I don’t know why I did, but I entered the theater with not much anticipation that this movie would be any good. Life sometimes offers a pleasant surprise, and I was surprised by its originality, story, and just how much it manages to make one think about time, or to think again about things which we human beings often tend to forget or place in the background of our minds. For instance, that time should not be wasted, and that there are some people noble enough to give what’s left of their own life in order to save a loved one, and that when we take selfish attitudes and horde things we really lose more than we gain. In one gripping scene a man who has donated what time he had left to a character dies after writing, “Don’t waste my time” on the window of the room they were staying at.

Before I wax poetic, I will say it is unfortunate that strong language and violence prevents us from awarding our Dove Seal to the movie. The movie is heavy enough in the violence content as to warrant a three rating from us, and anything we rate three and above can’t receive our Dove Seal. The film contains a few paradoxes and one which intrigued me was how a character went on and on about Darwin and his theory of evolution, and how that only the strong survive and natural selection plays a large part in life. Then, when he learns his daughter who was in danger is safe, he says, “Thank God she is safe!” That’s a bit of an oxymoron is it not? Sometimes a person acknowledges God without even realizing it.

At any rate, Justin Timberlake does a commendable job as Will Salas, the young man who wants to give more time to people, even if he has to steal it from a girl’s father who hordes it. Will is kind of the “Robin Hood” of time. He happens to fall in love with the girl, named Sylvia (Amanda Seyfried), which complicates things a bit, but it somehow works out although I won’t give the ending away. Their race against the Timekeeper is an interesting journey. It’s also intriguing to see a mother, daughter, and sister who all look the same age due to the time elements featured in the film. This one I would like to recommend but can’t. It falls short of our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal.