The Time Traveler's Wife (film)
Encyclopedia
The Time Traveler's Wife is a 2009 romantic film based on Audrey Niffenegger
Audrey Niffenegger
Audrey Niffenegger is an American writer, artist and academic.-Writing:A film version of Niffenegger's debut novel, The Time Traveler's Wife , starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, was released in August 2009.She has also written a graphic novel, or "novel in pictures" as Niffenegger calls it,...

's 2003 novel of the same name
The Time Traveler's Wife
Once their timelines converge "naturally" at the library—their first meeting in his chronology—Henry starts to travel to Clare's childhood and adolescence in South Haven, Michigan, beginning in 1977 when she is six years old...

. Directed by Robert Schwentke
Robert Schwentke
Robert Schwentke is a German film director best known for the films Tattoo and Flightplan.He was a graduate of Columbia College Hollywood in 1992....

, the film stars Eric Bana
Eric Bana
Eric Bana is an Australian film and television actor. He began his career as a comedian in the sketch comedy series Full Frontal before gaining critical recognition in the biopic Chopper...

 as Henry DeTamble, a Chicago librarian with a genetic disorder that causes him to time travel
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...

 randomly as he tries to build a romantic relationship with his love Clare, played by Rachel McAdams
Rachel McAdams
Rachel Anne McAdams is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre program at York University, Toronto in 2001, she worked steadily as an actress until finding fame in 2004 with starring roles in teen comedy Mean Girls and romantic drama The Notebook...

.

Filming began in September 2007, originally in anticipation of a fall 2008 release. The film's release was postponed with initially no official explanation from the studio. McAdams later noted that the delay was due to additional scenes and reshoots that could not be completed until the season at their outdoor location matched previously filmed footage, and Bana had regrown his hair following his work on the 2009 film Star Trek. The film was released in theaters on August 14, 2009.

Plot

In the early 1970s, Henry DeTamble is in a car accident with his mother that results in her death. Henry survives by inadvertently time traveling back two weeks earlier to the scene. Moments later, Henry is helped by an older version of himself, who has also traveled back. Unable to control the timing or destinations of his traveling, Henry finds himself drawn to significant people, places, and events in his life but is incapable of changing events beyond the minor differences his presence creates.

In 1995, Henry meets Clare, who is overjoyed to see him although he is actually meeting her for the first time. Clare explains that she has known Henry for most of her life and that he is her best friend. They begin a relationship, which is challenged by Henry's disorder. His sporadic time traveling is further complicated by the fact that he is completely naked when he arrives at his destination, and from a young age he has learned how to pick locks and steal in order to acquire clothes and survive his travels. Among his getaways are many visits to young Clare; from present-day Clare's diary he gets a list of dates when he visited her, and gives those to young Clare so that she can be waiting for him with clothes. Falling in love, Henry and Clare eventually marry, though he actually time travels away before the ceremony and an older version of himself arrives in time to step in.

Henry's disappearances take their toll on his relationship with Claire. His disorder allows him to win the lottery by having the numbers in advance, but also makes having a child with Claire seemingly impossible, as Henry's genes cause their unborn fetuses to time travel. After numerous such miscarriages, Henry has a secret vasectomy
Vasectomy
Vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization and/or permanent birth control. During the procedure, the vasa deferentia of a man are severed, and then tied/sealed in a manner such to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream...

 to end their suffering. Claire soon gets pregnant one last time — by a visiting younger version of Henry — and is able to carry the baby full term. Henry travels forward in time before the child is born and meets their daughter Alba as a preteen; she tells him that she is a time traveler, too, but has increasing control over when and where she travels. She also tells Henry that he will die when she is five, a fact that Henry keeps from Claire upon his return to the present. Young Alba is visited sporadically by her preteen self, who ultimately tries to prepare the younger girl for Henry's death. A devastated Claire soon finds out what is to come. Later, Henry time travels and is shot by Claire's father as he hunts; he returns in time to die in Claire's arms. A younger Henry later visits Alba and Claire, giving Claire hope that he will visit again, but he tells her not to spend her life waiting for him.

