Movies dealing with Time travel have generally been interesting to me so I thought the Butterfly effect looked good. Unfortunately I had to wait a while before I could fully see the movie but when I did it was worth it. The film reminded me of Donnie Darko in a way despite being two completely movies. Many weird events happen in the film that all would unfold in the finale.

Evan Treborn is a deeply troubled kid. At age six he starts having unexplained black outs with no memory after. The blackouts usually occur when something bad or wrong happens. The doctor tells Evan to keep a journal of his memories so Evan keeps journals. He gets to meet his dad who is in a mental institution but has a blackout and his dad dies. Evan meets Kayleigh Miller and her brother Tommy as well as Lenny. They become friends but Tommy becomes increasingly over protective of Kayleigh and Lenny is terrified of Tommy. Seven years later the blackouts get worse and Evans and his mom move away but Evan promises he will come back for Kayleigh. Now around seven years later Evan is in college and living a normal life with no blackouts since he moved.

Then one day in his dorm Evan takes a trip down memory lane as he reads over his journals. The words move and he is transported back to the memory that happened to be at the time of the blackout. He changes what originally happened and we see what actually happened. Then his life has changed and he is with Kayleigh in a dorm as he is a frat boy and she is in a sorority. He sees the changes he made and thinks he is happy but sees what else happened so he must go back again to fix the mistakes he accidentally made in the first place.

This movie is very interesting. It is a little confusing at first but stick with it and it will make sense. The film opens in a flashback that eventually ties in with the film. Many interesting things happen and you start to wonder what exactly happened all this time. The film bares a resemblance to Donnie Darko as it deals with fate and destiny. Throughout the course of the film several disturbing things do indeed happen. Some have a bigger effect than others but they all are crucial to the story as every event comes full circle.

The Butterfly effect is a surprisingly well made and planned out. The script is well done as it ties everything together with no lose ends to spare. I have thought about the film for a while and I have concluded that there are no significant plot holes. There might have been but it too well made to notice. The acting was also very good. Ashton Kutcher proves he can do other genres besides comedy as he puts on a very well handled performance. He is dramatic and puts a lot of emotion in his acting as it clearly shows. Amy Smart works well in her role as she undergoes different personalities each time a change is made. She is a good actress and she has a good role in the movie. The supporting cast is great as well especially the teenage actors. Jessie James is excellent as teenage Tommy. He is demotic and evil with many dark aspects to him.

The movie had two different endings to it. The theatrical ending is the one I saw but I do know the one for the directors cut. The theatrical is a happy ending without being sappy or too Hollywood ish. The director cut on the other hand is dark and goes well with the story but I honestly wonder if main stream audioances could handle it. Both ways the movie is still great and I was quite surprised on how much I liked it. The story was intriguing and held my interest. The acting was excellent and went well with the story. The script was well done and didn’t leave much room for inconsistencies. Despite the fact that the time travel part was a bit impossible it was still interesting and made a great story.

All in all I really did enjoy this movie. It was really well made and excelled in many different areas. It also had a good balance of drama and science fiction. It was a film that did make you think. It made you think of the damage child abuse has and how one event could change your life. Another interesting thing about the film was Even Treborn’s name. If you put it together you get event reborn. I found that interesting as it really did relate to the story. It is a great film that I would recommend.

5 stars

Cast

Ashton Kutcher .... Evan Treborn

Melora Walters .... Andrea Treborn

Amy Smart .... Kayleigh Miller

Elden Henson .... Lenny Kagan

William Lee Scott .... Tommy Miller

John Patrick Amedori .... Evan Treborn at 13

Irene Gorovaia .... Kayleigh Miller at 13

Kevin Schmidt .... Lenny at 13

Jesse James .... Tommy Miller at 13


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older