The Time Machine (1960) User Reviews

Fourth Time Was A Charm: A Thought-Provoking Film That Looks Better Than Ever On DVD

[ccthemovieman-1 · 9/10 · 6 January 2007]

Boy, did a nice DVD transfer of this not only mak me appreciate the visuals in here more but made the story seem better, too, for some reason. I only acquired the DVD as a memento, so to speak. I had to have at least one movie which had the woman I had a crush on back in the early '60s: Yvettte Mimieux. She still looks great, too. The main thing, however, is how I now viewed this story and how much more I wound up liking it than in the past. This was my fourth look at this movie over a 45-year span and I enjoyed it the most this last time.

Since time travel stories always fascinate me, my favorite part of the film is when "George" (Rod Taylor) is actually in his time machine and experiments with it, slowing it down here and then and then stopping it a couple of times to observe World War I and then WWII. Then, he stops in 1966 when supposedly there was a nuclear attack. (Apparently, scare-mongers back in '60 thought that was a short-term likelihood.)

Anyway, when "George" (H.G. Wells, the author of this story) finally stops, in the year 200,000-something, the story loses some of its momentum. However, it's a fairly interesting study of a group of ultra-passive people being dominated by others who live underground and then literally eat the good people. Taylor is astounded that mankind has not progressed as he had figured but seemed to have regressed.

The message I got on this last look is that man is still man, meaning sinful and capable of anything bad as well as good, and to put one's faith totally in man is a mistake. It's only going to lead to disappointments as "George" found out on each of his stops. (Notice he never stopped during a peaceful, progressive period.) Yet, "George" is still an optimist and wants to be one to help initiate change for the better. There's always hope for a better world and people like George, with his idealism put to action, can make a difference.

Overall, an entertaining and thought-provoking film.

One of the best science fiction movie from the '60s

[ebiros2 · 8/10 · 26 December 2012]

This is one of the best science fiction movie from the '60s. Based on H G Wells' novel, Time Machine is probably the first movie dealing with time travel.

When time travel was not mainstream topic of science fiction, this movie paved the way for interest in time travel, and also sort of gave permission for people to think about time travel, and not be considered a crack pot. Now mainstream physicist write about how real time machines can be constructed without violating the laws of physics. In this sense this movie had seminal influence in the way we think about time.

All this probably wouldn't have happened if this movie had shoddy workmanship, but the production of this movie was impeccable. Everything about this movie is beautifully made. Story is intriguing, and also presents an interesting scenario about the future of man kind.

Not only is this a historically important film, it's an excellently made movie. If you're a science fiction fan, this is one movie you need to watch.

"He Has All The Time In The World"

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 20 April 2007]

One of my favorite films back when I was a lad was George Pal's production of the H.G. Wells novel, The Time Machine. As I've gotten a lot older since the 13 I was when it came out, I can more appreciate the meticulous care that went into the making of this film.

Considering that we didn't have computer generated images back in the day, the special effects hold up remarkably well. The make up and costumes for the villainous Morlocks still have the power to frighten.

What I look at now though was the United Kingdom of the turn of the last century in which Wells wrote his book. As much as George Pal was able to capture the future, he did as well with the past, the recreation of the Victorian/Edwardian era from which our time traveler Rod Taylor goes to the future and back.

A lot of that has to do with the casting of the four men who are Taylor's friends and looked like they stepped from that era. Tom Helmore, Sebastian Cabot, Whit Bissell, and Alan Young all comport themselves as proper English gentlemen who are concerned and support their friend anyway in his theories and experiments.

Especially Alan Young's performance, it's my favorite in the film. Young plays a dual role as Taylor's friend and as his own son over several generations of the 20th century. He's the kind of true friend we should all in life be fortunate to have.

Also note that the mechanics of the Time Machine itself are never explained, just how the thing works and what powers it. It was probably beyond even the fertile imagination of H.G. Wells to conceive, our own best minds of science now debate whether it is even theoretically possible.

Rod Taylor after playing several good supporting roles in many films since arriving in America from his native Australia, got his first lead and real big break in The Time Machine. He's excellent as the time traveler who essentially saves the future for mankind and rescues it from the world that has developed.

