time travel movies 80s 90s

15 Classic 1980s Time Travel Movies

The decade took the classic sci-fi premise that had been around for a while before and breathed fresh, outrageous new life into them.

The 1980s was an era of wild, free-wheeling, neon-lit adventures and cinema was no different. While action and romance movies were at a peak, perhaps no other genre benefited more from this experimental spirit than time travel films. The decade took the classic sci-fi premise that had been around for a while before and breathed fresh, outrageous new life into them.

Writers and directors saw time travel as a fascinating concept for both dreamers and nerds, not as a serious mechanical problem that needed to be eliminated but as an excuse for pure, pulse-pounding fun. If you've grown up loving these movies, sneaking into the theater to catch the latest twist on the possibility of changing one's past or future, then the 1980s was your golden age. The aughts may have given us time loops and complex multiverse theories, but the '80s went all in on leveraging simple analog technologies to spin time travel adventures.

Related: These are the Best Movies that Got Time Travel Right

These movies had all the ingredients, from flashing neon lights and Atari references to headset-wearing scientists in lab coats, that made them flavorful and enjoyable. There were also chatty memorable sidekicks and thrilling chase scenes through the past, present, and future. In the classic time travel movies of the '80s, stuff was simple (if ridiculous), the future was bright (if doomed), and anything was possible. So fasten your seatbelts because we’re about to go, well, back in time.

15 The Final Countdown (1980)

Fans of science fiction and war drama gather around because The Final Countdown is a movie that balances both genres with incredible ease. Starring Kirk Douglas and Martin Sheen, this movie follows the U.S.S. Nimitz aircraft carrier that is dispatched on a routine training exercise but it mysteriously enters a time warp and winds up transported back to December 6th, 1941 – the day before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Now the captain and the crew find themselves in a race against time to stop the inevitable tragedy while also trying to make it back to the future intact. As far-fetched as the idea may seem, director Don Taylor makes sure it is executed with an earnest spirit.

This crowd-pleaser features plenty of ‘80s cheese but also gives us some genuinely memorable and exciting sequences aboard a real-life Pacific aircraft carrier.

14 Somewhere in Time (1980)

Set in 1972, Somewhere in Time follows the wistful love story of Richard Collier, a playwright played by Christopher Reeve, who is immediately entranced after seeing a picture of Elise McKenna, played by Jane Seymour. Physically, he’s staying at the Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island in Michigan, but his heart wanders to about to know more about this stage actress. He comes across an old pocket watch given by someone who claims it possesses the power to transport him to the 19th century. He carries out self-hypnosis and travels back in time to meet the woman he believes is the love of his life.

The movie is overall wholesome and sweet, with the Arthurian-style romantic fantasy never feeling rushed . The lead actors give superb performances to elevate this retro story of timeless love.

13 Time Bandits (1981)

As far as time travel goes, Time Bandits is among the most innovative and original movies ever made. The plot centers around a young boy and history nerd, Kevin, playing inside his wardrobe when he suddenly finds himself in the company of a band of time-traveling dwarves who have just stolen a map that allows them to hop around time and through history at will. Simply for adventure, Kevin tags along, with chaos following them as they bounce from the Napoleonic wars to the middle ages and end up in the lair of the supreme being himself. Now they must protect the map from him and his employees.

This satirical, madcap Terry Gilliam film reigns with anarchy and absolute ridicule, with every step on the time-traveling tour being more deliciously creative than the last.

12 Trancers (1984)

Time travel movies are always about changing the history of going back to find something you’d lost. Jack Deth is a trooper from Angel City, and his job is to hunt criminals. He follows the trail of a serial killer through time, from 2247 to the year 1985 in Los Angeles. Only after arriving in the past does he realize that his nemesis, Martin Whistler, has the power to transform ordinary citizens into murderous 'Trancers' – zombie-like creatures that are always under his control. Now Deth must fight time in a new era to stop the Trancer outbreak before his arrival dooms history itself.

Trancers features a brilliant synth-pop soundtrack, and with its dimly lit ‘80s alleyways and liberal use of perm wigs, this absurd time travel slasher-comedy delivers plenty of unintentional laughs along with some truly strange scenes and mend-bending plot twists.

