The Best Sci-Fi Time Travel Thriller You’ve Never Seen, Stream It Now
The 2007 Spanish science-fiction thriller Timecrimes is streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo, this mind-bending story opens in the Spanish countryside, where Hector (Karra Elejalde) and his wife Clara (Candela Fernandez) are renovating their home. Hector’s life takes an unexpected turn when he sees a mysterious woman undressing in the forest behind his house.
Timecrimes, streaming on Amazon Prime Video, is one of the best time travel movies of all time.
Late in Timecrimes, a chance encounter with a man in bloody bandages forces Hector to take refuge in a nearby building. He contacts a scientist via walkie-talkie who tricks him into becoming part of a time travel experiment. Hector is transported back in time, and although the scientist advises him to stay put, he ignores the advice and sets off a series of events that lead to a time loop.
With each episode of time travel, Hector’s actions become increasingly convoluted. He chases a woman on a bicycle, inadvertently reenacts events, and tragically believes he has killed his wife. Desperate to set things right, Hector manipulates the past, leading to a confusing sequence of Timecrimes involving multiple versions of himself.
Timecrimes masterfully weaves a story filled with paradoxes and loops, the hallmark of any time travel story. Hector’s actions have unintended consequences, which cause the line between cause and effect to become blurred. As the film progresses, viewers are kept in suspense, trying to unravel the intricate web of events.
The movie’s brilliance lies in its ability to create tension and intrigue without relying on elaborate special effects or a big-budget production. It’s a testament to Nacho Vigalondo’s directorial skills that he can use the simplest settings and resources to keep audiences engaged. Vigalondo cited the British comic magazine 2000 AD as a major influence on Timecrimes.
The influence of Chronocops, created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, is particularly evident in Timecrimes. It is a one-off tale that initially appeared in Prog 310, published in 1983. The story is a satirical take on time travel and law enforcement. It introduces readers to a pair of time-traveling police officers, Figgis and Slade, who work for the Chronocops division of the Time Police.
Timecrimes received critical acclaim upon its release and still holds an impressive 90 percent approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Critics praised its dark humor, bizarre twists, and for cleverly addressing viewer skepticism about time travel. The film’s score, composed by Eugenio Mira, complements the story, while the use of Blondie’s “Picture This” adds depth and emotion.
The influence of Chronocops, created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, is particularly evident in Timecrimes.
Timecrimes received a multitude of awards and nominations, cementing its place in the world of cinema. At the Fantastic Fest in 2007, the film won Best Picture, the prestigious Gold Medal of Jury Award Competition, and the Silver Medal of Audience Award Competition.
Internationally, the Trieste Science+Fiction Festival honored Timecrimes with the Asteroide Award for Best International Sci-fi Feature Film, emphasizing its global appeal. In 2009, it was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 64th CEC Medals, recognizing Nacho Vigalondo’s creative storytelling. The film was also nominated for Best Editing.
Nacho Vigalondo won the Newcomer Award at the CEC Medals, acknowledging his contribution to cinema. Timecrimes’Timecrimes’ impact on the Spanish film industry led to a nomination for Best New Director at the 23rd Goya Awards.
While there are not many films with an identical premise, several movies share themes that may appeal to fans of Timecrimes. Released in 2004, Primer is a low-budget sci-fi film known for its intricate story involving time travel and the challenges it poses to the characters. Predestination, released in 2014, features a temporal agent who must prevent future crimes using time travel technology.
Despite initial plans for an English-language remake of Timecrimes, which had fans worried about losing the charm of the original, the project never materialized.
Triangle, from 2009, combines psychological horror and time loop elements when a group of friends finds themselves trapped in a never-ending cycle of events on a deserted ocean liner. The 2014 film Time Lapse follows a group of friends who discover a camera that takes pictures of events 24 hours into the future. While these films are similar, the success of Timecrimes has been difficult to replicate.
Despite initial plans for an English-language remake of Timecrimes, which had fans worried about losing the charm of the original, the project never materialized. Timecrimes’ complexity and Nacho Vigalondo’s masterful direction remain untouched in the original Spanish version, which can be found on Amazon Prime Video.
