Somewhere in Time (1980)

If Stephen King, the master of horror and suspense, would ever delve into the world of romance, I suspect that this would be the kind of film he would make.By combining a Titanic-like romance with a time-travel angle usually reserved for science fiction, this film is unique right from the start. Instead of boring viewers with time-travel technobabble explanations, though, "Somewhere In Time" uses it only as a plot device, not the MAIN event. Essentially, the core of the movie has very little to do with time-travel...time-travel is only the vehicle through which the story can come forward.I will not reveal any plot details, so as not to spoil your experience with this film, but the plot is very engaging. It will have romantics reaching for the tissue box and less-romantic viewers marveling at the subtle plot nuances.The acting in this film is also terrific. Christopher Reeve is spot-on as a "normal guy" (much like his Clark Kent of "Superman" fame) who does his best under abnormal circumstances, while Jane Seymour is the epitome of classical beauty.Overall, this is a film that everyone can enjoy. Women will be wooed by the romance and the handsomeness of Reeve, while men can relate to Reeve's "everyman" character and be fascinated by the time-travel angle. This is a perfect date movie that will leave everyone happy!

"Somewhere in Time" is an excellent film that combines Time Travel with romance, using an interesting and unique idea involving hypnotizing your mind to believe you are actually in that moment in history. If you can avoid analyzing the rationality of time travel and suspend your disbelief, this film will be very enjoyable for you. The idea of traveling back through time to find your soulmate is something both men and women can believe in. It is to the credit of the performances of the leads, Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, that the viewer believes that such a thing is possible. Reeve and Seymour also look well together and have obvious chemistry, making their love affair entirely believable. Especially with their first kiss, there is a deep and passionate love that seems entirely real. The third element is the acting of Christopher Plummer, who is always excellent and quite effective here as the overprotective manager of Seymour's character. But, there are two more elements that contributes greatly to the atmosphere of the film - the moving music composed by John Barry, and the Grand Hotel where most of the movie is set. The handsome and expressive Reeve, the calm beauty of Seymour, the brooding and calculating Plummer, the romantic and moving music and the timeless presence of the Grand Hotel combine into a magical film for the hopeless romantic.The movie is slow paced, but has some very touching moments. I love the scene of their first meeting when Elise says, "Is it you?" It contains a minimal amount of swearing (religious in nature) and also the ending love scene, although tastefully done, may cause it to be inappropriate for children under 12. I personally prefer the Hallmark movie, The Love Letter, which has a similar theme but is more appropriate for all ages. It is not surprising that this movie has become a cult classic, with fans meeting every October at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Michigan, where the story takes place and was filmed. It was also filmed in Chicago. However, the towering success of this film is in its managing to bring light to the this elevated plane of a grand romance, so rare that most of us never even see it for ourselves in a lifetime, much less experience it. We all yearn for it. It is the aerial dream of souls that have evolved to subtle levels of discernment.Overall rating: 9 out of 10.

He spend years looking for this film, look on the premise: Christopher Reeve + Time Travel. But once I found it and saw it ... everything changed. I felt ripped off (although I found it cheap on 2nd hand DVD) and completely disappointed. I know this review will have many "dislikes" but I do not care, that's what I felt when I saw it. It is THE WORST TIME TRAVIEL MOVIE I'VE EVER SEEN. Look, I've seen all kinds of methods to travel back in time: Cars, telephone booths, XIXs machines, doors, necklaces, family heritage, etc. But when I saw that in this film: You can travel in time with SUGGESTION... No I couldn't believe it. No, I'm not kidding. And all this comes from the mind of novelist Richard Matheson (creator of "I Am Legend" and "The Incredible Shrinking Man" among many others).It turns out that our lead (Christopher Reeve) advised by his former philosophy teacher, tells him that only repeating to himself again and again, that we're on "X" date, you're gonna go to that date. We suggestion our mind and is eventually it send you back in time. Besides being clearly impossible... It's ridiculous! It's like saying that if we rub our hands we can get that our body begins to fly. Or if we hit very strong two bronze horns'll open an inter-dimensional gate... Ridiculous and impossible to develop a strong plot. This is what happens to this movie.Above all, it is a romantic drama, no one intended to make it a science-fiction movie. The script is an overdose of teenage love. He reminded me that even the "Twilight" saga, boy and girl who fall in love and no one thinks carefully about the consequences of their relationship, because they are too immature and stupid to think about it. Reeve falls in love with a 1912 photography of an actress. A photo!. Although everything begins with the scene of the old woman giving him the watch and her line "Come back to me" just start the movie. It is not until it gets to investigate (obsessively) that photo, that you just discover that the girl in the picture and the old woman are the same person (without seeing the trailer and I knew I could happened). So he decides to do everything possible to travel back in time from 1980 to 1912, from the same hotel where she was 68 years ago. Suprisely, he discovers that he really traveled back in time, when he finds (in less than 2 minutes) the 1912 guest-book to find that his name was inscribed on it. So, the fact is that after hours repeating the message... Reeve's MADE IT (Duh) and he travels back to 1912 to meet and hang out with her (Elise). And just in a day, he will conquering her and make her fall in love with him. A stranger who behaves like a slimy stalker. It seems to me that it will never works in the real world, but i worked here...My conclusion: An immature script, not only by a central shaft that sinks from since the beginning, but also the characters and the purely adolescent brat plot. Best thing in the film: Christopher Reeve and the score. The rest sucks.Ah the 4 is because the performance of the actors but would be a 2. Which by the way, in the making of the film, even the director himself said that he didn't know how it would sell the story to any producer knowing how the main character travels in time...

When I first watched The English Patient, I absolutely hated HATED Hated ! it. Then I watched it again and really REALLY liked it ! Perhaps Somewhere in Time is like that ? I have read some of the user reviews and it surely sounds like I am missing something with this one.I usually like Christopher Reeve very much. This one was made just after his starring role in Block-Buster Superman and he seems to use many of the little Clark Kent mannerisms that worked so well for him there. All he needed was a pair of horn-rimmed glasses to push up on his nose. He seemed uncomfortable and self-conscious in this one.Jane Seymour has, I admit, always left me pretty cold in everything I have seen her in and this one was no exception. The instant attraction via the photo... just didn't get it.Great to see the younger version of Christopher Plummer at work. Always interesting BUT I was distracted by his constantly worn heavy gloves. He even wore them when he was drinking coffee and smoking indoors. I did like the watch trick and gave a whoop when I realized the origin of the actual watch. Cool ! The "penny" was also an "awwwww" moment.All in all... not a re-watch (sorry no pun intended) and this one is going to the thrift shop unless I give it one more chance at success.