Quelque part dans le temps

Somewhere In Time is not only a fantasy story. It is romance, science fiction, and fantasy rolled into one, based on Richard Matheson's novel, Bid Time Return, (Matheson also wrote the screenplay and has a cameo appearance in the film). Shot in 1980 and released by Universal Studios, it is a wonderful and, I feel, classic film that has stood the test of time. I am often surprised at how many persons of adult age have seen it. I cannot understand why Somewhere In Time has been panned by the critics since its release. Filmed on location in Chicago and Mackinac Island, Michigan, Somewhere In Time is a little long at 104 minutes. However, the story never drags so this is not a big liability. Directed by Jean Szarc, the cast is first rate, starring Christopher Reeve, (what a standard of personal courage he has set for us in recent years!) as the playwright Richard Collier, Jane Seymour, one of the loveliest ladies to ever grace either the large or small screens, as the actress Elise McKenna, and the fine character actor Christopher Plummer as the mean-spirited W.S. Robinson, McKenna's agent. The story begins in May, 1972. Playwright Collier is visited by a very old woman at a party he is attending at Millfield College, close to the Grand Island Hotel on Mackinac Island, which will be so important to the story later. She approaches and hands him a pocket watch. Cryptically, she says, "Come back to me.' We now fast forward eight years to Chicago, 1980. The restless Collier, who has recently broken up with his lady friend, is drawn to The Grand Hotel. Collier drives up to Mackinac Island and checks into the hotel. The kind-hearted Arthur, who has lived and worked at the hotel for 70 years, asks him if "they had met before." Collier assures him they have not. Collier chances upon an old photo of the turn of the century actress Elise McKenna in the hotel museum and is mesmerized by her. Arthur tells him that she appeared in a play at the hotel in 1912. Collier's obsession quickly grows and he begins research on her life. He comes across a photo of McKenna as an old woman and remembers her as the mysterious lady he met at the party. He discovers from her housekeeper that McKenna died eight years previous, on the very night she made herself known to him, and that something happened during her hotel appearance in 1912. After that, according to the housekeeper, she was never the same. During his visit to McKenna's home, he discovers a book on time travel that Elise read "again and again." After visiting with the book's author and, finding his own name in an old Grand Hotel register from 1912, Collier makes an intense effort to slip into the past, and succeeds. Soon, he meets Elise in the hotel, (he has transported himself to the time when Elise McKenna is staying in the hotel, preparing for her performance), and the scene where he and she meet is quite moving. At this point, the story becomes even better because Reeve does not have to carry it by himself. Seymour and Plummer step in and, what had been a good picture, becomes an excellent one for the duration. Richard and Elise quickly become drawn to each other, much to Robinson's unease. Robinson, who loves her but will not admit it, has a genuine concern when the playwright Richard Collier cannot name any of his work that he is familiar with. There is an unhealthy tension between these two strong-willed men until film's end. There are many interesting segments through this portion of the story. Entering the hotel restaurant, Collier seems to walk forever. The shot of the beautiful Elise, sitting at her makeup table with hair down and thrown over one shoulder, daydreaming of Richard, is enough to take the breath out of any man, (certainly this one!). The kiss first between Richard and Elise is very gentle and tender, and another lump forms in the throat when Elise again unpins her hair as Richard closes the door to room 117. But, perhaps the best scene in the entire film is when Elise, caught up with emotion, seems to ad-lib directly to an equally emotional Richard, sitting in the audience, during the hotel performance. Now is a good time to note that Jane Seymour possesses an interesting combination of hesitation and come-hither in look and demeanor. Ms. Seymour is something you do not come across often: an extremely alluring woman but very much a lady. The wholesome Reeve played off of her extremely well. The furious Robinson loses control of himself and has Richard beaten by thugs, causing him to lose credibility with his star forever. However, fate deals a cruel hand to the star-crossed lovers as, just when they have admitted their love for one another, Richard is abruptly returned to 1980, waking up in the same bed he was originally transported from. I won't give the story's very touching finale away, I will just say that the emotionally devastated Richard spends the final few minutes of the story attempting to return to 1912 and Elise. A few final comments. For fans of romance, fantasy and science fiction, Somewhere In Time will indeed be a special treat. (That the music is hauntingly beautiful only enhances the mood). It was pleasing to see Richard Matheson, author of such hard-edged tales as The Omega Man and The Shrinking Man, (to name but two), and who is seen as an astonished viewer during Elise McKenna's Grand Hotel performance, turn out such a powerful love story. I noticed only one glaring editing mistake, and that is an excellent accomplishment for a period story of this length. Near film's end, the heartbroken Richard lies listless and semi-comatose in a Grand Hotel guest room, pining for Elise, for a full week. When Arthur, (The gentleness of the lifelong hotel servant impressed me. I wish I could meet a few Arthur types at hotels I stay in!), finds him, the fact that he has had little food or water for days and is dangerously close to death is impressed upon us. However, when we see his face, he is clean-shaven and way too bright-eyed for a man under such a self-imposed ordeal! I hope that perhaps someday Christopher Reeve's health is such that he can once again co-star with the ever beautiful Jane Seymour. Mr. Reeve's physical limitations notwithstanding, I believe they would still make a terrific screen team.

