Les voyageurs du temps

Our beloved filmmaker Irwin Allen was obsessed by time travel as much that had draft the classic series THE TIME TUNNELL a conceptive format where the travelers never returning to starting point, always randomly jumping thru the past and future eras, in this new picture Irwin stablished a new approaching, the travelers always return after a specific task, it sounds a bit conflicting due the series had a huge complex facilities underground of desert, otherwise the small back room installation using the same high advance computers from Time Tunnel is able to a safe returning.

A Rod Serling adapted story takes place at New Orleans in 1976 when a new unknown virus spreading fast cross-country, two doctors assigned to find an immediate cure forthwith, turns out that at Chicago in 1871 a local doctor had found a medicine that proved effective to tackle the deadly virus, strangely there's no records available, thus they are send back at this period of time aiming for got the successful formula.

Although as expect the defiant Irwin Allen would not let it so easy to the adventures, they reach there on day prior the great Chicago fire and the doctor is on duty struggling against the outbreak ongoing, an old acquaintance of us in the casting with Francine York, Richard Basehart and betting in new faces as Sam Groom and Tom Hallick, let it see easy in Irwin Allen's low-profile production.

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First watch: 1989 / How many: 2 / Source: TV-Youtube / Rating: 6.5.

This is the second attempt by Irwin Allen to do a series about time travel. The only thing that would have been different about this proposed series is that the travelers wouldn't have been lost in time as they were in the "Time Tunnel". All in all this was a pretty decent show, too bad it never did make it to series. I would have loved to have seen what interesting stories they would have come up with.

Two time travellers go back in time and must deal with a city on fire.

An all-round great film with a wonderful performance from Richard Basehart as the doctor.

Irwin Allen combining his two favourite genres, science fiction and disaster, and the results are most pleasing in the later sections of the film.

Allen's regular 1970s TV composer, Richard LaSalle, does not score this film but his replacement composer does a fine job.

The two lead actors playing the time travellers could have been better...but all things considered...The Time Travellers is outstanding.

This film was actually based on a story written by my father, author Charles W. Byrd, not Rod Serling. My father wrote the story in the late 1950s and it without his knowledge it ended up on ABC in 1976. Immediately upon seeing the film my father knew it was actually based on his original story. After some time (and litigation), a financial settlement was reached between ABC, Irwin Allen, and others and my father was given the rights to claim it as his work. Unfortunately, the film was never re-cut to include him as the creator of the story. In retrospect these events probably doomed the pilot from becoming a series. Its a shame my father was not given his due in creating this interesting and entertaining story.

This review comes to you from the future. Having watched this movie in 2019, I hasten to let you know it's a charming movie and enjoyable to watch.

This message is mainly produced for those fans who watched this movie some 8 years ago and earlier. You might come across some other messages from my era as we are able to time travel without moving at all.

Signing off and going back to my time. Goodbye and good luck!