Top Time Travel Films
What's your Favorite Time Travel Film that treats time travel in a thoughtful consistent way?
Discuss the list here
Discuss the list here
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- DirectorShane CarruthStarsShane CarruthDavid SullivanCasey GoodenFour friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.Certainly the cheapest to make! Buy the DVD or be prepared to stream it a few times to have a chance of following the storyline as intended; you'll need it.
- DirectorNacho VigalondoStarsKarra ElejaldeCandela FernándezBárbara GoenagaA man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.Perhaps a 'Primer'-lite, in terms of it's complexity, it's still a cut above grade-school time travel complexity in the remaining films on this list.
But a great film in its own right with a name and cover-art that would cause most people to pass it up. A shame, it's a super film.
Don't miss it. - DirectorTerry GilliamStarsSean ConneryShelley DuvallJohn CleeseA young boy accidentally joins a band of time travelling dwarves, as they jump from era to era looking for treasure to steal.One of the handful of films I've seen more than once, and the even smaller group that I had to own. Has everything I enjoy in a film - humor, drama, visual effects, and - of course - time travel.
- DirectorChris MarkerStarsÉtienne BeckerJean NégroniHélène ChatelainThe story of a man forced to explore his memories in the wake of World War III's devastation, told through still images.Not really a 'film', it's a short series of black and white shots. It's the inspiration for 12 Monkeys, so if you liked that you'll like this.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerLinda HamiltonMichael BiehnA cyborg assassin from the future attempts to find and kill Sarah Connor, a waitress who is destined to give birth to a man who will save humankind from extinction.Perfect.
- DirectorTerry GilliamStarsBruce WillisMadeleine StoweBrad PittIn a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.
- DirectorStephen HerekStarsKeanu ReevesAlex WinterGeorge CarlinTwo rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.
- DirectorStewart RaffillStarsMichael ParéNancy AllenEric ChristmasA United States Navy destroyer escort participates in a Navy "invisibility" experiment that inadvertently sends two sailors forty years into the future.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsMichael J. FoxChristopher LloydLea ThompsonMarty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown.The remainder in the series were good as well, but only one makes the list.
- DirectorHarold RamisStarsBill MurrayAndie MacDowellChris ElliottA narcissistic, self-centered weatherman finds himself in a time loop on Groundhog Day.Questionably a time-travel film, I included it because it has the essential elements.
- DirectorDon TaylorStarsRoddy McDowallKim HunterBradford DillmanThe world is shocked by the appearance of three talking chimpanzees, who arrived mysteriously in a U.S. spacecraft. They become the toast of society, but one man believes them to be a threat to the human race.
- DirectorJohn MayburyStarsAdrien BrodyKeira KnightleyDaniel CraigA Gulf war veteran is wrongly sent to a mental institution for insane criminals, where he becomes the object of a doctor's experiments, and his life is completely affected by them.A nice twist on the usual time travel fare. Suspenseful and nicely shot. Worth seeing.
- DirectorColin TrevorrowStarsAubrey PlazaMark DuplassJake JohnsonThree magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.A time-travel date movie. Not a great film, IMHO, but enjoyable and tight enough story to carry it along.
- DirectorRichard KellyStarsJake GyllenhaalJena MaloneMary McDonnellAfter narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a man in a large rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
- DirectorEric BressJ. Mackye GruberStarsAshton KutcherAmy SmartMelora WaltersEvan Treborn suffers blackouts during significant events of his life. As he grows up, he finds a way to remember these lost memories and a supernatural way to alter his life by reading his journal.
- DirectorChristopher SmithStarsMelissa GeorgeJoshua McIvorJack TaylorFive friends set sail and their yacht is overturned by a strange and sudden storm. A mysterious ship arrives to rescue them, and what happens next cannot be explained.
- DirectorDon TaylorStarsKirk DouglasMartin SheenKatharine RossA modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsBruce CampbellEmbeth DavidtzMarcus GilbertWhen Ash Williams is accidentally transported to 1300 A.D., he must retrieve the Necronomicon and battle an army of the dead in order to return home.
- DirectorFranklin J. SchaffnerStarsCharlton HestonRoddy McDowallKim HunterAfter being kept in hypersleep during a long expedition into deep space, an astronaut crew crash-lands in the 40th century on a planet where highly intelligent non-human ape species are dominant and humans are enslaved.
- DirectorSteve PinkStarsJohn CusackRob CorddryCraig RobinsonA malfunctioning time machine at a ski resort takes a man back to 1986 with his two friends and nephew, where they must relive a fateful night and not change anything to make sure the nephew is born.
- DirectorTom TykwerStarsFranka PotenteMoritz BleibtreuHerbert KnaupAfter a botched money delivery, Lola has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 Deutschmarks.
- DirectorGregory HoblitStarsDennis QuaidJim CaviezelShawn DoyleAn accidental cross-time radio link connects father and son across 30 years. The son tries to save his father's life, but then must fix the consequences.
- DirectorRian JohnsonStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittBruce WillisEmily BluntIn 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits - someone like Joe - who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.
- DirectorGeoff MurphyStarsEmilio EstevezMick JaggerRene RussoBounty hunters from the future transport a doomed race car driver to New York City in 2009, where his mind will be replaced with that of a dead billionaire.
- DirectorRobert DykeStarsVictor SlezakCaprice BenedettiVince GrantA story about a man who travels back in time to Fort Worth, Texas on November 22, 1963 and prevents the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.