I was rather young when I first saw this film; I found it mildly interesting and, being a science fiction fan, was drawn to the time travel aspect. I found it a bit slow and uneventful. As one grows older, priorities change, certain matters not considered when younger begin to take precedence. When I watch this film now, I find the time travel angle plays out differently for me; yes, it's still an interesting take on how to travel backwards in time, without machinery (as in "The Time Machine" - all versions). But, I realize now the entire focus of the story is on the mystical depiction of timeless love surfacing for the two main characters, played by Reeve and Seymour. It's a romance of the most old-fashioned kind, bridging decades, and enhanced by the whole premise of traveling further to achieve that romantic connection than most would ever dream of.

Obviously, the task for Reeve's character, that of making the connection, appears simply impossible. We've all read stories or seen movies about some character traveling over half a continent or even half the world to make such a connection. We root for them, of course - for them to beat the odds. The odds here are seemingly insurmountable: not traveling across land, but time itself. Well, he makes it; it's an incredible feat. And he pursues his dream, an exotic, to say the least, fantastic dream. She's worth it: Seymour is truly beautiful in this film, and gets more so with each viewing. Just her photo portrait in this story manages to capture a serene, mysterious type of beauty. She's touched with a melancholy sadness and Reeve is there to balm her wound. Writer Richard Matheson knows how to write good stories, romance included, and didn't need to fall back on contrived side plots to 'energize' the script, as is often the case nowadays. It's a straightforward, unfussy story, the kind they don't produce anymore.

Being one who always seems to enjoy time-travel stories, it's no wonder I like this movie so much, but it isn't the interesting "time" angle that draws me in: it's also the fact that this is one of the most touching love stories I've ever seen. I'm not usually a big fan of romance stories, but this one has always moved me, maybe because, as another reviewer points out, it's from the man's point of view.

The film is a wonderful old-fashioned type of story with a really nice feel for the period (1912) and is simply a pleasant, leisurely-paced story I found comfortable. Would kids of today like this? No. Too slow for them. Too bad, because I found the movie moved pretty well. The 100 minutes went by quickly.

Christopher Reeve is the star of the film but personally I found Jane Seymour and Christopher Plummer far more entertaining. The theme song, "Somewhere In Time," is one of the prettiest songs ever and that adds to the sad and frustrating romance angle of the story. The language also is quite tame. Yes, it's a bit "sappy" at times, but for sentimental people, this is a nice film to keep.

My only real complaint is I've never seen a sharp transfer put on a DVD yet. There have been two DVDs out and both have that grainy look to them. That's disappointing because this would really look nice with a clear picture. The film deserves better treatment.

NOTE: A Blu-Ray of this film was released in March of 2014 and finally does this great film justice!