Cast

  • Eric Bana
    Eric Bana
    Eric Bana is an Australian film and television actor. He began his career as a comedian in the sketch comedy series Full Frontal before gaining critical recognition in the biopic Chopper...

     as Henry DeTamble, a Chicago librarian
  • Rachel McAdams
    Rachel McAdams
    Rachel Anne McAdams is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre program at York University, Toronto in 2001, she worked steadily as an actress until finding fame in 2004 with starring roles in teen comedy Mean Girls and romantic drama The Notebook...

     as Clare DeTamble (née
    Married and maiden names
    A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....

     Abshire), an artist
  • Ron Livingston
    Ron Livingston
    Ronald Joseph "Ron" Livingston is an American film and television actor. His roles include a disaffected corporate employee in the film Office Space, a sardonic writer in a short-term relationship with Carrie Bradshaw in the TV show Sex and the City, and Captain Lewis Nixon in the miniseries...

     as Gomez, Claire and Henry's friend and Charisse's boyfriend
  • Jane McLean as Charisse, Claire's best friend and roommate
  • Stephen Tobolowsky
    Stephen Tobolowsky
    Stephen Harold Tobolowsky is an American actor. He is well known for his role as Ned Ryerson in Groundhog Day, as well as portraying Commissioner Hugo Jarry in Deadwood for nine episodes and Bob Bishop in Heroes for eleven episodes over the second and third seasons...

     as Dr. David Kendrick
  • Arliss Howard
    Arliss Howard
    Arliss Howard is an American actor, writer and film director.-Life and career:Howard was born in Independence, Missouri in 1954, and graduated from Truman High School and Columbia College at Columbia, Missouri. Howard established his career with stand-out roles in Full Metal Jacket and Ruby...

     as Richard DeTamble, Henry's father
  • Brooklynn Proulx
    Brooklynn Proulx
    Brooklynn Marie Proulx is a Canadian child actress. she was born in Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada and currently lives in Calgary, Alberta. Her first film was playing Paris Jackson in a film about popstar Michael Jackson....

     as Young Claire Abshire (ages 6 and 8)
  • Alex Ferris
    Alex Ferris
    Alexander "Alex" Ferris is a Canadian child actor. He currently stars on jPod as Connor Lefkowitz, and appeared in The Time Traveler's Wife as Young Henry DeTamble.Ferris was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...

     as Young Henry DeTamble (age 6)
  • Hailey McCann
    Hailey McCann
    Hailey McCann is an American teen actress. She is the older sister of child actress Tatum McCann.-Biography:Hailey was born in Riverside, California. She made her acting debut in the 2003 short film Give or Take an Inch...

     (ages 9 and 10) and Tatum McCann
    Tatum McCann
    Tatum Danielle McCann is an American child actress.McCann was born in Riverside, California. She started her career at the age of four doing several television commercials and playing a role on NYPD Blue, among other television shows. She made her movie debut on 2006 film Click as 5/6 year old...

     (ages 4 and 5) as Alba DeTamble, Henry and Claire's daughter
  • Michelle Nolden
    Michelle Nolden
    Michelle Nolden is a Canadian actress. She has appeared in numerous films and television shows including ZOS: Zone of Separation, Numb3rs, Street Time, Earth: Final Conflict, The Time Traveler's Wife, Men with Brooms, Republic of Doyle as well as directing and writing a film called Loonie...

     as Annette DeTamble, Henry's mother
  • Maggie Castle
    Maggie Castle
    Maggie Castle is a Canadian actress, most notable for her appearance in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Starstruck.-Filmography:-External links:...

