Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysAPA Heritage MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)

The Time Traveler's Wife

  • 20092009
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
149K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
130
730
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
The Time Traveler's Wife Theatrical Trailer
Play trailer2:29
8 Videos
78 Photos
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Fantasy
A Chicago librarian has a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, creating complications in his marriage.A Chicago librarian has a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, creating complications in his marriage.A Chicago librarian has a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, creating complications in his marriage.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
149K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
130
730
  • Director
    • Robert Schwentke
  • Writers
    • Bruce Joel Rubin(screenplay)
    • Audrey Niffenegger(novel)
  • Stars
    • Eric Bana
    • Rachel McAdams
    • Ron Livingston
Top credits
  • Director
    • Robert Schwentke
  • Writers
    • Bruce Joel Rubin(screenplay)
    • Audrey Niffenegger(novel)
  • Stars
    • Eric Bana
    • Rachel McAdams
    • Ron Livingston
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 296User reviews
    • 161Critic reviews
    • 47Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 5 nominations

    Videos8

    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Trailer 2:29
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Clip 1:12
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Clip 1:26
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Clip 1:00
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Clip 1:06
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Interview 0:52
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Interview 0:54
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    Interview 0:42
    The Time Traveler's Wife

    Photos78

    Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Robert Schwentke in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Ron Livingston and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams in The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Eric Bana
    Eric Bana
    • Henryas Henry
    Rachel McAdams
    Rachel McAdams
    • Clareas Clare
    Ron Livingston
    Ron Livingston
    • Gomezas Gomez
    Michelle Nolden
    Michelle Nolden
    • Annette DeTambleas Annette DeTamble
    Alex Ferris
    Alex Ferris
    • Henry at Sixas Henry at Six
    Arliss Howard
    Arliss Howard
    • Richard DeTambleas Richard DeTamble
    Katherine Trowell
    Katherine Trowell
    • Hospital Receptionistas Hospital Receptionist
    Bart Bedford
    • Library Researcheras Library Researcher
    Esther Jun
    • Waitressas Waitress
    Matt Birman
    Matt Birman
    • Chicago Police #1as Chicago Police #1
    Craig Snoyer
    • Chicago Police #2as Chicago Police #2
    Carly Street
    Carly Street
    • Librarianas Librarian
    Romyen Tangsubutra
    • Thai Waiteras Thai Waiter
    Brooklynn Proulx
    Brooklynn Proulx
    • Clare at Six and Eightas Clare at Six and Eight
    Jane McLean
    Jane McLean
    • Charisseas Charisse
    Brian Bisson
    Brian Bisson
    • Mark Abshireas Mark Abshire
    Maggie Castle
    Maggie Castle
    • Alicia Abshireas Alicia Abshire
    Fiona Reid
    Fiona Reid
    • Lucille Abshireas Lucille Abshire
    • Director
      • Robert Schwentke
    • Writers
      • Bruce Joel Rubin(screenplay)
      • Audrey Niffenegger(novel)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

    More like this

    About Time
    7.8
    About Time
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    7.4
    The Time Traveler's Wife
    The Vow
    6.8
    The Vow
    P.S. I Love You
    7.0
    P.S. I Love You
    The Age of Adaline
    7.2
    The Age of Adaline
    One Day
    7.0
    One Day
    The Notebook
    7.8
    The Notebook
    Life as We Know It
    6.5
    Life as We Know It
    Safe Haven
    6.6
    Safe Haven
    Dear John
    6.3
    Dear John
    The Notebook: Deleted Scenes
    8.0
    The Notebook: Deleted Scenes
    Morning Glory
    6.5
    Morning Glory

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      After filming was done, Eric Bana started filming Star Trek (2009), which required him to shave his head. However, re-shoots for this movie were needed, so production was put on hold so Bana's hair could grow out. It took so long that the movie's release date was pushed back by nearly a year.
    • Goofs
      The Calendar page for February 1984 pasted in Clare's diary has 30 days.
    • Quotes

      Clare at Eight: Are you married?

      Henry DeTamble: Yes, I am.

      Clare at Eight: Is your wife a time traveler?

      Henry DeTamble: No. No, thank God.

      Clare at Eight: Do you love her?

      Henry DeTamble: Yes. Very much. What's wrong?

      Clare at Eight: Nothing. I was just hoping you're married to me.

    • Connections
      Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Taking of Pelham 123/Imagine That/Moon (2009)
    • Soundtracks
      Love Will Tear Us Apart
      Written by Ian Curtis, Peter Hook, Stephen Morris and Bernard Sumner

      Performed by Broken Social Scene

    User reviews296

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Terrific performances and chemistry from Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana keep the movie afloat
    The Time Traveler's Wife is a romantic drama directed by Robert Schwentke, adapted from Audrey Niffenegger's bestseller of the same name. Adapting a novel with complex elements and undertones to the silver screen is a daunting task and director Robert Schwentke struggled to compromise between satisfying readers of the novel and making the movie accessible to people unfamiliar with the book. Overall, the movie has some significant directing and screen writing flaws but does make for an unpretentious and above-average romantic tragedy thanks to its two compelling leads.

