNeill, who I know from Man Stroke Woman, has a bit part towards the end that is both hilarious but also somewhat out of place.

For the most part the film is pretty straightforward. Anyone who has watched a time travel movie before will not be surprised by any of the twists. It's a very simple story that is more about the characters than dazzling  action. In fact rather then show some of what happens in a scene they have a character explaining things. Somewhat of a no no as far as story telling is concerned but in my opinion forgivable as undoubtedly that had to do with budgetary concerns. It's pretty obvious that the film was made for next to nothing. Which is not necessarily a bad thing.

On the negative I would say that some of the jokes fall flat. And while the time traveling manages to stay within reasonable logic throughout, it falls apart at the end where it seems like the writer just couldn't quite figure out how to wrap it up. There's also a bit of camp that is mixed in in small amounts that just doesn't fit with the tone of the rest of the film.

Overall this movie feels like a fun short story. It's light, breezy and very funny. There are plenty of homages that hardcore science fiction fans will love as well many gags even a casual fan of the genre will enjoy. Even with the flaws I give it an 8.5 out 10