Time travelling lawyers? In a romantic comedy? With a back catalogue of writing that consists of Love Actually and Four Weddings and a funeral this is not the usual Richard Curtis fare. But you’ll be ever so thankful that the man came up with his notion.
Starring Domhnall Gleeson (make sure its spelt right) and Rachel McAdams, About Time tells the story of Tim who at the age of 21, after a disastrous New Years eve party, discovers he can travel back in time after a little chat with his father (Bill Nighy). Dad reveals a long time family secret that all in the men in the family can do. Unlike Marty McFly, theres no driving like at 88mph with fire and lighting. Time travelling here is as simple as going into a dark place (cupboards are popular), clenching your fists and thinking back to a particular moment. And without a flux capacitor in sight, you’re back to that spot. Instead of seeking fame and fortune by travelling back in time, Tim decides to go on a quest for love and subsequently finds Mary (Rachel McAdams). After numerous attempts at wooing Mary, things start progressing and the movie drops a little secret or two, that for fear of riots, I won’t go into here.
About Time features an incredibly solid cast. While Rachel McAdams puts in a decent performance, and while it times she feels underused, Curtis has got the right balance with her.About Time really explores the father / son relationship and Bill Nighy is rather fantastic with witty dialogue and is completely convincing as a father harbouring a pretty incredibly talent. And that leads us onto Domhnall Gleeson. From the opening minutes, Gleeson simply mesmerises on screen. His performance is nothing short of stunning and to his credit, he’s rather perfected the accent and not once would you suspect his Irish routes. Simply put, Gleeson has arrived and this is his best performance to date. Supporting cast are also spot on with Tom Hollander and Joshua McGuire being particularly memorable.
Things start drifting a little bit in the middle act, with a number of scenes that only seem to add to the running time and thus are a bit underdeveloped But its the third and final act that delivers time and time again and packs a pretty powerful emotional punch. While it falls short of being an absolute classic, About Time is genuinely one of the better movies of the year. Domhnall Gleeson is phenomenal and worth the price of admission alone. Overall, this will warm the coldest of souls. Poignant, funny and touching filmmaking that will have you thinking for days after, About Time is a must see!
