#^12 Best Time-Travel Movies That Will Bend Your MindWe all love
movies about time travel!
Groundhog Day,
Terminator,
Back to the Future — classics that everyone knows. But today we will dig deeper, because behind these masterpieces there is a whole universe of films, where time paradoxes are twisted so wildly that the head spins! This article is your ticket to the cinema of unique, sometimes underrated, but definitely worth attention time travel movies that will surprise you with non-standard plots.
12 Noteworthy Movies About Time Travel: Orbital Today’s Ranking
Get ready, our time-travel movies list is compiled in ascending order of IMDB rating – from intriguing middling films to real masterpieces:
- 57 Seconds, 2023
- 17 Again, 2009
- The Time Traveler’s Wife, 2009
- Déjà Vu, 2006
- The Jacket, 2005
- Tenet, 2020
- Looper, 2012
- Predestination, 2014
- Source Code, 2011
- The Butterfly Effect, 2004
- Edge of Tomorrow, 2014
- 12 Monkeys, 1995
57 Seconds
Credit: highland film group/IMDB
IMDB: 5.4Imagine that you have a ring that allows to go back 57 seconds in time. What would you do? Blogger Franklin (Josh Hutcherson) gets such a chance when he saves the life of technology guru Anton Berrek (Morgan Freeman). At first, Franklin makes small changes for personal gain… but soon realizes that even tiny changes in time can cause a domino effect with unpredictable consequences.
If you are looking for good and recent time travel movies with a tech thriller twist, asking questions about responsibility and the impact of the past on the future,
57 Seconds is exactly what you need!
Interesting facts: The film is based on the short story “Stopwatch” by E.K. Tubb. Morgan Freeman was invited to play the role at the last moment before filming started.
17 Again
Credit: New Line Cinema/Chuck Zlotnick
IMDB: 6.4Life’s not going well? What if you were given a second chance to live it all over again, returning to your 17 years? That’s exactly what happens to Mike O’Donnell (Matthew Perry/Zac Efron) in this light fantasy comedy. Suddenly rejuvenated, Mike tries to correct the mistakes of the past, especially in his relationships with his family.
Of course, this is not hardcore science fiction, but the concept of time travel is here, which makes Again 17 an excellent representative of the cohort of time travel movies for kids… and for adults who are always young at heart and don’t mind taking a nostalgic trip to the past.
Interesting fact: Zac Efron said he was incredibly interested in playing a character who combines youthful enthusiasm and adult wisdom.
The Time Traveller’s Wife
IMDB: 7.1Get ready for a romantic story with a fantastic twist! Claire (Rachel McAdams) loves Henry (Eric Bana), but he has a rare disease called chronic deficiency. He involuntarily “jumps” in time, and Claire never knows when and at what age he will appear again. This makes their love a real test of time.
The film deeply explores the themes of love, loss and the fragility of our existence, deservedly getting into the category of best time travel romance movies.
Interesting facts: The film is based on the bestseller of the same name by Audrey Niffenegger. McAdams and Bana admitted that the most difficult thing was to show the emotional connection of the characters, given the non-linearity of their relationship.
Déjà Vu
Credit: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
IMDB: 7.1A terrible explosion on a ferry… FBI agent Doug Carlin (Denzel Washington) joins the investigation and learns about a secret technology that allows you to “look” into the past. But what if the past can not only be seen, but also changed? This question compromises the concept of time as it is.
A tense plot, unexpected twists – this is what people love about this film, and we deservedly included it in the list of top time travel movies!
Interesting facts: Filming took place in New Orleans after the Hurricane Katrina, and some of the destroyed areas were used as scenery. To create the effect of “three-dimensional” viewing of the past, special cameras were used, filming from different angles simultaneously.
The Jacket
Credit: Warner Independent Pictures/Summit Entertainment
IMDB: 7.1Jack Starks (Adrien Brody), a war veteran, suffers from amnesia and gets to a psychiatric hospital on false charges. There he is subjected to experimental therapy: strong drugs, a straitjacket, a morgue box… In this state, Jack begins to see the future, where he meets Jackie (Keira Knightley) and learns about his death.
The Jacket is not only a gripping and tense psychological thriller – it is definitely one of the best time travel horror movies, which will tickle your nerves with the realism of the protagonist’s visions of the future and the general atmosphere of hopelessness.
Interesting facts: The story by Jack London was taken as a basis, but with serious plot differences. The scenes in the psychiatric hospital were filmed in a real abandoned hospital, which added to the atmosphere.
Tenet
Credit: Warner Brothers
IMDB: 7.3Christopher Nolan is a master of intricate plots, and
Tenet is no exception! An unnamed CIA agent (John David Washington) tries to prevent World War III, encountering “time inversion” – the ability to move backwards.