11 The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)

Directed by Stewart Raffill, The Philadelphia Experiment charts the actual events of a secret 1943 experiment that intended to make U.S. Naval warships invisible to radar sensors. But as the mission goes awry, two test subjects are sent 40 years into the future. Once rescued by the Navy in 1984, the time-tossed sailors find themselves in a suddenly frightening new era and now they must find and stop the experiment’s creator from repeating the same catastrophic incident.

The plot itself is enough to peak interest, and with the fear and intrigue having unknowable consequences lurking overhead, the movie sure makes for an entertaining watch. Uneven and choppy but equally ambitious in nature, this conspiracy science fiction thriller features some really cool naval ship special effects, signature B-movie action, and a twist ending.

Related: Incredible Movies Based on True Stories

10 The Terminator (1984)

A movie that we’ve all watched and enjoyed as kids that further morphed into an astounding franchise, The Terminator is set in a post-apocalyptic future in a world ruled by tyrannical supercomputers. Amidst it all, a cybernetic organism called the Terminator is sent back in time to 1984 Los Angeles to systematically eliminate Sarah Connor, the woman whose unborn son will lead humanity’s resistance. To fight back, the authorities also send a soldier back to protect the would-be mother.

Naturally, The Terminator thrives as a thriller, introducing us to a tech-noir vision of a dark future where machines have turned on their makers. Accompanied by groundbreaking visual effects, a pulse-pounding background score, and iconic performances by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, this sci-fi action flick is an instant classic.

9 My Science Project (1985)

Mingling some elements of heartwarming comedy with its science fiction beauty, My Science Project is a teen time travel movie that follows a pair of high school misfits, Michael and Ellie, who raid a military junkyard and stumble upon a mysterious package that contains a strange glowing orb-like structure that absorbs electricity. Their newfound device is as dangerous as it is intriguing because it blends the past, present, and future and threatens mankind.

The movie uses elements of the plot familiar to the time, with characters jumping back and forth in time and creating massive loopholes. From cheap extraterrestrial costumes to wacky ‘80s hijinks, this goofy comedy manages to serve some sweet moments as well as an enjoyable, spirited celebration of youth and the little mischiefs of curious minds.

8 Back to the Future (1985)

No list of time travel movies can be complete without the mention of Back to the Future . The movie, directed by Robert Zemeckis, is an absolute joy from start to finish. It is a brilliant comedy adventure that follows a teenager who is accidentally sent 30 years back in time, where he meets his teenage parents and unwittingly threatens his own experience by getting involved in their private lives.

The characters of Marty McFly and Doc Brown are hilariously adorable and have continued to stay with us for decades. Moreover, the movie’s seamless special effects, lighting pace, and lots of the ‘80s and ‘50s charm to spare serve as a wildly imaginative tale that presents a vision of the small American town that is both celebratory and authentic. Back to the Future set the gold standard for ‘80s sci-fi and nostalgia, setting up the stage for a new generation.

7 Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

Starring Nicolas Cage opposite Kathleen Turner, Peggy Sue Got Married weaves a wonderful and memorable tale of sweet nostalgia, love, yearning, and redefining one’s self because it is never too late. The story revolves around Peggy Sue Bodell, a 43-year-old housewife who has decided to divorce her cheating husband, Charlie. But as she attends her 25th high school reunion and passes out there, she awakens in her own 18-year-old body in 1960, right before she meets Charlie. Having reconsidered and regretted all her life choices, she now has a second chance at senior year. And Peggy Sue must decide what to change and what to leave the same, all while dealing with the chaotic emotions of her teenage self.

Both the lead characters deliver a career-defining performance under Francis Ford Coppola’s direction and create this funny and poignant comedy drama.

6 Flight Of The Navigator (1986)

An underrated time travel classic that comes out on its own because of its immersive story and head-scratching plot twists, Flight Of The Navigator is a Disney adventure that follows 12-year-old David, who is stunned unconscious in the forest near his home. When he wakes up, he realizes that he has been transported to the future, from 1978 to 1986. But the strange thing is, he hasn’t aged a bit. Meanwhile, a NASA scientist stumbles upon a UFO near town, giving David the opportunity to figure out what exactly got him here and how to get out.

