Timeline
Directed by Richard Donner
- action
- adventure
- science fiction
The story
A group of archaeological students become trapped in the past when they go there to retrieve their professor. The group must survive in 14th century France long enough to be rescued.
What it’s like
Dusty, sun-bleached Southwestern desert and pale stone of a medieval French castle, with the grey-green gloom of a 14th-century siege held in muddy, rain-soaked tones. The camera is mostly handheld and kinetic, swooping through action beats and sword fights, and the images are glossy digital with heavy contrast and warm, saturated golds in the flame-lit interiors. The score is a big, swelling orchestral action theme with drums and brass, and the battle sound design is loud and close. Vibe: sweeping, earnest adventure with a dusty, romantic edge. It suits a Friday night with friends, a background watch while folding laundry, or a lazy weekend afternoon. The pace is brisk and the tone is earnest, with mentor-and-student bonds and a lovestruck arc between a student and a noblewoman. Violence is frequent and fairly bloody, with sword fights, arrows, and battlefield casualties; there's some peril and wounding, though the tone stays adventurous rather than grim. Suited to people who want a time-travel romp with medieval swordplay and don't mind a bit of earnest melodrama.
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