     as Alicia Abshire, Claire's younger sister
  • Fiona Reid
    Fiona Reid
    Fiona Reid, CM is a Canadian television, film and stage actress. She is best known for her role as Cathy on the TV series King of Kensington....

     as Lucille Abshire, Claire's mother
  • Philip Craig
    Philip J. Craig
    Philip James Craig is a Canadian actor and politician. His film credits include Cinderella Man and The Time Traveler's Wife .- Career :...

     as Philip Abshire, Claire's father
  • Brian Bisson as Mark Abshire, Claire's brother

Production

The film rights for Audrey Niffenegger
Audrey Niffenegger
Audrey Niffenegger is an American writer, artist and academic.-Writing:A film version of Niffenegger's debut novel, The Time Traveler's Wife , starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams, was released in August 2009.She has also written a graphic novel, or "novel in pictures" as Niffenegger calls it,...

's 2003 novel The Time Traveler's Wife
The Time Traveler's Wife
Once their timelines converge "naturally" at the library—their first meeting in his chronology—Henry starts to travel to Clare's childhood and adolescence in South Haven, Michigan, beginning in 1977 when she is six years old...

were optioned by Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Joanna Aniston is an American actress, film director, and producer, best known for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom Friends, a role which earned her an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.Aniston has also enjoyed a successful film career,...

 and Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...

's production company Plan B Entertainment
Plan B Entertainment
Plan B Entertainment is a film production company founded by Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, and Jennifer Aniston. In 2006, Pitt became the sole owner; the company currently holds a release deal with Paramount Pictures, along with Warner Bros...

, in association with New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...

, before her work was even published. Niffenegger stated in an interview that she had thoughts of how a film version of the book would appear, as she was writing the book. When asked about the prospect of her novel being turned into a film, Niffenegger said, "I've got my little movie that runs in my head. And I'm kind of afraid that will be changed or wiped out by what somebody else might do with it. And it is sort of thrilling and creepy, because now the characters have an existence apart from me."

In September 2003, the studio hired screenwriter Jeremy Leven
Jeremy Leven
Jeremy Leven is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and novelist. Born in South Bend, Indiana, Leven lives in Woodbridge, Connecticut, Nantucket, and Paris....

 to write an adapted screenplay of the novel. Directors Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...

 and David Fincher
David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher is an American film and music video director. Known for his dark and stylish thrillers, such as Seven , The Game , Fight Club , Panic Room , and Zodiac , Fincher received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and...

 briefly expressed interest in the project, though no negotiations took place. In March 2005, director Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant, Jr. is an American director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author. He is a two time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director for his 1997 film Good Will Hunting and his 2008 film Milk, both of which were also nominated for Best Picture, and won the...

 entered negotiations with the studio to helm the project. The negotiations did not hold, and in November 2006, director Robert Schwentke
Robert Schwentke
Robert Schwentke is a German film director best known for the films Tattoo and Flightplan.He was a graduate of Columbia College Hollywood in 1992....

 was instead hired to take over the project.

In January 2007, New Line hired screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin
Bruce Joel Rubin
Bruce Joel Rubin is a screenwriter best known for the supernatural romance, Ghost for which he won the 1991 Oscar for Best Original Screenplay...

 to rewrite Leven's script. Eric Bana
Eric Bana
Eric Bana is an Australian film and television actor. He began his career as a comedian in the sketch comedy series Full Frontal before gaining critical recognition in the biopic Chopper...

 and Rachel McAdams
Rachel McAdams
Rachel Anne McAdams is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre program at York University, Toronto in 2001, she worked steadily as an actress until finding fame in 2004 with starring roles in teen comedy Mean Girls and romantic drama The Notebook...

 were cast in April 2007. Filming began in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 on September 10, 2007. It was also shot in Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...