The Time Machine was also ahead of it's time. no pun intended, in its depiction of the peaceful Eloi. During the sixties age of flower power, the gentle Eloi are like a bunch of hippies who seemingly have attained their version of paradise. No one is old and they live in a garden of Eden. Little do they know what the underground Morlocks are using them for.

Yvette Mimieux who as Weena of the Eloi got her break out role her. She's the quintessence of the flower power generation soon to come.

Even though new versions have been done, this version of The Time Machine still stirs the imagination and appeals to the scientifically curious in all of us.

It fired the imagination of a 10 year old boy for a lifetime

[andy-cippico · 10/10 · 3 July 2006]

OK, so some people are intent on pointing out factual or historical inaccuracies. Some people ridicule the costumes and accents, but what's important is the spirit of the film. I sincerely doubt anyone made the same kind of comments back in 1960. It was a seminal film and must have inspired a generation of film makers. You don't need CGI to make a good film. It's all about the story and the ingenuity of having to make do with the things you've got to hand. This film exemplifies that attitude.

I first saw The Time Machine as a 10 year old in 1970 and was utterly captivated. The stop-motion photography was spell-binding to me; particularly when George kills one of the attacking Morlocks. The gory footage of the body decomposing will abide with me forever. More importantly, and for the first time in my life, I was completely swept away with the concept of time travel. This film was unlike anything I had ever seen before and sowed seeds of profound thought for many years after.

This film may not be for everyone, but it was for a certain 10 year-old boy all those years ago. How I wish I could go back and recapture those moments...

An early and all-time favorite

[PRSLRider · 10/10 · 9 August 2002]

In the early 1960s my mother used to take my younger sister and me to a nearby one-screen theater to see Saturday kiddie matinees. It was a great way to keep us entertained and out of her hair for a few hours, particularly after our baby sister was born.

One movie I saw during those matinees was the 1960 version of The Time Machine. It made such an impression on me that, for quite a while afterward, I would play Time Machine with my sister and cousin with me as the Time Traveler.

It wasn't until sometime in the 1990s that I was able to see it again when I got a VHS copy. It was very much the way I remembered it to be. I have since read the book and have found that the movie is quite faithful to the text, though some scenes involving two stops in the 1900s were added and a few bright spots appeared that weren't in the book, which is pretty dark.

The special effects look primitive by today's standards, but they did win the Academy Award for Special Effects in 1961, and rightfully so, though I have no idea what other films had been nominated.

This is still one of my top 10 movies and likely always will be. I haven't seen the 2002 version, which is probably just as well, since I'm happy with the 1960 version and don't want to ruin it.

It's always the right time for The Time Machine.

[yenlo · 9 August 1999]

One of those Sci-Fi films that's made just right to be watched over and over again and never gets old. The special effects were ahead of their time but the film is not bogged down with them and the actors are allowed to ply their trade. Rod Taylor puts in a solid performance as George the time traveler. George Pal did a great job with this picture. A remake would probably be flashier with the FX but would be hard to beat this classic.

CLASSIC

[dsd_uk · 7/10 · 16 March 2002]

I watched this film as a youngster and remembered enjoying it then, I was reunited with it about 10 years later and I loved it even more so. Just everything about the way H.G Wells has dealt with time travel makes this film a great viewing. He has explored time travelling in a way that leaves you with many captivated thoughts after the film has ended. The monsters do however make the film look dated but this doesn't ruin the film at all it just shows its age and insures its classic authentity.

I understand that a remake has been made and is on its way to the big screen, I do hope that they haven't ruined this masterpiece and I look forward too seeing it.

An outstanding classic

[raypdaley182 · 7/10 · 10 August 2006]

This is an excellent film. If you've seen the remake and haven't seen this then watch it. If you haven't seen the remake then watch this first.

George (HG Wells middle name!) creates a machine that can travel through time and he wishes to see how man has fared through the ages and to see what he can learn from our future.

At first he travels a little forward to just past the 1st world war, then to the 1960's where we are having an atomic war.

his final big jump is to the future of the eloi and the morlocks. where half of man had lived underground and become the cannibal morlocks and the rest had stayed above ground and became the innocent carefree eloi.

this film has an excellent ending and we are left to wonder which 3 books he has taken back to the future and if he will ever return.

The special effects are still remarkable after more than 40 years!

[llltdesq · 9/10 · 7 June 2001]

This is a very well-done adaptation of the H. G. Wells novella, with an Oscar for the special effects that are still impressive more than 40 years later. Good performances by an ensemble cast and a good script also help. One interesting side note: character actor Whit Bissell was in both the 1960 version here and the version done for television in 1978, playing essentially the same part with two different character names! Recommended.

Classic, Beautiful Science Fiction

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 6 August 2015]

A Victorian Englishman travels to the far future and finds that humanity has divided into two hostile species.

I cannot say that I am terribly familiar with the original story. I am, however, somewhat familiar with the remake. Although that was not bad, you simply cannot beat the charm of this original.

What I liked most was the progressive move forward in time, first by minutes, then years, and then many thousands of years. That was much more interesting than just jumping to the distant future and the Morlocks. The son who looks exactly like his father? Brilliant. And by setting it in Victorian England rather than 1960, the jump ahead could be accomplished with a true history... at least for the first fifty years.

Great film, very well done.

[LebowskiT1000 · 9/10 · 31 July 2002]

I recently saw the 2002 film "The Time Machine" and liked it a great deal, so I thought that it was probably in my best interest to see the 1960 version of "The Time Machine". So, I went ahead and rented it and watched it. I knew that this film was made in 1960, so I wasn't expecting anything spectacular, but I still hoped that it would be good. I must say that I was REALLY impressed with the film! I thought it was great!

The story is brilliantly told, smartly done, and quite interesting. I noticed a great deal of similarities (and differences) between this film and the 2002 version. There was virtually nothing I didn't like about the film, as far as story goes. I'm really interested in reading the H.G. Wells story now, so hopefully in the near future I'll bust out my copy and read it.

I thought the actors in the film did a fantastic job as well! Sadly, I'd never even heard of any of the actors in the film. I thought Rod Taylor, Alan Young and Yvette Mimieux all did a great job. The rest of the cast was good, but these three really struck me as great. Also, I have to say that Yvette is one beautiful woman!

The special effects in this film were surprisingly good, especially for a movie made in 1960! I must admit that I was really impressed with the sets and the special effects in the film.

The only thing that I would complain about, if I had to, is some little things. For instance, the classic "monster about to grab the guy, but then doesn't" sort of thing. Little things like that kind of bothered me, but I realize that it was just the style back then, so I can't really complain about it. Also, I wasn't too terribly impressed with the mouth and face of the Morlocks, but again, given that it was made back in 1960, I can let it slide.

Overall, I really enjoyed the film, and would definitely recommend it to anyone that liked the 2002 version of the film or just enjoys films about time-travel or science fiction. I truly hope that you enjoy the film as much as I do. Thank you for reading,

-Chris

Sigh, like anyone with half a brain really liked this film(Which would include all you Eloi and Morlocks out there)

[kg22384 · 5/10 · 11 May 2001]

