Jesse
Bradford Tries to Stop TimeJesse
Bradford Tries to Stop TimeThe PG-rated Clockstoppers is a deceptively subversive movie. Don't get me wrong. It's also being billed as a flick that the entire family will enjoy, and there is a lot of truth to that. In the movie, a father and his son argue, then reunite. Kids learn to wield power responsibly. And the bad guys get it in the end, but not too violently.
However, it's the way the plot unfolds that is slyly seditious. You see, in order for the good kids to triumph over the bad adults in Clockstoppers, they have to become little Scarlett O'Haras--lying, stealing, cheating, and ... well, darn near killing to put right what the evil government agents have made wrong. And the fact that the lead babe in the film is supposed to be 16 and is so overtly sexy will make some of the adult males watching the movie feel dirty. Don't be, guys. I looked Paula Garces' bio up on the Internet Movie Database afterward. There is no need to break into a chorus of "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon." She's 28!
The movie centers on a secret government operation to use Dr. Earl Dopler, a brilliant scientist (French Stewart ... yeah, right), to build a wristwatch that can speed up the wearer's molecular structure to the point where he/she is moving so fast that the rest of the world appears to be standing still. Think of the possibilities. Someone wearing such a watch can march right into an enemy's stronghold, plant a bomb, walk calmly out, and retreat to a safe distance without even being detected. Heads of state could be assassinated, secret plans could be stolen, stained dresses could be cleaned--all free of detection.
The possibilities are endless!
But good government officials realize this weapon can be used against the U.S. if it were to fall into the wrong hands. Project leader Gates (Michael Biehn) is given three days to turn over all of his project data. Gates, thirsty for power, kidnaps Dopler and forces him to speed up the research. Unable to do the final math on the so-called "Quicktime" project, Dopler mails the experimental watch to his mentor, Professor George Gibbs. One problem. Gibbs doesn't take his former "hippie" student seriously. After quickly "fixing the watch," he goes away to a science symposium. Gibbs leaves the watch behind to be found by his teenage son, Zak (Jesse Bradford), who soon learns he has the ability to virtually stop time and cause all sorts of innocent mischief. Mostly, Zak just wants to impress Francesca (the aforementioned Garces), a new foreign exchange student with the kind of hair you just want to watch her wash for the rest of your natural life. It's not long before the bad guys, led by Biehn, come looking for the watch, forcing Zak and Francesca into a race against time ... literally!
I liked Clockstoppers. But I must say that I thought from the trailers and commercials I'd like it a lot more. Stopping time and being able to walk around while everyone is frozen is such a cool concept. It reminds me of that old Twilight Zone episode where Burgess Meredith could stop time by opening his pocket watch. At the end of the episode, he drops the watch, it breaks, and he is trapped for the rest of his life with time standing still. THAT was a concept executed to its fullest!
In the end, my main problem with Clockstoppers is not that it doesn't go far enough. It's that it isn't fun enough. I'm sure you can go into any high school classroom in America and ask the kids what would you do if you suddenly had the ability to stop time, and you'd get better, funnier, and cooler ideas than the ones dramatized in Clockstoppers. Oh, sure. A lot of the guys would say, "Wow, man! We could feel up all the girls we'd want." OK, that's what my friends would say. Most kids would probably tell you they could go to the local mall and try on all the clothes, or test drive Porsches and Corvettes, or get the answers to all of their midterms.
Clockstoppers does have some cool visual effects. Star Trek: The Next Generation actor and filmmaker Jonathan Frakes directed the film, and he gives the action scenes some nice energy. And his years spent as Commander Riker dealing with localized disturbances in the space-time continuum and warp-core breaches that vent drive plasma serve him well in keeping the movie's internal logic intact. There's even a "Make it so, Number One" gag.
In the end, I liked this movie, but didn't love it. It's one of those lazy Saturday afternoon matinee kind of flicks that you might really enjoy if you're in the right mood and ... ahem, if you have the time.
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