Our Movie Reviews Time Machine, The
Author: H. G. Wells
Average Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Last Reviewed On: September 24, 2002 (by Scott)


Scott's Review:
4.5 out of 5 stars on September 24, 2002

After seeing the movie, I decided to read the book it was based on (or rather, the book the movie it was based on was based on). It's a very refreshing short book. It was written in nineteenth century London, and follows some of the prose and style you'd expect from a book written in that time. That, however, doesn't diminish its science fiction elements, or even the overall story. It's a well thought out story. The imagery is a bit vague at some points, but that really doesn't distract from the story. The story itself is well paced, and doesn't really rely on any plot devices to carry it along. The characters presented in the book are mostly flat and indeed mostly described by their names, such as Medical Man, and Time Traveler. Perhaps a longer book would have had time to flesh out these issues, but since the book is only slightly over one hundred pages, you can't expect much in the way of embellishments.

It is the story of an unnamed Time Traveler who travels far into the future, indeed farther than the movie depicts. And he wrestles with what he finds that is left of human civilization, and what it all means. Unlike the movie, which attempts to answer these questions, and present a happy ending too, the book leaves the questions open for answer by the reader, and is all the better for it.

I really enjoyed reading this, and it was quite refreshing after watching the movie botch the same story so badly.


-- Scott and Michelle