In an attempt to alter a tragedy, an inventor develops a time traveling machine that hurls him from 1899 into a distant perilous future.

Based on the HG Wells novel of the same name and directed by the author's great-grandson, The Time Machine is one remake I was looking forward to seeing.

Reformatting much of the book and original movie, this time our hero has a selfish motive for time traveling. This makes him seem like less of an adventurer (a point that helped make the original film so enjoyable). He's been reduced now to a timeline meddler. This still leaves room for a cool sci-fi trip. But that too falls a bit flat when introducing the cave-dwelling Morlocks. Aside from looking like seven feet of lumbering Latex, they are seen in the daylight! Which serves to further erase any mystery from these creatures.

The film's good points? I enjoyed Pearce here. His character could've been presented in a more interesting way, but all inferences to his personality have been removed from the script. He certainly 'looked' the part. Orlando Jones was entertaining as a holographic data base. The CGI effects used to show the advancement of time are creatively done and the machine itself is an aesthetic and remarkable construct.

Directed by Simon Wells.