The premise lets you believe that there are aliens out there with abilities unknown to man, which makes for an interesting watch. Moreover, the visuals, the overly silly humor, the ‘80s intro and David’s confusion are perfect for a movie that deals with so many genres at a time.

Related: Underrated Sci-Fi Movies of the '80s, Ranked

5 Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

It is the 23rd century, and it turns out that a dangerous alien power is threatening planet Earth by soaking up the oceans. Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise must travel back to 1986 San Francisco and find the humpback whales causing this disaster. From hysterical '80s culture clashes to the crew's ridiculous Cuban-heel-clad dash across the city, the movie packs an endless amount of laughs while also delivering a satisfying amount of space adventure.

Everything about this live-action cartoon feel-good adventure is simply flawless – from the exhilarating naval battle to action sequences to mind-blowing techno babble. One of the franchise’s most delightful and remarkable installments, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , is all about having fun while saving the world.

4 Millennium (1989)

Showcasing a refreshing and comical clash between people from the future and the present, Millennium follows Bill Smith as he tries to get to the bottom of an accident between two jetliners. Upon close inspection, he discovers a band of time travelers from a future Earth who have captured people from the present to repopulate it, leaving a series of disturbances and an unidentifiable object.

Based on the novel by John Varley, the movie features an intriguing game between Smith and Louise, a stunning operative from the future. Cheryl Ladd and Kris Kristofferson are pretty decent in their roles, and while Millennium does not have a ton of special effects compared to the rest of the movies, it so happens to offer a nostalgic glimpse of the late '80s.

3 Warlock (1989)

Witch hunter Giles Redferne goes about his witch-hunting business in 17-th century England. He captures the warlock, but with help from otherworldly forces, the conjurer banishes himself to present-day Los Angeles, where he uses his dark powers to prey on victims and churn up trouble. Until Redferne follows him to the 1980s and tries to stop him. Julian Sands shines as the suave but sinister title character in this horror-action mashup.

Richard E. Grant portrays the confounded hunter trying to make sense of his surroundings with an effortless charm, while Lori Singer plays Kassandra, the beautiful woman who assists him on the quest. While formulaic, Warlock delivers a heavy dose of ‘80s excess alongside an engaging witch-vs-warlock dynamic and some innovative visuals that still hold up today.

2 Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

Another classic science-fiction comedy, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure , centers around two lovable metal-head dimwits, Bill and Ted, who are tasked with passing their history final or risk failing out of high school, with one having to get enlisted. They seek help from Rufus, a traveler from the future in possession of a time machine. Bill and Ted rack their brains and decide to go on an excellent adventure through history with the hopes of recruiting the perfect historical figures for their class presentation.

Effortlessly good-natured and sublimely stupid, this bizarre comedy helped redefine time travel movies, the theme of excess, and the kind of fun that became synonymous to the late ‘80s. What’s more, is that it features breakout performances from Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter as the ultimate high school slackers.

1 Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Back to the Future Part II returns as a wacky sequel, and Marty and Doc Brown bless the big screens with more exciting adventures. In the movie, Doc Brown travels to the future to bring Marty up to speed on some heavy events coming his family’s way. Soon, they are both off to 2015 to set things right, only for their meddling to make way for more risks. From Marty’s future son almost being imprisoned to his father being murdered, the duo tackles problems right and left.

With its mind-bending multiverse anomalies, hoverboards, Jaws 19 references, and self-tying Nike sneakers, the movie delivers a more breathtaking time travel escapade that may not match the magic of the original, but it is still full of non-stop surprises .

Five 80s Time Travel Movies You’ve (Probably) Never Heard Of: Reviewed

Sure you know those classic 80s time traveling movies like Back to the Future, The Terminator, and Star Trek IV. You’ve no doubt seen Bill & Ted, too. But there were a lot of movies about time travel that didn’t quite get the big screen love so many others did. Yes, maybe they weren’t quite as big with their production and budgets, but many were fun and challenging and still worthy of a look. Some. Here are five 80s time traveling movies you’ve (probably) never heard of. Reviewed.

