Somewhere in Time (1980)

A Chicago playwright uses self-hypnosis to travel back in time and meet the actress whose vintage portrait hangs in a grand hotel.

Director:

Jeannot Szwarc

Writers:

Richard Matheson (screenplay), Richard Matheson (novel)

Stars:

Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, Christopher Plummer

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 7 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christopher Reeve	...	Richard Collier
Jane Seymour	...	Elise McKenna
Christopher Plummer	...	William Fawcett Robinson
Teresa Wright	...	Laura Roberts
Bill Erwin	...	Arthur Biehl
George Voskovec	...	Dr. Gerald Finney
Susan French	...	Older Elise
John Alvin	...	Arthur's Father
Eddra Gale	...	Genevieve
Audrey Bennett	...	Richard's Date
William H. Macy	...	Critic (as W. H. Macy)
Laurence Coven	...	Critic
Susan Bugg	...	Penelope
Christy Michaels	...	Beverly
Ali Marie Matheson	...	Student (as Ali Matheson)

Storyline

Young writer Richard Collier is met on the opening night of his first play by an old lady who begs him to "Come back to me". Mystified, he tries to find out about her, and learns that she is a famous stage actress from the early 1900s, Elise McKenna. Becoming more and more obsessed with her, he manages, by self hypnosis, to travel back in time where he meets her. They fall in love, a matching that is not appreciated by her manager. Can their love outlast the immense problems caused by their "time" difference? And can Richard remain in a time that is not his?

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Plot Keywords:

love across time | time travel | time travel romance | psychotronic film | period drama | 

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Taglines:

Someday in the past he will find her...

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bringing cars onto the island for use in the film required special permission from the City of Mackinac Island. Motorized vehicles, other than emergency vehicles and snowmobiles in the winter, are prohibited on the Island.

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Goofs

When Richard is talking with Mrs. Roberts in her house, the room they are in has pink wallpaper and Elise's dress and other photos. Richard looks aside and sees the picture of Robinson. When the camera returns to Richard, he and Mrs. Roberts are in a totally different room with different wallpaper and they have changed position in regard to one another. When Richard then goes over to the model of the Grand Hotel, they are seen in the original room with the pink walls again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[various snippets in crowd chatter]
Richard Collier: I got some news. There was an agent in the house tonight, and he said he thinks this play might be good enough for Broadway.
[cheers from crowd]
Richard Collier: Fingers crossed, who knows? Come on, let's all have some cake.

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Alternate Versions

The new 20th anniversary edition DVD and video have been digitally remastered for better clarity, and include a new documentary on the making of "Somewhere In Time" (60 minutes on DVD, 30 minutes on video) featuring current interviews with the cast and crew, as well as a running commentary from director Jeannot Szwarc. They also include new, never-before-released stills from the film, and a documentary on the fan organization INSITE: The Int'l Network of Somewhere In Time Enthusiasts (rare for a studio to acknowledge).

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Connections

Featured in Sneak Previews: In God We Trust, Coast to Coast, Somewhere in Time, Stardust Memories, Oh God! Book II (1980)

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Soundtracks

You Made Me Love You
(uncredited)
Written by James V. Monaco and Joseph McCarthy
Performed by Jane Seymour

User Reviews

The film affirms that love is an undeniable force which goes beyond us...

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...

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Retrospective / Review [Oliver Harper]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 October 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bid Time Return

Filming Locations:

Grand Hotel, 1 Grand Ave, Mackinac Island, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,100,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,203,011, 5 October 1980

Gross USA:

$9,709,597

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$9,709,597

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rastar Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1