I guess I'm goin against the flow here. Everyone thinks to seem this is a cute wonderful little tale. Although I think the film is decent for 1960(you wanna see real special effects and psychological mind numbingness, check out Psycho), it lacks a whole hell of alot. I don't read much, and I'm adamant about not comparing the film to the book, but assessing the film as it's own entity. Unfortunately, when a movie is filled with as many plot holes, inconsistencies, and downright silly plot points as this one, you may find it necessary to refer to the book, merely to try and aid your proccess in understanding the lost potential in this film. The essence of what Wells is saying in the book is sorely missed in the film, as the filmmakers seemed to have solely based the film about the nuclear threat of the late fifties. The Time Machine is nothing about war. It's about people's views toward each other, and how class separation over thousands of generations undermined the great human race into a species of oblivious, mundane, mediocre, couldn't care lesses. Wells does a beautiful job of describing the frailties of both the Eloi and the Morlocks, and does a wonderful job of making a point that they are essentially the same, neither is the bad guy to the other. Both live out of ignorance. Both are innocent as children, and Wells draws strong parallels to these descendants of the decadent aristocracy, and the supressed and opressed working class people, forced further and further beneath the surface. he also does not hint at a hopeful recovery. As the Time Traveller leaves the future, he realizes quite plainly that these are no longer homo sapiens. Possibly some inferior degradation, but their damage has gone far beyond psychological damage that can be reveresed with a mere three books. The only hope for the Eloi and Morlocks, would lie in a change found thousands of years earlier. Therefore it was quite foolish to try and add a "happy" open ending where the vigil Time Traveller is going back to save humanities future. You obviously cannot make the book verbatim into the movie, but you can try and do justice to Wells brilliant observations of the human spirit and behaviour, for surely, there is a brilliant movie with these themes prevailing, just waiting to be made.

George Pal Realizes His Vision

[jhclues · 8/10 · 14 March 2002]

In 1960, filmmaker George Pal brought to fruition a visionary concept for a film based on a novel by H.G. Wells, about an inventor who builds a machine that enables him to travel through time, specifically into the future, where he learns a timeless, universal truth about the machinations of society and some of the basic tenets of human nature. `The Time Machine,' which Pal produced and directed, stars Rod Taylor as George, the inventor/time traveler/hero, who, born into a time and world that doesn't suit him, decides to do something about it.

A week into the 20th Century, four of George's closest friends, Dr. Philip Hillyer (Sebastian Cabot), Anthony Bridewell (Tom Helmore), Walter Kemp (Whit Bissell) and his best friend, David Filby (Alan Young), are gathered at his house for dinner, but George is late; when he finally shows up, he is disheveled, disoriented and hungry-- and has a story that is beyond belief. It's a tale that actually began one week earlier, on New Year's Eve, 1899, when the five had last been together. On that evening, George, after a discussion of the reality of a `Fourth Dimension,' had given them a demonstration of a model of a `Time Machine,' he had built, a miniature prototype of the machine he hoped would take him some day into the future.

His demonstration is met with interest, but skepticism; only Filby, it seems, is able to keep an open mind, but even he encourages George to accept the constraints of Time, which to the rational mind are absolute and immutable. George, however, views Time as a parameter; a variable whose value is subject to change. And on that last night of the 19th Century, after his friends leave-- gone off to celebrate the arrival of the new century-- George acts on his theory by stepping into his machine and beginning a journey that will prove to be the adventure of a lifetime. A journey during which he sees a number of wars and changes in the world around him, and which ultimately transports him some 800,000 years into the future, where he finds a world ravaged by fate, where humankind has been divided into two sects: The gentle Eloi, living on the surface of the earth, and the Morlocks-- mutants who dwell beneath as the Master Race, and who prey upon the weak and simple Eloi.

He also discovers the dark secret of the Eloi and the Morlocks, and determines to address the situation. But first he returns to his own time, to tell his friends the story, and to retrieve something he needs. When his guests leave, Filby remains behind with words of caution for George; but as soon as he leaves, George is off to fulfill his destiny, and he has all the time in the world to do it.

Going into this project, George Pal had a definite vision of what he wanted to accomplish with this film, from the way the time machine itself looked, to the way he wanted to present the future of mankind and the world. And working from the intelligent, imaginative screenplay by David Duncan, he succeeded by delivering a film that has since become a classic of the Science Fiction genre. The nature of the story demands that the viewer suspend disbelief, of course, but Pal develops his story in such a plausible, straightforward manner that it is easy to do just that. He puts George on the journey of a lifetime, and he takes his audience along for the ride. He does an exquisite job of establishing the Victorian era in which the story begins, as well as the world of the Eloi and the Morlocks. The F/X he employs to convey the sense of George's movement through time-- like the swift arcing of the Sun and Moon, and the quick, subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) changes George observes-- are entirely effective. Pal obviously had a devotion to detail that pays off handsomely here. A dedicated filmmaker, he refused to settle for less than what he knew was right for his picture, and it shows. The result is a film that is entertaining, timeless and memorable.