My science project (1988) ★★☆☆☆.

Let’s start with a cheesy-ripoff of Ghostbusters and Back to the Futur e. Sort of. Well, maybe not at all. A teenager named Michael ( John Stockwell ), interested in only girls and muscle cars, needs something to hand in for his class science project. So, with a girl who thinks she is on a date, he breaks into a government military scrapyard and naturally discovers a secret underground shelter where he finds a glowing orb-ish gadget (actually a cheap plasma globe ) and steals it. Back at home, the next day, he and his friend Vince ( Fisher Stevens ) accidentally trigger it to activate and and when they rush to class, realize they’ve lost two hours and missed the science exam. They have a time machine. They bring it to their ultra-hip 60s throwback teacher Dr. Roberts ( Dennis Hopper ) who promptly gets pulled to another dimension and vanishes. As the device seems out of control, the boys end up using dynamite to destroy the utility tower but are arrested later for the teacher’s disappearance. But that’s only the start of their troubles. Asking the girl to bring the police the device, a geek intercepts and plugs the machine in again and suddenly a portal opens and the school is overrun by a t-rex, Vietnam soldiers and mutants. Whatever will they do?

Directed by  Jonathan R. Betuel , My Science Project is a pretty standard sci-fi thriller with cheap special effects and a silly script. The young cast are fun to watch and Hopper is his typical over-the-top self, complete with a ginormous Peace medallion and a time-traveling trip to Woodstock. Not a total waste, it tries hard to be more than it is, ultimately a letdown.

Timerider (1982) ★★★☆☆

Talk about a great premise. A tech-loving motocross champion ( Fred Ward ) gets lost off track in a big race and unknowingly stumbles upon a time-travel experiment in the desert that sends him to 1877. How could this not be amazing? The full title is Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann  and when Swann arrives in the old West, he’s a little perplexed at the horse and gunslingers who immediately start shooting at him (led by Peter Coyote  who was in E.T – The Extra-Terrestrial just a few months prior). When Swann rides into the nearby town, still in his red leather riding gear, he’s mistaken for Diablo (the Devil). Taken in by the beautiful Claire Cygne ( Belinda Bauer ), she gives him a place to hide and a lot more (ah, classic 80s full frontal nudity in PG-rated movies). Now all he has to to do is survive until he can figure out how to well, get back to the future.

Directed by  William Dear , it was written by  Michael Nesmith , one of the founding members of the 60s pop group, The Monkees,  who also composed the soundtrack. A very clever story that is well-directed and acted, it suffers a bit from production issues and a low budget, plus a long opening that drags a bit too much with shots of Swann racing, but is actually a good time once it gets going, boosted by Ward’s endless charisma. It also dabbles a bit in some time-twisty metaphysical bits, especially in the end, but always with a good sense of humor. Trivia bit: Swann travels back to 1877 on November 5th, the month and day as Marty McFly in Back to the Future . Both are probably nods to the month and day in the classic 1979  Time After Time.

Millennium (1989) ★★☆☆☆

Okay. This one hurts. As good as the premise is for the above Timerider , Millennium has it beat. In fact, it’s one of the best sci-fi time-travel concepts of the decade. Check this out: Humans from 1000 years in the future are a dying breed, suffocating by pollution and unable to reproduce so they time travel to the past and steal people who are about to die and send them into the far future to repopulate. They do this mostly with plane passengers on doomed flights. That’s a terrific concept. It casts television stars in the leads, with Cheryl Ladd most prominent, adding country singer Kris Kristofferson to the mix. Fooling around with paradoxes and making a statement about the dangers of humans running unchecked, the film is mostly compelling but due to its poor direction and subpar visual effects, it ends up looking like a cable TV movie. It becomes a bit confusing too as time shifts happen without warning and we often don’t know where we are. And then there’s Ladd’s annoying ‘future hair’ that looks like she might be a lost member of a Flock of Seagulls .

