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Timer (DVD)
Year: 2009
Rating: M
Director: Jac Schaeffer
Cast: John Patrick Amedori, Michelle Borth, Emma Caulfield, Desmond Harrington
Release Date: February 18, 2011
Distributor: Accent
The Film: 3.0
The Disc: 3.0
FILMINK rates DVDs and Blu-rays out of 5“...the story lacks the depth and clarity to register a significant impact...”
Timer sets its story in the frenzy of a modern age where the pursuit of love rules supreme, and people are implanted with a timer, which when inserted, counts down the exact minute they will meet their soul mate. The thrill of uncertainty is substituted by the assurance of a guarantee, and the fear of heartbreak foiled by the infallibility of the compatibility countdown. Everywhere, everyone is falling in love - except for thirty-something, successful orthodontist, Oona (Emma Caulfield), whose timer remains blank because her soul mate has yet to have his implanted.
Shying away from pointless relationships and frightened by pain, what Oona desires more than anything is assurance. But when she meets the quirky, charming younger man, Mikey (Amedori), she allows herself to be swept off her feet, forsaking her blank timer and his timer's four month countdown.
Timer offers a vision of a fascinating modern world, with an exploration of pertinent facets of the human condition - the need for love, the fear of rejection, the pressure of time. However, the vision remains underdeveloped, with a clichéd plot adhering to rom-com conventions, inadequate explanations of the intricacy of "timers", and an infuriating conclusion.
The premise is intriguing and the performances - namely Caulfield's neurotic love forlorn Oona and Amedori's boyish charms - pitch-perfect, but the story lacks the depth and clarity to register a significant impact. Timer asks all the right questions, but unfortunately comes up short with the answers.
Special features include a making-of, bloopers, deleted scenes and a ‘timer store'.