As George, Rod Taylor is perfectly cast and gives a solid performance in which he embodies the boldness, the imagination and tenacity of his character. Most importantly, he makes George believable and his motivations credible, which enables the viewer to be swept along with the story. Taylor has a commanding presence that serves his character well, and he is, in fact, the veritable personification of the explorer/adventurer, a man willing to take a chance or face unbelievable odds to accomplish his goal. Taylor is a fine actor who has made a number of movies, but of them all, this is the role for which he will probably be best remembered.

Also perfect in her role is Yvette Mimieux, as one of the Eloi, Weena. A talented actress-- now something of a ‘60s icon, in fact-- her fair beauty, along with the innocent demeanor and vulnerability she manages to convey, makes her character entirely convincing. And the way she plays it makes George's actions more likely, as well. Granted, her character is well written to begin with, but Mimieux's the one who sells it in the translation from page to screen.

The supporting cast includes Doris Lloyd (Mrs. Watchett), Bob Barran (Eloi Man), James Skelly (Second Eloi Man) and Paul Frees (Voice of the Talking Rings). A transporting flight of fantasy, expertly crafted and imaginatively presented, `The Time Machine' is captivating entertainment that will make you believe that time travel is possible. it paints a bleak picture of the future, to be sure, but it gives you and leaves you with that which has kept Man putting one foot in front of the other since Time began: Hope. That's the legacy of H.G. Wells and the promise of George Pal. And it's the magic of the movies. I rate this one 8/10.

Great film

[searchanddestroy-1 · 10/10 · 30 November 2022]

I will never get tired to watch this film, one of my all time science fiction favourites, anticipation film, so atmospheric, gluing for audiences, all kind of audiences, sad, gloomy but not hopeless, the best of George Pal. A philosophical tale where Rod taylor co stars Yvette Mimieux, before THE MERCENARIES, seven years later. The story is really moving, poignant, magical, I don't know why, I can not explain, you have to watch it by yourself. A very special movie which gave me something exceptional that I will never forget. The other adaptations of HG Well's are not so good as this one, I mean the 2002 feature. I don't even remember it.

I love this movie.

[Douglas_Holmes · 28 September 2002]

This movie is truly a gem. There are problems with it when compared to H.G. Wells's original story, but many of the additions and changes actually are improvements, in my opinion. If there is one thing I WOULDN'T have changed, it was the part where the Time Traveler finally figures it all out: the Eloi are merely fatted cattle and the Morlocks are their "cowboys." In the book it comes through that the Eloi are not particularly good and the Morlocks aren't really evil- both groups are merely evolutionary products. Of course, theater audiences in 1960 wouldn't have accepted this.

Back to the film: the story is touching and I liked the sets and model-work. I have the DVD and I have watched it multiple times. And THAT is an endorsement.

Classic science fiction film based on a known novel and excellently directed by George Pal

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 17 September 2009]

This fantastic picture is a magnificent rendition about H.G. Wells' book , it begins during a friends meeting (Rod Taylor , Sebastian Cabot , Whit Bissel, and Alan Young who'll have a tiny role in the second version, 2002) . Rod Taylor plays a Victorian scientist who travels to far future and he doesn't find an Utopian society but a dark and mysterious location with several surprises and dangerous happenings . As he invents a travel machine (a real barber-chair) which transports him within the dimensions of time and ahead at future world , into the year 802.701. There meets humanity has been divided in two races , the inhabitants named Eloi who are peaceful , meek and the hostile Morlocks who rule over the good Eloi . There the protagonist lives risked and frustrating experiences but also falls in love with a gorgeous Eloi named Weena (Ivette Mimieux) . Later on , he'll have to confront the Morlocks , a beasts-alike race, who bear a light-bulb eyes and hold extraordinary force . You Will Orbit into the Fantastic Future !.The Time Machine whirls you to a world of amazing adventure in the year 800,000!

