Story of movie The Time Traveler%27s Wife Film : The Time Traveler's Wife is a 2009 American romantic science fiction drama film based on Audrey Niffenegger's 2003 novel of the same name. Directed by Robert Schwentke, the film stars Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, and Ron Livingston. The story follows Henry DeTamble (Bana), a Chicago librarian with a paranormal genetic disorder that causes him to randomly time travel as he tries to build a romantic relationship with Clare Abshire (McAdams), who would become his wife.
| The Time Traveler's Wife | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Robert Schwentke |
| Produced by |
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| Screenplay by | Bruce Joel Rubin |
| Based on | The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Mychael Danna |
| Cinematography | Florian Ballhaus |
| Edited by | Thom Noble |
Production company | Plan B Entertainment |
| Distributed by | New Line Cinema |
Release date | August 14, 2009 |
Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $39 million |
| Box office | $101.3 million |
Filming began in September 2007, originally in anticipation of an autumn 2008 release. The film's release was postponed with initially no official explanation from the studio. McAdams later noted that the delay was due to additional scenes and reshoots that could not be completed until the season at their outdoor location matched previously filmed footage, and Bana had regrown his hair following his work on the 2009 film Star Trek. The film was released on August 14, 2009.
Screenplay
In the early 1970s, Henry DeTamble is in a car accident that kills his mother but which he survives by inadvertently time traveling back two weeks. Moments later, Henry is helped by an older version of himself who has also traveled back. Unable to control the timing or destinations of his traveling, Henry finds himself drawn to significant people, places, and events in his life but is incapable of changing events beyond the minor differences his presence creates.
In 1991, Henry meets Clare Abshire in the library where he works. She is overjoyed to see him although he is actually meeting her for the first time. Clare explains that she met Henry's future self when she was a child, and that he informed her then that they would meet in the future, which is happening at the moment. Since childhood, Henry has been Clare's best friend and has visited her. As a child, Clare develops a crush on Henry, and she is upset to learn that he is married. When Clare turns 18, two years before their meeting at the library, the older Henry kisses her, leading her to realize that he is her husband in the future. They begin a relationship, which is challenged by Henry's disorder. His sporadic time traveling is further complicated by the fact that he arrives at his destinations completely naked. From an early age, he had learned how to pick locks and to steal clothing to endure his travels. Among his getaways are many visits to young Clare. From present-day Clare's diary, he gets a list of dates when he visited her, and gives those to young Clare so that she can be waiting for him with clothes. Falling in love, Henry and Clare eventually marry, though he actually time travels away before the ceremony and a visibly older version of himself arrives in time to step in, slightly confusing the guests.
Henry's disappearances take a toll on his relationship with Clare. To make up for this, Henry buys a winning lottery ticket by having the numbers in advance, but their relationship still has problems. Henry and Clare witness a middle-aged wounded Henry briefly arrive from another time, concerning them about how long Henry has to live. His disorder also makes having a child with Clare seemingly impossible, as Henry's genes cause their unborn fetuses to time travel. They seek a renowned doctor's help, but after numerous similar miscarriages, Henry has a secret vasectomy to end their suffering. However, soon after, Clare gets pregnant one last time—by a visiting younger version of Henry—and carries the baby to full term. Before the child is born, Henry travels forward in time and happily meets their pre-teen daughter, Alba. She tells him that she is a time traveler, too, but has increasing control over when and where she travels. Alba tells Henry that he will die when she is five years old, a fact that Henry subsequently hides from Clare. Alba's pre-teen self, who ultimately tries to prepare her younger self for Henry's death, visits young Alba sporadically. Clare is devastated to discover Henry's impending death. Later, Henry time travels and is accidentally shot by Clare's father, who is hunting elk. Henry returns in time to die in Clare's arms. Some years later, a younger Henry visits Alba and Clare, giving Clare hope that he will visit again, though he tells her not to spend her life waiting for him, hoping this encounter would provide a proper closure for both Clare and Alba.
- Eric Bana as Henry DeTamble, a Chicago librarian
- Alex Ferris as Henry at Six
- Rachel McAdams as Clare Abshire-DeTamble, an artist
- Brooklynn Proulx as Clare at Six and Eight
- Ron Livingston as Gomez, Henry and Clare's friend and Charisse's boyfriend
- Jane McLean as Charisse, Clare's best friend and roommate
- Stephen Tobolowsky as Dr. Kendrick
- Arliss Howard as Richard DeTamble, Henry's father, a professional violinist
- Hailey McCann as Alba DeTamble at Nine and Ten, Henry and Clare's daughter
- Tatum McCann as Alba at Four and Five
- Michelle Nolden as Annette DeTamble, Henry's mother
- Maggie Castle as Alicia Abshire, Clare's younger sister
- Fiona Reid as Lucille Abshire, Clare's mother
- Philip Craig as Philip Abshire, Clare's father
- Brian Bisson as Mark Abshire, Clare's brother
The film rights for Audrey Niffenegger's 2003 novel The Time Traveler's Wife were optioned by Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt's production company Plan B Entertainment, in association with New Line Cinema, before the work was even published. Niffenegger stated in an interview that as she was writing the book, she had thoughts of how a film version of the book would appear. When asked about the prospect of her novel being turned into a film, Niffenegger said, "I've got my little movie that runs in my head. And I'm kind of afraid that will be changed or wiped out by what somebody else might do with it. And it is sort of thrilling and creepy, because now the characters have an existence apart from me."
In September 2003, the studio hired screenwriter Jeremy Leven to write an adapted screenplay of the novel. Directors Steven Spielberg and David Fincher briefly expressed interest in the project, though no negotiations took place. In March 2005, director Gus Van Sant entered negotiations with the studio to helm the project. The negotiations did not hold, and in November 2006, director Robert Schwentke was instead hired to take over the project.
In January 2007, New Line hired screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin to rewrite Leven's script. Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams were cast in April 2007. Filming began in Toronto on September 10, 2007. It was also shot in Hamilton, Ontario. The film was originally planned for a fall 2008 release, but it was postponed with no official explanation from the studio. When asked about the delay, McAdams said, "We wound up doing a reshoot, and Eric was the holdup … He had to shave his head for a different role, for Star Trek, I think … We did an additional scene in the meadow, so we were also waiting on the meadow to look the way it did . So we were waiting on the seasons. Basically we were waiting on nature and Eric's hair." The film was released by Warner Bros. on August 14, 2009.
The score to The Time Traveler's Wife was composed by Mychael Danna, who recorded his score with the Hollywood Studio Symphony at the Ocean Way Studios during the fall of 2008. The movie repeatedly features the musical theme of an old German hymn, "Es ist ein Ros entsprungen", whose familiar harmonization was written by German composer Michael Praetorius. This is heard just prior to the early car accident, is played at holiday gatherings, and is otherwise interwoven into the score. The trailer featured the song "Broken", by Lifehouse, which is in the film and the promotional music video. A television commercial for the film featured the song "Show Me What I'm Looking For", by Carolina Liar, although it was not included within the soundtrack. The film also features a cover of Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart", performed by Canadian indie rock band Broken Social Scene.
The official motion picture soundtrack was released as a download on August 11, 2009 by New Line Records. A CD version was released by Decca Records, but is generally only available from vendors outside the United States.
Soundtrack
| The Time Traveler's Wife (Music from the Motion Picture) | |
|---|---|
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| Soundtrack album (Digital download) by Mychael Danna | |
| Released | August 11, 2009 |
| Length | 55:02 |
| Label | New Line Records |
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