The Sticky Fingers of Time

I saw this film two or three years ago at one of the San Francisco film festivals. I loved it. I told everyone about it, and have had to wait this long time before I found it on DVD.

It is expertly written and directed, a phenomenal film. It cloaks any budget constraints in a black-n white film noir look and feel, very convincing, all time periods feel authentic (good costume work - also good set designs). The time travel elements are well told, especially for such a complex underlying concept. There's nothing condescending or overbearing the way you found in Matrix (no endless monologues explaining everything). Rather, it's concise in it's storytelling, told visually and thematically and through action. Really nice, a fun romp through time, very catchy.

All actors were well above what I've come to expect, even - or maybe especially - from Hollywood. No one really let the ball fall. I recommend this to anyone who loves film noir or science fiction - thriller stories.

Started out fairly interesting, but at about 15 minutes into the film, a case of the low-budgets kicked in and killed the movie. I have nothing against low budgets, mind you, but you must have an interesting story, or characters you can care about in order to get really involved in a film. "El Mariachi" is a good example of what you can do with an ultra-low budget and still make a film that engages the audience.

Woeful acting and editing took me completely out of this film and made me acutely aware that I was watching a low-budget piece of garbage. A silly, nonsensical, "since-it's-science-fiction-I-can-say-whatever-stupid-mumbo-jumbo-I-want-an d-you-have-to-accept-it" story line was the capper on this crapper.

So I watched this on a late night TV broadcast some time ago. Surely it must have also been the right moment in life, or something, but it felt like a revelation. I remember I was grasping onto a feeling that I understood an important thing about life, time, decisions... Now it is all fuzzy. I did rewatched it, in a different context and felt like the major thing about it was... gone. So I guess you either love it, or just wonder what the blip you are looking at. You decide.

I'd highly recommend this for noir fans--a great twist on the genre, with its additions of time-travel and backwards-to-forwards plotline and lesbianism. The first scene, naturally, makes you say, "How'd that happen?" and the rest of the story is how you saw what you saw in the first minute. Shows "12 Monkeys" what it could have been if it had had any guts at all.

Time has five fingers One is for the past One is for the present And three is the future And four is for what could have been And five for yet could be

Writer Tucker (Terumi Matthews) in Alice in Wonderland style unwittingly follows her mysterious beau from 1953 to 1997 and is involved in an attempt to change the past.

We are introduced to several story threads and personalities. As we try to keep up with this non-linear story. Can the past and future be changed or does what we do Stick?

The film has that independent sight, sound, and feel; Shot on special color and black and white film. The use of "super 16" film and the second unit using 8 mm gives this film an otherworldly look. They manage not to shake it as in Blair Witch.

One thing I like in the book that they created "The sticky fingers of time" It plays a part in keeping the continuity of the story and right up to the last has significance.