Review: In Time (2011)

“Time is gold.” Cliché much?

In a future where the aging gene has been switched off, people don’t age past 25. To prevent overpopulation, time becomes the currency used to pay for necessities and luxuries. It is a world where the rich live forever, and the poor die young. This is the world of In Time, a new film by Andrew Niccol starring Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, and Cillian Murphy.

The film revolves around the character Will Salas, played by Justin Timberlake. I last saw Justin Timberlake in The Social Network. All I can say is Timberlake can act.

Poor boy meets rich girl Sylvia Weis, played by Amanda Seyfried. I last saw Seyfried in Red Riding Hood. She played different kinds of roles in her past films, and she played them well. However, I wondered, “How did she run in those heels?”

Cillian Murphy (Inception) plays a Timekeeper–a kind of cop. Will’s best friend is played by Johnny Galecki (Leonard of The Big Bang Theory), the rich “villain” is played by Vincent Kartheiser (Angel), the mysterious man that started it all is played by Matt Bomer (White Collar), and Olivia Wilde (House) is Will’s mom. What can I say? The casting is great! I am familiar with and loved these actors in their previous works.

What I loved about this film is it made me think, but at the same time, it kept me on the edge of my seat. The film runs for almost 2 hours (real-time), but you won’t notice it. The characterizations are used well to move the plot further between action sequences. And since this film is about time used as currency, no time was wasted.

People familiar with science fiction films can draw parallels and similarities with works like Logan’s Run and the director’s previous work, Gattaca. There are also parallels to real-world events like Occupy Wall Street.

A character from the film asked, “If you had as much time as I have, what would you do with it?” My answer would be, “I’ll make the most of it.”

In Time opens in cinemas today, October 28.

: http://promdigeek.blogspot.com/2011/10/review-in-time-2011.html