Time After Time (1979)

H.G. Wells pursues Jack the Ripper to the 20th Century when the serial murderer uses the future writer's time machine to escape his time period.

Director:

Nicholas Meyer

Writers:

Karl Alexander (story), Steve Hayes (story)

Stars:

Malcolm McDowell, Mary Steenburgen, David Warner

7 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Malcolm McDowell	...	H.G. Wells
David Warner	...	Stevenson
Mary Steenburgen	...	Amy Robbins
Charles Cioffi	...	Lt. Mitchell
Kent Williams	...	Assistant
Andonia Katsaros	...	Mrs. Turner
Patti D'Arbanville	...	Shirley
James Garrett	...	Edwards
Keith McConnell	...	Harding
Leo Lewis	...	Richardson
Byron Webster	...	McKay
Karin Collison	...	Jenny (as Karin Mary Shea)
Geraldine Baron	...	Carol
Laurie Main	...	Inspector Gregson
Joseph Maher	...	Adams

Storyline

It's 1893 London. Futurist H.G. Wells believes that the future holds a Utopian society. He also believes in time travel. He has just built a time machine which he is displaying to a group of skeptical friends, including surgeon Dr. John Leslie Stevenson. Unbeknown to Wells or anyone else among that circle, Stevenson is better known to the public as Jack the Ripper. Just as the police are about to capture Stevenson, he uses the time machine to escape, with Wells being the only one who knows what happened to him. Not telling anyone except his trusting housekeeper, Wells follows Stevenson in order to capture and bring him back to face justice. Where Stevenson has gone is 1979 San Francisco. There, Wells is dismayed to find that the future is not Utopia as he had predicted. But Wells is also picked up by a young woman named Amy Robbins. As Wells and Amy search for Stevenson, Stevenson conversely is after Wells to obtain the master key to the time machine. As Stevenson continues his ...

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Plot Keywords:

time machine | jack the ripper | h.g. wells | time travel | bank | 

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Taglines:

The Wildest Chase of the Century!

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 September 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Escape al futuro

Filming Locations:

Trocadero Transfer, 520 Fourth Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orion Pictures,Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Meyer from the commentary track for the DVD and Blu-ray release of the film, the author of the novel presented Meyer with 55 pages of his unpublished novel and asked Meyer to critique his work. Meyer liked the premise and immediately optioned the story so he could write a screenplay based on the material and develop the story his own way.

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Goofs

When Jack/John takes off H.G. Wells' glasses before hitting him, the camera focus is thrown to show how poor H.G.'s vision is. Although Jack/John's face is badly out of focus the wall and door behind him comes into sharp focus, displaying a possible error by the focus puller - to make this effect obvious; everything should be out of focus. However; this effect could be seen as showing Wells as being long-sighted.

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Quotes

Jack the Ripper: It's catching isn't it, violence.

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Connections

Version of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman: Tempus Fugitive (1995)

User Reviews

A Classic – One of My Favorite Sci-Fi Movies

In 1893, in London, H.G. Wells (Malcolm McDowell) has just finished his time machine, when his friend Dr. John Leslie Stevenson (David Warner) – indeed Jack the Ripper – uses it to escape from the Scotland Yard. Wells decides to follow John, and arrives in 1979, in San Francisco. While in a bank chasing John, he meets Amy Robbins (Mary Steenburgen), who is responsible for the exchange of currencies, and she gives the address of John, in Hyatt Hotel. Wells and Amy have a crush on each other, while John threatens them, trying to get the key of the time machine. "Time After Time" is a classic, and one of my favorite sci-fi movies. The first time I saw it was in 1979, in the movie theater, then I have watched it at least three times on VHS, and now it was my debut on DVD. The plot has some irrelevant inconsistencies, as usual in movies that deal with time travel, but these flaws do not reduce its charming. There is sci-fi, action, romance, suspense and drama blended in a delightful story. Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen have a perfect chemistry, and Malcolm McDowell has probably one of the nicer character in his career, where I would like to highlight three excellent movies and performances in his filmography: the masterpiece "A Clockwork Orange", "Time After Time" and "Cat People". David Warner is excellent as usual in the role of a charming villain. "Time After Time" is a highly recommended film, for lovers of sci-fi films. My vote is ten.

Title (Brazil): "Um Século em 43 Minutos" ("One Century in 43 Minutes")