Get ready for some dizzying action and an innovative approach to the topic of time! Fans of twisted pseudo-scientific plots consider Tenet to be a very good time travel movie of recent years, and we probably agree with them.
Interesting fact: Christopher Nolan chose to use practical effects instead of computer graphics. The actors really learned to move backwards for the scenes with inversion!
Looper
Credit: Sony Pictures
IMDB: 7.4The year of 2074. Time travel is a reality, but it is illegal. It is used by the mafia, sending victims into the past, where they are killed by “loopers” – special killers. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one of the best, but one day he is sent… himself from the future (Bruce Willis).
The unique plot, dynamics and moral dilemmas – all this gives
Looper an honoured place in our list of top time travel movies.
Interesting facts: Director Rian Johnson had been hatching the idea of the film for more than ten years! To make Joseph Gordon-Levitt look more like Bruce Willis, special makeup was used.
Predestination
Credit: Sony Pictures
IMDB: 7.4Time police agent (Ethan Hawke) is trying to prevent the last crime of his career – to catch a mysterious bomber hiding under the nickname “Schizophrenic”. He is thrown into the past, where he meets a novice writer named John (Sarah Snook). The story told by John turns out to be the key to the solution, but as events unfold, a tangle of time anomalies and paradoxes leads to a stunning discovery concerning not only the identity of the criminal but also the agent himself.
The film is based on the short story
All You Zombies by Robert Heinlein and is famous for its time loops, paradoxes and unexpected turns. If you are fond of good time travel movies with a really intricate plot,
Predestination is definitely for you!
Interesting fact: The film was shot entirely in Australia, and the actors Ethan Hawke and Sarah Snook, who played the main roles, are Australians.
Source Code
Credit: Summit Entertainment
IMDB: 7.5The captain Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up in another person’s body eight minutes before a train explodes. He is part of a secret program called Source Code, which allows him to relive the last minutes of his victim’s life in order to find the terrorist. Time passes, and each return to the past brings Colter closer to solving the mystery. A dynamic, tense thriller, deservedly included in the lists, thanks to its original idea.
Interesting fact: Director Duncan Jones was inspired by the films
Groundhog Day and the
Quantum Leap series. The concept of the film echoes the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics.
The Butterfly Effect
New Line Cinema
IMDB: 7.6Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher) suffers from memory lapses that turn out to be the ability to go back in time and change the events of his childhood. Trying to correct painful moments in his life and the lives of his loved ones, Evan makes seemingly minor adjustments to the past. However, each such intervention leads to unpredictable and often tragic consequences in the present, demonstrating how fragile and interconnected the timeline is.
Interesting fact: There are several endings to the film, including the director’s one — a gloomier and more uncompromising.
Edge Of Tomorrow
Credit: Warner Brothers
IMDB: 7.9The Earth is attacked by aliens. Major William Cage (Tom Cruise) gets caught in a time loop and is forced to relive the same battle over and over again, gradually becoming an experienced warrior and getting closer to resolving how to defeat the aggressive aliens. An excellent action movie with elements of science fiction and brilliant acting (Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt), and definitely the best time travel movie for the fans of action movies.
Interesting fact: The film is based on the Japanese novel
All you need is kill and was originally supposed to be called
Live. Die. Repeat, but Warner Bros made a choice in favor of more commercial title
The Edge of Tomorrow, leaving Live. Die. Repeat as a slogan for the film’s promotion.
12 Monkeys
Credit: Universal
IMDB: 8.0The year of 2035. The Earth is devastated by a virus. Prisoner James Cole (Bruce Willis) is sent back in time to find the source of the epidemic, presumably related to the mysterious group “Army of the twelve monkeys”. Director Terry Gilliam and the tandem of Willis and Pitt created an excellent atmospheric thriller, which has rightfully become one of the best time travel movies of all time!
Interesting facts: The film is inspired by the French short film
Runway. Brad Pitt received the Golden Globe for the best supporting actor in this film.
Let’s Embark On A Movie Journey Through Time!
This selection is just the tip of the iceberg. Time travel movies aren’t just spectacular blockbusters—they can also be profound dramas, gripping psychological thrillers, and even clever comedies. We hope our list of top time travel movies helps you explore new dimensions of this fascinating genre. Enjoy the journey!
References and Additional Information:
- imdb.com
- rottentomatoes.com
- metacritic.com
- bfi.org.uk/sightandsound
- https://www.gamesradar.com/totalfilm/
- hollywoodreporter.com
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12 Best Time-Travel Movies That Will Bend Your Mind appeared first on
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