This exciting movie is packed with science-fiction , action , adventures , fantasy , a love story and breathtaking scenarios . Glamorous cinematography reflecting splendidly the Victorian setting by cameraman Paul Voguel as well as appropriate and rousing musical score by Russel Garcia . Impressive special effects are deservedly Oscar-winning and perfectly realized by Chang and Warren . Furthermore , colorful matte-painting and animation by Jim Danforth , though uncredited . The motion picture was stunningly directed by George Pal (When the worlds collide , War of the worlds) . It is remade by inferior version for TV (1978) and cinema (2002) directed by Simon Welles (H.G. Wells descendant) with Guy Pearce (Rod Taylor role) , Samantha Mumba (Ivette Mimieux) , Mark Addy ( Alan Young character) , among others and where the starring makes a device to go back in time with the aim to reborn his deceased bride (Sienna Guillory) . Rating : Better than average , the picture contains all the ingredients that make it a Sci-fi classic . It's still highly amusing and maintains its sense of wonder .

George Pal and Rod Taylor create the best adaptation of H.G.Wells' timeless classic "The Time Machine".

[FilmCriticLalitRao · 10/10 · 5 April 2010]

It is a fact that today's young generation have a fairly good idea about "The Time Machine" directed by Simon Wells in 2002.This film was a modest box office as well as critical success although it featured acting talents of screen stalwarts actors Jeremy Irons and Guy Pierce. The film failed to have widespread cultural impact as it contained a wide array of immense special effects.This was not at all the case with "The Time Machine" made in 1960 as its director George Pal was a man whose forte was science fiction.His version succeeded as it did not feature any kind of nonsensical special effects.George Pal contented himself by putting to good use all possible science fiction technology available during sixties.In "The Time Machine",human element is also very much visible despite its primary focus on science and science fiction related matters.The entire film is a symbol of simplicity as roles played by Rod Taylor and Yvette Mimieux are devoid of vanity.This is one of the reasons why "The Time Machine" remains one of the few films which one can really enjoy on a Sunday afternoon with family on Turner Classic Movies.

When I speak of time, I'm speaking of the fourth dimension.

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 10 July 2010]

The Time Machine (AKA: H.G. Wells' The Time Machine) is produced and directed by George Pál. It's adapted by David Duncan from the debut novel of the same name written by H. G. Wells in 1895. It stars Rod Taylor, Alan Young and Yvette Mimieux. It received the Academy Award for Best Effects, Special Effects (Gene Warren and Tim Baar) for the time-lapse photographic effects showing the world changing rapidly. The story sees Taylor as George, a man from Victorian England who constructs a time travelling machine and uses it to travel to the future. Thru World Wars and on to what awaits mankind in the year 802, 701.

We should perhaps start with H. G. Wells the author, the man who broke free from his poverty strewn life to become a social reformer and much revered author. His novel The Time Machine is bleakly dystopian, a cautionary tale about how things will be real bad if things continue on this already rocky path, and also it is a caustic attack on the British class system. Wells was, in short, not crafting a shlocky science fiction page turner to dip in and out of at bathroom time. So it's unlikely he could have envisaged that one day one of his most finest works world be visualised as a moving picture for all the family to enjoy! On to 1960 and the colourful adaptation of his novel, a boys own fable in essence but still retaining the basic spirit at heart.

Here in lies the crux of the matter with Pál's movie, well it's two fold really. One is that if you are after very serious sci-fi picture, then you should perhaps know better than to expect it here. The other is that if you are the sort of person who dislikes old film's because the effects aren't in keeping with todays whizz bang special effects? Well you are advised to go rent the 2002 version with the Wells purists instead. Pál has crafted a wholesome family entertainer. Not lacking in creative flair, Pál's movie contains a rich and interesting plot, thoughtful dialogue and a bona fide enjoyable performance from the square jawed Taylor. There's been complaints about the pacing, but I don't see that myself. There's periods of talk and reflection, of course, I mean we surely want some science to go with a story about time travel! While to hurtle towards the finale before addressing thematics in the Eloi/Morlock blonde infused World of 802, 701 would be just plain wrong. Even for a popcorn piece.

