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"THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE" (2009) (Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams) (PG-13) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Moderate Heavy Moderate Heavy Moderate Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Heavy Moderate Mild None Moderate Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Heavy None Heavy Heavy Moderate QUICK TAKE: Sci-fi/Romance: A Chicago woman tries to cope with the comings and goings of her husband, who has a rare genetic disorder that causes him to involuntarily time travel. PLOT: Henry DeTamble (ERIC BANA) discovers at an early age that he has the power to time travel. He narrowly escapes a fiery car crash that claims his mother's (MICHELLE NOLDEN) life and is promptly greeted by his adult self as they watch the crash happen from a distance. Young Henry learns that his condition is a genetic one that he can't control. During one time-shift as an adult, he is deposited into a bucolic meadow where he meets 6-year-old Clare (BROOKLYNN PROULX), who sees him as a sort of magic man and falls instantly in love. Years later, an adult Clare (RACHEL McADAMS) sees an even younger Henry than the one she first met as a child working in a Chicago library. She decides to tell him of their amazing past together. They fall in love, let a few friends and family members in on Henry's secret (most notably, mutual pal Gomez played by RON LIVINGSTON), and ultimately get married. The marriage, though, proves hard on Clare. She doesn't know when Henry will be there or when he'll leave. She often spends holidays alone. But her love for him is great, and she wants to have Henry's child. But each time they conceive, Clare miscarries because the fetus carries the same genetic anomaly as Henry. At the same time, the couple is haunted by a brief episode in which a bloody Henry time-travels into their living room, suffering from a fatal gunshot would. Just as quick as he arrives, he then disappears leaving them shaken and wondering how much time they still have together. Henry fears for Clare's future and his own and subsequently takes drastic steps to protect her. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teen girls will likely go for the romance, while some teen boys may find the time-traveling element a draw. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13 For thematic elements, brief disturbing images, nudity and sexuality. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: ERIC BANA plays a Chicago librarian who is afflicted with a rare genetic disorder that causes him to involuntarily travel through time. One of the things that triggers his time shifts is when he drinks alcohol. RACHEL McADAMS plays an artist from a wealthy family who falls in love with and marries Henry, then has difficulties carrying his child on account of the genetic anomaly. ARLISS HOWARD plays Henry's violinist father, who has grieved for years since the death of his wife and has turned to alcohol to ease his pain. MICHELLE NOLDEN plays Henry's mother, an opera singer who dies in a car crash when Henry is just a child - an event that triggers his first time shift. RON LIVINGSTON plays a close friend of Henry and Clare's, who becomes aware of Henry's secret and offers his support over the years. PHILIP CRAIG plays Clare's father, a wealthy man who hunts deer and other animals for sport. HAILEY AND TATUM McCANN play Henry and Clare's daughter at the ages of 9 and 5, respectively. She has the same time-travel gene as her father, but she learns to control her time jumps by singing. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this sci-fi/romance that has been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of at least 7 "s" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered. The beginnings of some sex scenes are presented, as is some brief nudity. Violence consists of a graphic and fatal car accident, one character being shot, an alley fistfight, and some brief police brutality. The gunshot would is briefly, but graphically displayed as are the consequences of hypothermia on character's legs. Some bad attitudes and potentially imitative behavior are present, but most of it is done in the name of survival. When Henry time-travels, his clothes don't go with him. So, he has to re-acquire clothes by any means necessary. Drinking is also present, but no smoking, while tense family material also occurs. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, the film opens with a disorienting crash sequence on a snowy night with blurred windshields and camera angles. Henry's time-travel effect shows him disappearing gradually and is often accompanied by streaming sunlight. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Henry pours whiskey in his cup of coffee at a diner. Henry has wine bottles both empty and full in his apartment. Gomez and his girlfriend serve Henry and Clare wine during dinner. Henry comes to learn that one of the things that triggers his time jumps is alcohol consumption, so he stops drinking. Henry's father is a heavy drinker who pours liquor into his coffee (it might have been tea) just like Henry. Clare's father serves what looks like brandy or some other liquor during dinner. Henry tells Gomez that he took a valium pill on his wedding day to help him not time-travel. Champagne and other spirits are served at Henry and Clare's wedding. A glass of champagne is visible on the nightstand on Clare and Henry's first honeymoon night. BLOOD/GORE Henry's face hits the car seat in front of him, causing a bloody gash in his cheek. Henry's cheek is badly bruised after he is slammed down hard on a police squad car. Henry, bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound to his stomach, briefly time-shifts into Henry and Clare's home. Clare suffers two bloody miscarriages, one in a restaurant and the other at home in bed. The second time, Henry is with her and gets blood on his fingers and hand. The graphic after-effects of hypothermia on Henry's legs are briefly shown. Bloody snow is visible to a couple of hunters who can't find the prey one of them just shot. One character bleeds to death as family and friends gather around. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Henry pages through Clare's diary without her consent, looking for clues and past dates of his various time travels. Henry visits Clare as a child and asks her to steal some of her father's clothes so he'll have something to wear. Henry, with Gomez, breaks into a shop after hours to steal clothes. Henry steals a man's wallet, takes the cash from it, and then discards it. Henry uses his time-traveling abilities to cheat and win a $5 million lottery. Henry gets a vasectomy without consulting Clare, leading to a very bitter argument in which Clare questions their entire life together. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence," "Blood/Gore" and "Jump Scenes" may be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. A car accident in which Henry's mother meets a fiery death is seen from multiple angles. The original event plays out in slow-mo as Annette tries to avoid a first crash only to collide with the 18-wheeler. An older Henry briefly time-travels into a dinner party thrown by Henry and Clare. He is bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound and gasping in pain. A few seconds later, he time-travels again leaving both Henry and Clare shaken and questioning their future together. Clare is shown giving birth to Alba with the usual loud cries and grunts heard during a normal delivery. GUNS/WEAPONS Cops are shown with holstered service weapons. Clare's father shoots skeet with a hunting rifle. A hunter accidentally shoots a man with a rifle instead of a deer while on a hunt. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Oh, sh*t," "Sh*t," "You're full of sh*t," "I'm a pain in the ass," "What the hell?" "What in the hell is going on?" "Get back here, you son of a bitch," "You idiot," and "Frikkin.'" Henry convinces a pre-teen Clare to steal some of her father's clothes so he'll have something to wear. Henry breaks a car window to steal clothes. Henry breaks into a shop after hours to steal clothes. Henry steals a man's wallet, takes the cash from it, and then discards it. Henry teaches his 5-year-old daughter how to pick a lock. Alba goes looking for Christmas presents, picks a closet lock, and finds them, spoiling the mystery of Santa. JUMP SCENES Henry's mother swerves to avoid one car on an icy road only to put her and Henry in the path of an oncoming truck. A time-traveling Henry watches the crash from outside the car, as the semi smacks into the car with his mother, causing it to explode. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A fair amount of tense and rather melancholy music occurs in the film to heighten the tension and drama in Henry's travels and travails through time. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 7 "s" words, 5 asses (1 used with "hole"), 4 hells, 1 damn, 1 S.O.B., 2 uses of "Oh my God," 1 use each of "Christ, I'm sorry," "G-damn," "Jesus," "Jesus Christ," and "My God." SEX/NUDITY When Henry travels through time, his clothes stay behind. When he reappears, he is naked. Most of the time, he is shown from the waist up. But we do see his bare buttocks after one of his first time-shifts in the film and then a second time (very briefly) later in the film. Clare and Henry passionately kiss and Henry fondles Clare's breasts underneath her shirt, leading to off-screen sex. Clare reveals her bare buttocks the following morning as she gets up from bed. A sheet covers Henry. Henry's is shown naked from behind as he walks towards Clare in bed and gets under the covers with her. Henry gets a vasectomy without consulting Clare. Clare and Henry begin to have clothed sex in a parking lot, with Clare on top. The scene cuts before any actual thrusting occurs. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES A car driven by Henry's mother with a six-year-old Henry in the backseat careens out of control on an icy road and is obliterated by an oncoming semi. Henry time-shifts out of the vehicle just before the fiery explosion, but his mom is trapped inside. As a little girl, Clare shares with Henry that her parents are having problems and appear headed for a divorce. Henry assures her that her mom and dad do eventually work things out and stay together. Henry's father is depressed and distant in the year's following his wife's death and doesn't understand why Henry can't change the past and save her. Henry gets a vasectomy without consulting Clare, leading to a very bitter argument in which Clare questions their entire life together. An older Henry briefly time-travels into a dinner party thrown by Henry and Clare. He is bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound and gasping in pain. A few seconds later, he time-travels again leaving both Henry and Clare shaken and questioning their future together. Henry convinces his 5-year-old daughter not to tell Clare that he will be dying soon. But Clare gets it out of the girl anyway. From outside his living room window, a time-traveling Henry witnesses what he believes to be his own demise with his wife, daughter and friends gathered around him as he bleeds to death on the floor of his home. Henry and Clare run across a meadow to try and kiss before Henry time-travels away. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT The death of a parent when the child is so young. How married couples cope when one spouse is away for long stretches of time. Knowing future and past events, but being helpless to stop them. The perils of hunting. The hidden, untapped power of the human brain -- what is known and not known? VIOLENCE A car driven by Henry's mother with a six-year-old Henry in the car careens out of control on an icy road and is obliterated by an oncoming semi. Henry time-shifts out of the vehicle just before the fiery explosion, but his mom is trapped inside. Cops slam Henry's head and torso down hard on the hood of their squad car as they arrest him. Henry gets involved in a fairly violent fistfight in an alley in which he pretty much pummels the man attacking him with his fists. Clare slaps Henry hard across the face. A hunter accidentally shoots a man with a rifle instead of a deer while on a hunt. We later see the bloody results on that wounded man. Reviewed August 12, 2009 / Posted August 14, 2009

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