TIME CHANGER

Once upon a time, not too long ago, a certain small segment of the church refused to go to movies. Even so, a few of these believers would huddle around a 16mm projector and watch what could pass for homemade movies with Christian messages. Times have changed. Many of these denominations have now dropped their restrictions on movie going, and teenagers, whether Christians or non-Christians, see the same films at the box office. The good news, however, is that some of these filmmakers have started to improve their crafts. They are working hard to make movies that can compete at the box office. TIME CHANGER is one such movie that will be released at several hundred theatres this fall.

TIME CHANGER is not the run-of-the-mill “Last Days” Christian rapture movie. Instead, it has a good story with a strongly evangelistic plot woven into the fabric of the drama.

TIME CHANGER opens in 1890 at Grace Seminary, located in the south. Russell Carlisle (played by D. David Morin) is trying to get his colleagues to agree to have the seminary endorse his new book on morals. He needs a unanimous endorsement. One of the other professors, Norris Anderson, played magnificently by Gavin MacLeod, refuses. He has the old-fashioned idea that morals can only be taught within the context of Jesus Christ. He asks if you take Jesus out, what difference is it if you obey one moral system, or none at all?

Carlisle is furious. Eventually, Norris gets Carlisle to come to his house where he has built a time machine. After several arguments, Morris gets Carlisle to take a time trip to 2001.

Needless to say, when he gets there he’s shocked. A little girl steals his hot dog. When he catches her and tells her that it is wrong to steal, she replies, “Who says?”

Of course, what he finds is much more disturbing than just one little girl who steals. Also, during his journey into the future, he presents the Gospel clearly to people in need. The police, however, try to figure out who he is, and think he is impersonating someone from the 1890s. So the question is, will they capture him, or will he make it back to his time?

David Morin does a tremendous job as Carlisle, as does Gavin MacLeod, as the anchor for the other actors. Some of the actors, however, were not up to snuff. The direction, lighting and camerawork were good, but even though this was made on a much bigger budget than director Rich Christiano has had in the past, it still shows some loose threads. It also shows what Rich could do if he had a Hollywood budget. There is a lot of promise here.

The area that should have been fixed is the script. First, it has to be pointed out that the script is imaginative, interesting, and far and away better than most movies from this genre. Bravo! However, there are moments when the script loses its dramatic tension. The dialog becomes no more than warm-and-fuzzy affirmation for each character from one another. Conflict makes dialog work, just as jeopardy makes plot work. Moreover, there are moments in the movie where the jeopardy disappears.

Movieguide® is excited about TIME CHANGER and this imaginative and courageous step into feature filmmaking. We pray that Rich Christiano, and all Christians who are making these films, will learn of, and excel at, their craft.

In commenting on his movie to MOVIEGUIDE®, Rich noted:

“…NEVER in Hollywood history has there ever been a movie with a message like this on a wide release. None of the [Billy] Graham films pitch the truth like this. I don’t think we need to be afraid here but try to lead the way.

– Rich Christiano