Directed by  Michael Anderson , Millennium has some solid moments, and getting past the now poor looking effects, there is meaty story that asks a lot of questions. Still, a love connection feels forced, and overall, the production is just too slow. For fans of the genre, this is a must, simply because the story is so very cool, but for most, this will be a relic of the era better left in the past.

Biggles: Adventures in Time (1986) ★☆☆☆☆

80s time travel and sci-fi movies really like electric blue lighting streaks. In this movie, celebrity catering salesman Jim Ferguson ( Alex Hyde-White ) is living comfortably in modern New York City when he receives a knock on the door from an elderly man who asks him the time and wonders why ‘it’ hasn’t happened yet. He then leaves, and Jim returns to his living room, only to suddenly be transported to a battlefield in World War I where a bi-plane is shot down, piloted by Royal Flying Corps pilot James “Biggles” Bigglesworth ( Neil Dickson ). Shocking to say the least. But before he can get past an introduction, he’s back in his living room. What’s going on? Turns out, Biggles and Ferguson are ‘time twins’ who show up to help each other when one or the other is in mortal danger. Time shenanigans ensue. Mostly.

Directed by  John Hough , Biggles is loosely based on the beloved novels by W. E. Johns  and loosely is most assuredly the wrong word since none of the books ever once feature time travel. We can blame Marty McFly for that. Back to the Future had come out the year before and studios thought, “oh those kids and their time traveling fun” and completely reworked the original script, which was designed to be more along the lines of an Indiana Jones-like adventure. They then added a ‘teen vibe’ and pretty much wrecked the ‘Biggles vibe’, making him a secondary character in a movie with his name as the title. That elderly man mentioned above? He’s the great Peter Cushing , for whom many should remember as Grand Moff Tarkin in 1977’s Star Wars . It was his final role. Throw in some 80s pop and metal music and some truly bland, uninspired acting from both Dickson and especially Hyde-White, and this comes up short. Good only for some fun bi-plane fighter footage.

Time Bandits (1981) ★★★★☆

Okay, so this one might be a bit more well-known, but it makes the list. Young, impressionable, and wildly imaginative Kevin ( Craig Warnock ) lives in a quiet neighborhood with oddly neglectful parents whom seem far more interested in keeping up with the latest shiny things on TV than in their son’s fascination with history and exceptional creativity. Left to entertain and indulge himself, Kevin is reclusive and is lost in his own thoughts. In his bedroom one evening, he’s awoken by a rumble in his closet that suddenly bursts open to reveal a proud Knight in shining armor on horseback, who promptly rides off in the wooded forest where the bedroom wall used to be. When Kevin looks back though, all is restored to normal. Curious. The next evening, he packs a shoulder bag with supplies, grabs the Polaroid camera and waits for the Knight to return. Like the previous evening, a rumble in his closet gets his attention, but this time, no Knight. Instead, out pour six medieval-era dressed dwarves, led by Randall ( David Rappaport ). They are frantic and create a ruckus, but Kevin understands that they have stolen a large map and are desperately looking for a “door” out of the room before whomever is chasing them arrives. One wall is revealed to be a movable portal that leads to a lengthy hallway where Kevin is hesitant to follow until a disembodied, ghostly head known as “The Supreme Being” ( Ralph Richardson ) appears and chases after the group, demanding the return of what’s been stolen.

Directed by Monty Python veteran  Terry Gilliam , who has made a career out of inventive, imaginative films, Time Bandits is perhaps his most thoroughly realized, wonderfully bringing to life a number of impressive real-world and fantastical locations, mixing just the right about of comedy, drama and lots of cool time traveling.  More whimsical than heavy, and never intended to be more than a fun fable with a nudge towards keeping one’s imagination alive, Time Bandits is a masterpiece of production, set design and costumes, creating rich, tangible worlds that have great depth and character. And features a very cool giant . Aimed primarily at children, with colorful set pieces and high adventure, there is a lot here for adults as well and it’s hard to beat for films of this genre. A true time-traveling classic.