Away from the charming (not creaky) effects, the set design is pleasant, as is the lost art of model work, while the actual Time Machine itself a lovely ode to Victorian gaudiness. Pál has put his own stamp on a terrific source, his vim and vigour shines thru to give us a smart and perky period piece. For sure it has hokey moments, if you don't laugh once then I'd be very surprised. Whilst in the form of Mimieux's Eloian babe Weena, there's cause for much discussion with the ladies in your audience about the portrayal of Women in the future!! The film has now got a quality DVD release, with a smooth polished transfer, where the colour pings from the screen and the audio is crisper than ever. The latter greatly enhancing Russell Garcia's memorable score. In the extras is a 50 minute bonus with The Time Machine: The Journey Back. Hosted by Taylor it's indispensable, you can see the love and affection Taylor has for the movie. But most of all it's a little vignette at the end of the documentary that fans need to see. What is it? Hah, you will have to buy the DVD to find out. It's worth it, tho, for this is a smashing and charming little movie. 7.5/10

This is soooo good

[Walle-2 · 10/10 · 6 March 1999]

Yes, this is the movie that I wanted to see all my life. A trip 1 million years into the future. And what a magnificent future they´ve come up with. Man is slave to the creatures that lives under the surface. And the people (all kids) have nothing to fight the creatures with. Cause they don´t like...know that they are bad. They have no books, no nothing to tell them how the world was a million years ago. Very very good, guaranteed goosebumps. The Time Machine 10/10 in points.

A favourite

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 30 December 2010]

I love this film, and so does my dad, much better than the style over substance remake. In fact, both of us feel it is a huge favourite of ours and looking at the film's charms it isn't hard to see why. The special are still very charming and stylish- not dated to me, and the story is a haunting and speculative one that sticks to the spirit of HG Wells's marvellous story well. The set design is wonderful, the script like the story is imaginative, the pace is brisk and the direction is great. The acting while not the film's best asset is still good with Rod Taylor likable enough as the inventor. Overall, a big favourite and definitely worth a watch. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Very Enjoyable

[Cicman69 · 7/10 · 5 March 2002]

I've said this before and I'll say it again, special effects do not a good movie make. Acting is the key. Acting and a good story. The special effects of this 1960 classic are above par for it's time, but modern viewers will easily see where they fall short. But the excellent acting, especially by Rod Taylor (Of "The Birds" fame) makes this movie. You actually care what happens to him. His reactions are real. And this version of the movie relatively faithful to the novel. I hope the new remake can approach the caliber of acting and emotional intensity of this classic.

A deeply moving film

[Sinemah_Freek · 10/10 · 24 June 2009]

While the special effects of the 2002 remake of The Time Machine are truly quite interesting, I really much prefer the more subtle and much more profound nature of the 1960 version. Yes, the special effects are not as good as the 2002 vehicle, but you have to remember that this film was of course made in 1960, when special effects were a bit more primitive than nowadays. This 1960 version of The Time Machine just happens to be, in my humble opinion, a multi-layered movie of enormous warmth, depth, and wealth of philosophical feeling (although some folks might not get that impression after only one viewing). I think that it is definitely right up there philosophically with a profound nature that closely approaches the visionary quality of the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey". Now, it must be said that I for one could absolutely watch this 1960 version of The Time Machine every day for 100 years, and never get tired of it....ever, if only I had the time !!!

Politically Laundered Sci-fi

[ROMANVS · 17 May 1999]

In isolation, this film is an interesting and rather enjoyable tale. It is only when you appreciate the underlying theme in the original 1895 novel penned by H.G. Wells that you discovers how the story had been "laundered" to be "politically correct" for American public release. In a land where "socialism" has almost always been a dirty word and at a time when the McCarthy political witch hunts (that hit Hollywood rather badly) were still a fresh memory and when the "Cold War" was at its height, M.G.M. Studios was not going to take the risk of preaching a cautionary story about how the seeds sown by the capitalist system could exact a gruesome nemesis in a distant future. Instead, the studio took the story, stripped it of its ideology and presented it as the adventure of a gifted Victorian inventor.

