I’ve always been fascinated with time travel flicks. I’m not sure exactly why they tickle my fancy, but I’m usually guaranteed to get a kick out of them. Counter Clockwise looked like a film that I would enjoy, due to combining some dark comedy and time travel. Unfortunately, the film has its fair share of issues with the acting and the plot being the two biggest offenders. It isn’t all bad, though, as the film has a few highlights to keep any time travel fan invested long enough to stick around until the ending, whereupon they will again most likely be disappointed.
PLOT SUMMARY
Counter Clockwise inventively merges mind-bending science fiction with dark comedy, as a befuddled time traveling scientist caught up in a murder mystery. Bearded scientist Ethan Walker stumbles into inventing a time machine and recklessly zaps himself six months into the future. Ethan finds that the future has taken a sinister tone as men are out to kill him and the police are looking for him for the murder of his sister and wife. He now needs to try to return to the point right before everything went wrong and solve the mysteries. An inventive, head-scratching, fast-paced American Indie time-traveling gem.
MOVIE REVIEW
Counter Clockwise doesn’t bring much new to the time travel genre, but it manages to spin a yarn that is at least interesting.
Ethan Walker is a scientist will has accidentally invented a time machine and gets whipped ahead to the future. He quickly realises that he is the prime suspect in the murder of his “way too freaking hot for him” wife and sister. He must piece together the puzzle of how exactly it happened and whether or not he is the murderer. This involves travelling back in time to the day of the murder. My question is, if you have a time machine that is able to bring you back to any point in time, why choose the least amount of time to save your wife and sister?
The biggest problem with Counter Clockwise is the stupidity of our main character. He knows all the events that will unfold, yet he still does exactly what he is supposed to do to cause everything to happen. He doesn’t deviate at all from the path of destruction, even though he is completely aware that what he is doing will not work. The way the film unfolds the plot causes Ethan to do some the dumbest things, resulting in by far one of the most oblivious time travellers ever. When the end finally rolls around and Ethan has done exactly what he shouldn’t do, the film ends on a disappointing cliffhanger.
I haven’t even touched upon some of the porno quality acting from a couple characters. No, really, I thought some naughty action was about the drop when certain actors opened their mouths to speak their lines. Thankfully Michael Kopelow does a fine job, even if his character is stupid.
Besides all the negative stuff with Counter Clockwise, the film still manages to provide some fun time travel shenanigans. We get to see plenty of callbacks to previous scenes, which will make any time travel fan smile. Nevertheless, I just wish the film spent a bit more time on strengthening the story. A few tweaks here and there and the film wouldn’t have caused people to shake their head come the end.
VERDICT
Time travelling film buffs should at least check out Counter Clockwise, as it does have a few bits and pieces that are enjoyable. Just reel in your expectations and be willing to forgive some dumbass decisions from the lead character. Artsploitation Films is offering up two ways to check this flick out. You can watch it On Demand or own it on DVD today.