. The film was originally planned for a fall 2008 release, but it was postponed with no official explanation from the studio. When asked about the delay, McAdams said, "We wound up doing a reshoot, and Eric was the holdup ... He had to shave his head for a different role, for Star Trek, I think. ...We did an additional scene in the meadow, so we were also waiting on the meadow to look the way it did [the first time we shot]. So we were waiting on the seasons. Basically we were waiting on nature and Eric's hair." The film was released by Warner Brothers on August 14, 2009.

Music

The score to The Time Traveler's Wife was composed by Mychael Danna
Mychael Danna
Mychael Danna is a Canadian film composer.-Life and career:Mychael Danna is the brother of fellow composer Jeff Danna. He has been scoring films since his 1987 feature debut for Atom Egoyan's Family Viewing, a score which earned Danna the first of his thirteen Genie Award nominations. He has won...

, who recorded his score with the Hollywood Studio Symphony
Hollywood Studio Symphony
The Hollywood Studio Symphony is the credited name of the symphony orchestra behind many major soundtracks, including The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Sucker Punch, Jurassic Park 3, Last Samurai, Pirates of the Caribbean, We Are Marshall, Spider-Man 2, Lost and The...

 at the Ocean Way Studios during the fall of 2008.
The trailer featured the song "Broken
Broken (Lifehouse song)
"Broken" is a song by American alternative band Lifehouse. It is the third single released from their fourth studio album, Who We Are . The song was written by Lifehouse lead singer Jason Wade, who was inspired to write the song after he visited a friend in Nashville who needed a kidney transplant...

" by Lifehouse
Lifehouse (band)
Lifehouse is an American rock band from Los Angeles. The band came to mainstream prominence in 2001 with the hit single "Hanging by a Moment" from their debut studio album, No Name Face. The single won a Billboard Music Award for Hot 100 Single of the Year, beating out Janet Jackson and Alicia...

, which is within in the film and the promotional music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

. A television commercial for the film featured the song "Show Me What I'm Looking For" by Carolina Liar
Carolina Liar
Carolina Liar is a Swedish alternative rock band. Lead vocalist Chad Wolf is originally from Charleston, South Carolina, but the band and most of its members originate from Sweden....

, although it was not included within the soundtrack. The film also features a cover of Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...

's "Love Will Tear Us Apart
Love Will Tear Us Apart
"Love Will Tear Us Apart" is a song by the British post-punk band Joy Division. It was written in August and September 1979, and debuted when the band supported Buzzcocks on their UK tour in September and October 1979. It is one of the few songs in which singer Ian Curtis played guitar...

" performed by Canadian indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

 band Broken Social Scene
Broken Social Scene
Broken Social Scene is a Canadian indie rock band, a musical collective including as few as six and as many as nineteen members, formed in 1999 by Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning. Most of its members currently play in various other groups and solo projects, mainly based around the city of Toronto...

.

The official motion picture soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...

 was released on August 11, 2009 and available to download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...

 from Amazon (MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...

 format) or iTunes (MPEG-4
MPEG-4
MPEG-4 is a method of defining compression of audio and visual digital data. It was introduced in late 1998 and designated a standard for a group of audio and video coding formats and related technology agreed upon by the ISO/IEC Moving Picture Experts Group under the formal standard ISO/IEC...

 format) by New Line Records
New Line Records
WaterTower Music is an American record label owned by Time Warner and operates as a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment. Founded to release movie soundtracks, the label has grown beyond this initial purpose and has built a roster of indie rock acts such as The Sounds, OFFICE, Robbers on High...

, along with a digital booklet in portable document format
Portable Document Format
Portable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....

 which summarizes the credits of the album along with screenshots and other promotional images of the film. A pressed compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

 version was released by Decca Records, but is generally only available from vendors outside the US. See Amazon.co.uk for availability.

Music from the Motion Picture

  1. "Es Ist Ein Ros
    Es ist ein Ros entsprungen
    "Es ist ein Ros entsprungen" , most commonly translated to English as "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming" or "A Spotless Rose", is a Christmas carol and Marian Hymn of German origin.-History:...

