Years into the future, meddling geneticists have managed to alter the aging process so that no one grows older than 25. Time can be transferred from person to person becoming a new currency, meaning that the wealthy can live forever and the poor die young. This unconventional but engaging premise is what we have come to expect from Sci-Fi director Andrew Niccol, a man responsible for works such as The Truman Show and Lord of War. Any avid fan of his work will be looking to In Time for the creativity and brilliance that demarcates a piece in his extensive cannon of work.
The film follows Will Salas (Justin Timberlake), a citizen of the impoverished time zone ‘Dayton’ who saves the affluent 105 year old Harry Hamilton (Matt Bomer) from a gang of thugs at a bar. After finding solace in an abandoned warehouse, Hamilton explains that he has lived for too long and offers to transfer the remaining time he has left to Salas.
Salas spends most of his time in this film on the run from the Timekeepers, an in-universe version of the FBI, while trying to distribute free time to the wider society. The ‘cat and mouse’ aspect of this film mostly sustains the plot’s momentum, but towards the end it wears thin.
Timberlake gives a commendable performance as Salas proving himself once again a capable actor. Other members of the instantly recognisable cast, which includes names such as Olivia Wilde and Amanda Seyfried, are solid throughout. It is, however, the always excellent Cillian Murphy who steals the show, putting in a solid performance as a hardened no-nonsense Timekeeper.
In Time is a film of two halves. It does explore some interesting social trends and there are some obvious comparisons with current class structures in society, but these issues are never fully explored and feel unanswered by the end of the film. It is a well shot and, at times, visually beautiful film but it does also suffer from huge plot holes and a somewhat overwhelming amount of poor, uneven dialogue. The general idea is undoubtably compelling and there are some fantastic chase scenes. In Time is let down, however, by the fact that the script often feels flat, especially towards the end when the film should be approaching its dramatic climax.
So, in short, In Time does not live up to Niccol’s previous works. It is an interesting concept with some occasionally inspiring moments but ultimately it fails to deliver.