Christopher Reeve takes on the role of (Richard Collier) a successful Chicago playwright who is approached (in May 1972) by a very old woman (Susan French) who will alter the course of his life eternally...

The thoughtful old lady presses a classic pocket watch, from a past existence, into his right hand and intensely whispers four haunting words 'Come back to me,' which will affect him forever...

Eight years have passed and Richard is seeing his work incredibly sterile, gently afflicted with a case of lesser inspiration... So he packs his luggage and heads out to an island of enchanting beauty, to the Grand Hotel on the Straits of Mackinac waterfront...

While waiting for the huge dining hall to open, he tours the grand old building's museum, and sees a portrait of a lovely woman... He becomes obsessed about finding the truth behind the old photograph and begins questioning the people that knew her past... What emerges is a wonderful woman who is the first American stage actress in 1912 to create a mystique in the public's eye... She is the same lady who visited him that night at the premier of one of his plays...

Richard finds himself intrigued... There is so much to hear... People who knew Elise McKenna when she was young said that she was quick and bright and full of fun... Strong, willful, not at all the way she was later...

Seeking help from an old philosophy teacher who had written a book about 'Travels through time,' Richard attempts to disassociate himself entirely from the present, move everything out of sight that could possibly remind him of it, hypnotize his mind, and transport himself backward into the past, into June 27, 1912, into the life of the stunningly beautiful and talented Elise McKenna (Jane Seymour).

Nominated for Best Costume Design, the motion picture is a romantic fantasy that avoids any use of machinery in action... The time travel theory is completely non-scientific... The film captures the idea of a fine young man moving back among other time periods, and affirms that love is an undeniable force which goes beyond us, a force with no limit to the spiritual power, with no end to the potential of spiritual expansion...

I feel as though many Michiganders, like myself, have a unique relationship with Somewhere in Time. It is one of the few movies where I am completely familiar with the location it was shot, and the entire movie just makes me think of the tourist attraction that is Mackinac Island (which I have visited many times.) This film is extremely popular up there and you can find copies for sale, along with memorabilia from the shooting, all around the island. It is a place that is a throwback to another time, and at least the exterior of the Grand Hotel still looks strikingly similar today to how it looked when they filmed this 40+ years ago. In fact, the part of the movie that is most jarring are the shots where they actually show a car driving up to the Grand Hotel, since motorized vehicles are prohibited on Mackinac Island. I wonder if this is how people who live in cities like New York, L.A., and San Francisco feel when their hometowns show up in so many movies.

Anyways, let's get to the actual content of Somewhere in Time, aside from its location. There is a power to the romance in this film. It has a truly magical quality as it seems to embrace the idea of two people being made for each other and destined to be together. The premise of them meeting across time is kind of crazy, and I'm not even sure what motivates the main character so strongly, but I think you have to let go of the critical part of your brain to appreciate the magic of this story. There is virtually no time spent exploring the mechanism that is at play, because that isn't the important part of the plot. Personally, I kind of wish the movie involved more time travel, and actually had our main character bouncing back and forth many times. I think that's simply because I'm more intrigued by the genre of time-travel, than I am by romantic dramas. The way it is presented in the film feels somewhat rushed and it never takes full advantage of an interesting premise.

Christopher Reeve isn't bad in the lead role. He has good range and seems to fit in reasonably well in both time periods. I found his performance at the end of the movie to be particularly powerful. He also has some nice chemistry with Jane Seymour. She is a great actress to play a love interest in this type of movie, because she does possess a timeless beauty. Her big speech on stage is delivered so brilliantly that I felt even someone who was struggling to enjoy this movie would have to buy in to some degree, because of her performance. I did struggle a bit with Christopher Plummer's character, as he seems to exist merely as a plot construction to create conflict. The film teases that there might be more to this character, but nothing ever comes of that. I will say that the ending of Somewhere in Time was a struggle for me. It is well done, but not exactly how I hoped it would resolve. I am certainly engaged by the plot, though, and I will gladly watch it again in the future.