Throughout his career, Herbert George Wells (1866-1946) placed his sympathies with the working class. In 1905, he joined the Fabian Society, a socialist think-tank whose ranks included George Bernard Shaw and that gave birth to the British Labour Party. It is not surprising that his ideology would embed itself in his writing -- and this was certainly true of his first novel, The Time Machine. The book tells of an enterprising inventor who crafts a device that can carry a human passenger forward or backward through time. The hero travels 800,000 years into the future and finds a world in which humans had evolved into two species: an illiterate and child-like race called the Eloi, devoid of technology but similar in appearance to modern humans who inhabited the surface of the planet; and the more repugnant Morlocks, technologically sophisticated and living in perpetual darkness in underground caverns. The hero gradually learns that it is the Morlocks who supply the Eloi with food, clothing and other basic necessities of life, but they exact a terrible price. At periodic intervals, the Morlocks "harvest" the Eloi for food.

(By his own drive, Wells, who lived an impoverished childhood and became literate only in his teen years, entered university where he studied biology under Thomas H. Huxley, the illustrious and outspoken champion of Charles Darwin. He was aware of the debates among evolutionary biologists of his day over the discovery of Neanderthal remains, about how two "distinct" species of humans -- Neanderthals and our Cro-Magnon ancestors -- existed in a prehistoric Europe and whether it was a peaceful co-existence or whether the two species competed, perhaps violently, for control of resources. Wells merely extrapolated the concept of two competing human species to a distant future.)

The hero in the novel also discovers how this world came into being. At some less remote future time, the industrialists collectively chose to establish their factories and means of production underground, leaving the surface of the earth green. Eventually, the politically powerful classes decided to banish all workers underground as well, leaving the world of sunshine and blue skies as a playground for the wealthy and the privileged -- a paradise that would eventually turn sour when the passage of time would adjust the genetic makeup of the two classes in their different environments and when a successful "slave revolt" would place the descendants of the workers in control.

Clearly, such a political fable could not be put on screen in the United States in 1960. If a cinematic version of the story was going to be made, another explanation had to be conjured up to account for the evolution of the two human species -- and it was found in the Cold War itself, a war that turns "hot" and forces huge populations underground for survival. Toady, however, almost forty years after the movie was released and more than a hundred hears since the novel first broke onto the world, that M.G.M. explanation seems horribly dated and it is the original Wells plot that holds up much better in today's international, political and industrial climate.

Good Time Travel Story

[mikepwong · 7/10 · 12 May 2002]

This is a really good time travel story. I found the ideas very interesting, especially traveling in time over 800,000 years into the future. When George was 'inside' the rock for all those years waiting for a time when the rocks will clear, I kept on thinking about how creepy it was since he wouldn't be able to materialize into the rock.

Rod Taylor was excellent in the movie and definitely carried the movie especially in the scenes in the second half of the movie that take place in 802,701.

The one thing I did not like about the movie were the Morlocks, I was thinking that even for a production that was done 40 years ago, they could have came up with something better than the blue-green muscle men with long white hair.

My rating for 'The Time Machine' is 7 out of 10.

Of the two films I am comparing here (Time Machine -2002 will follow), this is the more accurate to the book.

[fredericksmith1952 · 10/10 · 29 February 2012]

Of the two films I am comparing here (Time Machine -2002 will follow), this is the more accurate to the book. Interestingly, Rod Taylor portrays H. George (H.G.) Wells, the author of the novel and the main character in this timeless fiction classic. His guests are Alan Young, Sebastian Cabot, Tom Helmore, and Whit Bissell. The dialog is clear and to the point, and while George relates his tale of time travel, the guests do not interrupt. Given the technology available in 1960, the scenery and settings are exceptional. Photography and Cinematography are excellent as well, and the acting is believable for the story. The departure from the book comes at the end, when George returns to the future to help the Eloi and Weena. An interesting point if the film, which was made for $750,000.00 in 35 days, is that Yvette Mimieux was only 17 years old at the time the shooting began and turned 18 during the filming. Violence is minor and profanity is non-existent in this George Pal classic, and there should be no problem allowing the children to watch. Collectible for science fiction fans and anyone who appreciates pre computer special effects.