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The 25 Greatest Time-Travel Movies Ever Made

It must say something, surely, about humans, how often time-travel movies are about returning to the past rather than jumping to the future. As Mark Duplass’s forlorn character says in Safety Not Guaranteed , “The mission has to do with regret.” With all the potential to explore the unknown world of the future, so often when our minds conspire to bend the rules of time it’s instead to rehash the old. It’s compelling to watch a character in a movie do what we cannot — right past wrongs or uncover the reason for or meaning behind the events in their lives, whether they be emotionally catastrophic or merely geopolitically motivated.

So absent is the future from the canon, in fact, that when it is involved, typically future dwellers are leaving their own time to come back to the present. Back to the Future Part II aside, it seems as if there’s something about going forward in time that just doesn’t track for humans. (Of course, you could argue that this is because the present-day concept of bidirectional time travel would infinitely multiply or change beyond recognition any future that may occur, but that’s a knot for another article.)

In any case, the time-travel stories deemed worthy of Hollywood budgets aren’t always straightforward in their mechanics. Some films on this list barely qualify as time-travel movies at all; others could hardly qualify as anything else. There are movies about trips through time but also ones about the bending and fracturing and muddying thereof; then there are those about, as Andy Samberg aptly puts it in Palm Springs , “one of those infinite time-loop situations you might have heard about.” There’s even a movie in which we get only 13 seconds’ worth of time travel, when it functions more like a joke whose punch line hits at the film’s climax.

What these films all do have in common is a fascination with changing the way time works. That being said, the list leaves out movies in larger, more extended franchises in which time meddling is a one-off dalliance thrown into a sequel with little by way of foreshadowing: think Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban , Avengers: Endgame , and Men in Black III . (It also leaves off perhaps the Ur-time-travel movie, Primer , and the quite good Midnight in Paris because their directors don’t deserve the column inches.) We’re looking at self-contained stories using time mechanics from the start, with preference given to those that involve themselves more intently with the ins and outs of time travel; that ask questions about time, aging, memory and so forth; and that try to succeed at it in new and interesting ways. So let’s get to it.

25. Galaxy Quest (1999)

Does Galaxy Quest really count as a time-travel movie? Some compelling reasons argue that it doesn’t: Time travel isn’t a major factor in the plot, and the time traveling that does occur is, yes, only a 13-second jump. But its use of time travel is meaningful insofar as the movie itself is a loving spoof of Star Trek , which makes use of time travel in three films ( one of which made this list ), not to mention dozens of episodes across its various TV iterations. Tacking on time travel as a deus ex machina for the actors in a Star Trek– like show pressed into service as an actual space crew by an endangered alien race is the exact right amount of ribbing in a movie that’s as on point as it is hilarious.

Galaxy Quest is available to rent on Amazon .

24. Happy Death Day (2017)

Pick away at the surface of a time-loop movie and you find a horror movie. Most of the entries on this list are covered in enough feel-good spin to land as comedies, but Happy Death Day stares the horror of the time-loop phenomenon right in the face. (It’s also quite funny.) Reliving the same day over and over is an unimaginably potent form of psychological torture, and adding murder to the equation does little to dull that edge. The film follows a college-age protagonist struggling to escape from a masked slasher hell-bent on killing her again and again while she tries to solve the mystery of how she got stuck in a time loop.

Happy Death Day is available to rent on Amazon .

23. Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Seriously, this may be the only good movie in which the film’s whole focus is using a time machine to travel into the future. The fact that it’s a sequel is telling — the characters already traveled into the past in the first movie , and the filmmakers decided to save “traveling even further into the past“ for the third film in the trilogy. Still, Back to the Future Part II is a fun time that makes great use of sight gags and references, recasting scenes from the first film in the distant future year of 2015 with all its hoverboards and self-lacing Nikes.

Back to the Future Part II is available to rent on Amazon .

22. See You Yesterday (2019)

It’s a dirty little secret of time-travel movies that they tend to be, well, pretty white. Tenet ’s Protagonist aside, if Hollywood’s sending someone through time, they’re almost certainly not a Black person, and for obvious reasons: Most of post-contact North American history is deeply unfriendly to people of color, and the problems a person running around out of time and place is going to encounter are deeply compounded if they’ll likely be the target of racist abuse or violence — which makes See You Yesterday all the more compelling. Produced by Spike Lee and featuring one of filmdom’s most famous time travelers in a cameo role, it follows a Black teenage science prodigy who uses a time machine to try to save her brother from being killed by a police officer.

