Reviewed by EWAN McDONALD
Herald rating * *
If a butterfly flaps its wings in China, according to the chaos theory, it could cause a hurricane on the other side of the world. Exactly how and why makes no scientific sense, unless the theorist has ingested vast amounts of illicit pharmaceuticals, but
as a topic of late-night party conversation it ranks up there with the sounds of one hand clapping and trees falling in the forest when there's no one around.
The chaos theory is, however a suitable basis for this flick starring Ashton Kutcher (That 70s Show, the future Mr Demi Moore). As a child, Evan Treborn (played as a child by John Patrick Amedori, later by Kutcher) and three friends — Lenny, Kayleigh and her brother, Tommy — have adventures that are somewhat darker than the usual kiddie games. Evan draws strange pictures, threatens his mum with the cutlery, and often blacks out. One day, the four get involved in a game that goes very wrong, and will change the rest of their lives.
Now it's the present day, Evan is a high-achieving student and seems free of his earlier problems — until he runs into Kayleigh (Amy Smart). When she kills herself, Evan does what any good friend would — he toddles off into the past in an effort to save her life. For the rest of the movie, Evan will have to juggle his time zones as he tries to straighten out his weird world.
The DVD is packed with extras and commentaries that may be intended to take your mind off the fact that this is an inherently stupid premise and badly acted. There's a cinema version and the director's cut, six minutes longer with a different ending; features on chaos theory and time travel; scene-specific commentary; and the usual indulgences about movie-making, plus nine deleted scenes.
DVD, video rental 18 August
