There’s a certain group of people who fall prey to the endless romantic clichés that Richard Curtis (writer for Notting Hill, Bridget Jones’ Diary, director of the film that started the seasons of gush trend, Love Actually) spews out, and I am not ashamed to admit that I fall into that group.  I love how he writes such unrealistically nice things happen to unrealistically nice characters.  It’s escapism at it’s very British best.

I chanced upon About Time last Saturday afternoon during the cursory mindless channel flicking search and figured that hey, I’m finally going to get to see the start of this film (I saw the last third a few months back).  It was a lazy day and I parked the channel on HBO and sat back.

The premise of the film is quite unique: when Tim (Domhnall Gleeson – Frank) turns 21, he is sat down by his father (Bill Nighy – I, Frankenstein) and told that all the males in their family have the capability to travel through time.  With certain limitations, of course, like they can only go back to their own timelines and the time traveling must be done in a dark place while clenching both fists.  Disbelieving at first, Tim is quite shocked to find that his dad wasn’t just pulling his leg. So what does Tim use his newfound power for?  To find a girlfriend, of course!

First of all I would like to commend the filmmakers’ choice for casting Rachel McAdams (Sherlock Homes: A Game of Shadows) as Mary, Tim’s shy and sweet love interest, because Rachel McAdams, as gorgeous as she is, can really play ordinary girls well.  In the film’s trivia page, it says that they initially cast Zooey Deschanel and I think that her quirkiness would’ve been too much of a distraction for a story like this.

Tim’s relationship with his father was probably the more important relationship in the movie, with the romance just being on the side, and Domhnall Gleeson and Bill Nighy really upped up the ante by playing father and son so believably well.  We’re only given a few glimpses of them together on screen but their easy exchanges and banters really cemented the fact that Tim’s dad was the most important person in his life.

This being a Richard Curtis film, all members of the supporting cast were exceptionally talented at pulling at the audiences’ heartstrings.  Lindsay Duncan, (Birdman: Or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) who played Tim’s Mum, stole the show during the funeral scene and Richard Cordery (Les Miserables), as the impeccably well-dressed but a little bit loose in the head Uncle D, had his heartbreaking moments during his awkward outbursts.  I especially liked Lydia Wilson’s (Never Let Me Go) portrayal of Kit Kat, the lovable screw up of the family, because she played it in such a way that suggests that maybe some people just see the world in a tilted angle.  I was also shocked to see that Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street) played Tim’s first love Charlotte.  Damn, no wonder Hollywood took notice of her!

Of course not everything in the film was perfect; Tom Hollander (Bedrooms and Hallways) who plays the acerbic and disillusioned roommate was obviously there just because he was a good friend of the director.  While he was able to play the part well, it sort of feels like they expanded the character’s story to fit the actor’s status.  Also the ‘super power’ idea’ was set up so flimsily that it collapsed under the weight of inconsistencies and plot holes upon the slightest scrutiny.  Better to leave your sense of logic behind if you’re going to watch this movie; science has no room here.

All in all I quite enjoyed Richard Curtis’ About Time.  It was a simple story with a rather ridiculous premise and a valuable lesson at the end.  Performances were subtle but effective and the film was shot in such a way that everything looked gorgeous and clean and fresh.  I highly recommend this movie.  If you liked Love Actually, you’re going to love this one.

Rating: 8/10.

*All photos are from the film’s official IMDB page.