    Sypnosis: The Time Traveler's Wife is the time-defying love story of Henry DeTamble (Eric Bana) and Clare Abshire (Rachel McAdams). Henry is a librarian afflicted with a genetic disease that causes him to travel through time more or less randomly. Henry's random and unpredictable escapades are often dangerous, terrifying and sometimes life-threatening ordeals because he ends up buck-naked and starving in unknown places and times. For those reasons, Henry keeps himself in top physical shape and taught "himself" all type of survival skills such as pick-pocketing, street fighting, or picking locks. After a random while, he always goes back to his "present" but is largely unable to affect his future. At age 28, he meets 20-yr old Clare Abshire. He doesn't know her but she has known him since she was 6 and has been waiting for him all her life and will do so the rest of her life...

    The main weaknesses of the movie can be traced back to trying to fit the book into 107 minutes. Director Robert Schwentke and screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin appeared a bit over-matched and took the path of least resistance, oversimplifying the plot and characters. The book was a bit confusing at times because of its particular narrative structure and the movie inherits the same problem. Screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin made some compromises to keep the movie from becoming excessively long or inaccessible to its PG-13 audience. The main events and characters of the book were translated to the big screen although non-essential characters such as Kimi or Ingrid were completely omitted and the ending was slightly altered (and I liked it). The supporting characters are a mere passing thoughts, the key relationship between Clare and Gomez is one-dimensional. Even the two main characters, Henry and Clare, are under-developed. Ideally, the direction of the movie should have been given to a director with better credentials, and the movie extended up to 140 minutes to develop the characters fully and take advantage of the terrific cast.

    Despite those shortcomings, The Time Traveler's Wife is one of those movies you can't help but like. It is at heart a simple star-crossed love story with a refreshing sci-fi twist that touches on universal themes such as fate/free will, true love, and loss. A story that focused on the depth of the characters' love, not its showiness. Their will to move forward and enjoy every minute they have with each other before Henry's impending fate. This meant more close-up shots and a deeper and more realistic exploration of what it means to be Henry and Clare. The movie succeeds in moving the audience thanks in big part to moving performances from the two leads, who surrendered themselves fully to the premise of the novel.

    The Time Traveler's Wife features the graceful Rachel McAdams as the title character. Most will have missed her terrific performance in the 2008 indie the Lucky Ones and this puts her back on the radar for mainstream audiences. Beside matching the description of Clare in the book, McAdams has an unusual ability to make her characters feel real against all odds. Overcoming an underwritten character, she carries the emotional weight of the movie and was luminous portraying Clare's spirit and unyielding love for Henry's despite being riddled with some terrible lines once again. Will someone give Rachel McAdams a meatier role for God's sake??? Eric Bana was a big surprise, exceeding my expectations and making for a very solid Henry. Although he does not fit the physical description of the book (Henry is more runner than football player) Bana's Henry was tormented, introverted, poignant, and more importantly, had considerable chemistry with his co-star. The only issue I had was that Henry was mostly a one-note character. The supporting cast was solid albeit given very little opportunity to be memorable. Gomez (Ron Livingstone) was a pivotal character in the book but merely a passing thought in the movie. Jane McLean as Charisse, Arliss Howard as Henry's father, Stephen Tobolowsky as Dr. Kendrick all did a fine job with the small parts they had.

    The cinematography has a beautiful stark and cold quality to it which reinforce the tragic nature of the movie. The movie was beautifully shot by Florian Ballhaus and is the strongest attribute of the movie behind its leads. The crafty camera-work using motion and placement selection gave a particular tone to his scenes and Schwentke used that to his advantage in the film, giving the movie a light touch of fantasy. He created a nice immersing atmosphere that really highlighted Clare and Henry's impending fate. The CGI effects of Henry's time traveling are unspectacular but first rate while the overused musical score was melancholic, adding to the tragic tone of the movie.

    Enjoy the Time Traveler's Wife for what it is: an endearing love story with an unusual sci-fi premise. It may not be exactly like the book, it may have been darker and heavier on the sci-fi, and it may have been so much more with better direction. Even so, the premise of the story, and the perfectly-cast leads make this movie well-worth the ride and will keep your imagination lingering long afterward.

    B+: Boasting terrific performances and chemistry from Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana, the Time Traveler's Wife has some flaws but is a charming, endearing and bittersweet romantic drama nonetheless.

    http://anomalousmaterial.blogspot.com/
    helpful•81
    36
    • TcH3rNo
    • Aug 16, 2009

    FAQ4

    • Is "The Time Traveler's Wife" based on a book?
    • What is "The Time Traveler's Wife" about?
    • What song was played in the trailer?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 14, 2009 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Official site
      • Official site (Japan)
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Chồng Ảo
    • Filming locations
      • Osgoode Hall, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Production companies
      • New Line Cinema
      • Plan B Entertainment
      • Nick Wechsler Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $39,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $63,414,846
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $18,623,171
      • Aug 16, 2009
    • Gross worldwide
      • $101,344,412
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 47 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • DTS
      • SDDS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)
    Top Gap
    What was the official certification given to The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) in Spain?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in May
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    2022 TV Guide: The Best Shows Coming This Year
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.