    " – 0:51
  2. "I'm You Henry" – 2:30
  3. "Meadow" – 3:19
  4. "How Does It Feel?" – 1:59
  5. "Diary" – 1:21
  6. "Train" – 1:43
  7. "I Don't Feel Alone Anymore" – 2:22
  8. "Love Will Tear Us Apart
    Love Will Tear Us Apart
    "Love Will Tear Us Apart" is a song by the British post-punk band Joy Division. It was written in August and September 1979, and debuted when the band supported Buzzcocks on their UK tour in September and October 1979. It is one of the few songs in which singer Ian Curtis played guitar...

    " - Performed by Broken Social Scene
    Broken Social Scene
    Broken Social Scene is a Canadian indie rock band, a musical collective including as few as six and as many as nineteen members, formed in 1999 by Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning. Most of its members currently play in various other groups and solo projects, mainly based around the city of Toronto...

     – 4:44
  9. "Married to Me" – 1:04
  10. "Home" – 1:36
  11. "Do You Know When?" – 2:09
  12. "Testing" – 1:04
  13. "Alba" – 2:33
  14. "I Never Had a Choice" – 2:58
  15. "Who Would Want That" – 2:29
  16. "I Left Him Sleeping" – 1:30
  17. "It's a Girl" – 2:58
  18. "Five Years" – 2:03
  19. "Try to Stay" – 1:40
  20. "New Year's Eve" 1:55
  21. "No Tracks in the Snow" – 1:48
  22. "See You Again" – 5:42
  23. "Broken
    Broken (Lifehouse song)
    "Broken" is a song by American alternative band Lifehouse. It is the third single released from their fourth studio album, Who We Are . The song was written by Lifehouse lead singer Jason Wade, who was inspired to write the song after he visited a friend in Nashville who needed a kidney transplant...

    " - Performed by Lifehouse
    Lifehouse (band)
    Lifehouse is an American rock band from Los Angeles. The band came to mainstream prominence in 2001 with the hit single "Hanging by a Moment" from their debut studio album, No Name Face. The single won a Billboard Music Award for Hot 100 Single of the Year, beating out Janet Jackson and Alicia...

     – 4:47


Songs appearing in the film not included with the release of the soundtrack
  • "Show Me What I'm Looking For" - Performed by Carolina Liar
    Carolina Liar
    Carolina Liar is a Swedish alternative rock band. Lead vocalist Chad Wolf is originally from Charleston, South Carolina, but the band and most of its members originate from Sweden....

     – 4:00
  • "Clocks
    Clocks (song)
    "Clocks" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. Built around a piano riff, the song features cryptic lyrics of contrast and urgency themes. Several remixes of the track exist and its riff...

    " - Performed by Coldplay
    Coldplay
    Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

     – 5:07
  • "Gone to Earth" - Performed by American Analog Set – 7:03

Critical response

The film has received mixed reviews from critics. Based on 130 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...

, The Time Traveler's Wife has a 38% approval rating from critics, with an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...

 score of 5.2/10 saying, "Though it may satisfy fans of the novel, The Time Traveler's Wife's plot contrivances and illogical narrative hamper its big screen effectiveness". Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...

, another review aggregator which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 top reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film an average score of 45 based on 29 reviews.

Box office

The film opened third behind District 9
District 9
District 9 is a 2009 South African science fiction thriller film directed by Neill Blomkamp. It was written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham. The film stars Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, and David James...

and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, grossing $19.2 million on its opening weekend. Grossing $101,229,792 worldwide (over $63,000,000 of which was grossed in the United States) on a $39,000,000 budget, the film was a financial success.

See also

  • "The Man Who Folded Himself
    The Man Who Folded Himself
    The Man Who Folded Himself is a 1973 science fiction novel by David Gerrold that deals with time travel. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1973 and the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1974...

    " (1973), a novel by David Gerrold with contorted and finally close-looped timelines.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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