See You Yesterday is streaming on Netflix .

21. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

No offense to the Back to the Future franchise, but time travel never looks more fun on film than it does in the first Bill & Ted movie. It’s a concept that feels distinctly of a different era, so pure is its zaniness, that it’s hard to imagine anyone concocting it today. The titular duo, Californian high-school students in the ’80s, travel through the past looking for historical figures in order to ace a history project, then bring them all back to the present. High jinks ensue! We get Genghis Khan in a sporting-goods store and Mozart on an electric keyboard. What more could you want?

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure is streaming on HBO Max .

20. Source Code (2011)

Time-travel-film aficionados know this won’t be Jake Gyllenhaal’s only stop on this list, but no matter. Source Code finds him repeating the same eight minutes over and over as he struggles to find the culprit in a train bombing — with each replay ending in his own death by explosion. For some reason, a romantic subplot is shoehorned into this, along with a bunch of frankly unnecessary technical mumbo-jumbo, but the core idea is a compelling mix of the time-loop movie and the train whodunit that Gyllenhaal is a perfect fit for.

Source Code is available to rent on Amazon .

19. 12 Monkeys (1995)

Some sort of law of nature dictates that every genuinely good idea and/or piece of true art has to at some point be turned into a Hollywood movie. Thank God La Jetée was adapted into something that can stand on its own feet artistically. 12 Monkeys may not retain its source material’s black-and-white look or stripped-down, static-image presentation, but it is a rollicking good time nonetheless. That’s in no small part due to director Terry Gilliam getting the best out of Bruce Willis and a young Brad Pitt, and recasting World War III as a planet-decimating virus. Which, like at least one other movie on this list , “speaks to the present moment,” or whatever.

12 Monkeys is available to rent on Amazon .

18. Run Lola Run (1998)

Unlike almost all of the other films on this list, the terms time travel and time machine don’t show up anywhere in Run Lola Run . Rather, it’s a sort of de facto time-loop scenario in which the protagonist tries repeatedly to pay a ransom to save her boyfriend’s life. In fact, if not for a few key details, it could easily be characterized (and often has been) as an alternate-endings movie rather than a time-travel film. But the fact that Lola seems to be learning from her past attempts with each successive one suggests that she is, indeed, using knowledge gained from previous loops to bring a satisfactory end to this situation.

Run Lola Run is available to rent on Amazon .

17. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

One of the most striking things about Groundhog Day is the mutability and replicability of its core conceit. Perhaps the best case in point is Edge of Tomorrow , sometimes known as Live. Die. Repeat. after its original tagline. It’s the kind of physically grueling movie only an actor as genuinely unhinged as Tom Cruise could pull off. A noncombatant thrust into a war against invading aliens, Cruise’s character finds himself reliving day one of combat over and over, slowly but surely refining his techniques in order to survive the extraterrestrial onslaught. Like the central twosome in the much less violent Palm Springs , he winds up with a partner in (war) crime, teaming up with the similarly time-trapped Emily Blunt, and the explanation for the replay glitch here is actually pretty satisfying.

Edge of Tomorrow is streaming on Fubo TV .

16. Star Trek (2009)

If you could create some sort of an advanced stat to measure controversy generated per unit of interesting filmmaking decisions, J.J. Abrams would have to be near the top in terms of his ability to rig up movie drama from almost nothing. This is a guy whose filmography is like Godzilla rip-off, Spielberg homage, safe reboot of cherished IP, repeat. Star Trek may be his best film, though, a sure-footed reinvention of a dorky sci-fi franchise that made it, well, cool. Somehow, the beauty of Spock and Kirk’s bromance being woven through chance encounters with future selves kind of … works?

Star Trek is available to rent on Amazon .

15. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)

There’s a relative dearth of time travel in animated film, which perhaps is a function simply of the fact that it’s less impressive to stage in a world that’s already unreal. If you can Looney Tunes your way through physics, what’s so special about grabbing the flow of time and tying it into a bow? Still, the original Girl Who Leapt Through Time deserves mention here. It’s a beautiful story that interlaces the complexity of time leaping with the intensity of teenage emotion and the thorny process of growing up where the opportunity to redo things leads, over time, to growth — a less shitty Groundhog Day , in a way.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is available to rent on Amazon .

14. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

She may not be the most famous, decorated, or emulated actress of her generation, but Aubrey Plaza is someone whose personality spoke to the irony-soaked 2010s in a way that simply could not be denied. Her character on Parks and Recreation , April Ludgate, was, by all accounts, created specifically to channel Plaza’s real-life personality to the screen, and she plays essentially the same character in Safety Not Guaranteed . Here, she’s a sarcastic intern at a magazine working on a story about a would-be time traveler and using her feminine wiles to slowly gain his trust. The chemistry between Plaza and Mark Duplass is probably the film’s high point; the subplot about the FBI feels like it was clipped out of a bad X-Files episode.

Safety Not Guaranteed is streaming on Tubi .

13. La Jetée (1962)

At only a 28-minute run time, La Jetée is arguably too short to merit inclusion on this list. However, what it lacks in content (and in, well, moving images; it’s almost exclusively a collection of static black-and-white shots set to voice-over), it more than makes up for in inventiveness and influence, and it would be a travesty to leave it out in favor of more recent by-the-book fare. Tracing the tale of a man held prisoner in post-WWIII Paris being used in time-travel experiments as his captors seek to remedy the postapocalyptic state of the world, he’s sent into both the future and the past and ends up unraveling a lifelong personal mystery while he’s at it.

La Jetée is streaming on the Criterion Channel .

12. Planet of the Apes (1968)

Unlike the worse but more straightforwardly time-traveling Tim Burton remake, the relationship between the original Planet of the Apes and time travel is inexact — technically, the astronaut crew that lands on the titular planet does travel forward 2,000 years, but it’s not done via a time machine. The travel isn’t instantaneous: It literally does take them 2,000 years to get there; they’re just unconscious and on life support. Still, the way the film’s ending handles the iconic reveal is exactly in line with the best of the time-travel canon, the telescoping, mise en abyme feeling of the world shifting in front of your very eyes without your moving an inch.

Planet of the Apes is available to rent on Amazon .

11. Groundhog Day (1993)

The famous Bill Murray vehicle essentially invented the infinite-time-loop genre (and it’s hardly a movie that succeeds on the strength of its concept alone), but the idea at its core is so steeped in the casual misogyny of late-’80s and early-’90s cinema that it’s hard to watch today without cringing. Murray’s character employing what amounts to PUA-style techniques over and over and over in a desperate bid to fuck his hapless co-worker just doesn’t hit the way it did back then. If the story arc didn’t present a guy detoxifying himself of the worst aspects of masculinity in order to be worthy of a woman’s love as the primary way for a 20th-century white man to achieve full personhood, this would be much higher on the list.

Groundhog Day is streaming on Starz .

10. Predestination (2014)

This is probably the most complicated film on the list. Following a “temporal agent” (played by Ethan Hawke) who’s trying to prevent a bombing in 1970s New York, it’s based on a Robert A. Heinlein short story and features Shiv Roy herself, Sarah Snook, in a star-making turn as someone with a complicated backstory and a secret. Like the best sci-fi, the film’s premise raises all kinds of fascinating questions about the titular concept and throws in some interesting musings on sex, gender, and the self in the process.

Predestination is streaming on Tubi .

9. Looper (2012)

Wes Anderson gets a lot of flak for his overwrought twee visuals, but Rian Johnson has a knack for making movies that feel and function like dioramas even if they don’t look it. Narratively speaking, everything here is constructed just so — and there’s a certain beauty in that — but who ever had a profound experience of art by looking at a diorama? Looper was probably Johnson’s least precious pre– Star Wars film, which is nice because the temptation to drastically overmaneuver the mechanics of a time-travel story can lead to disaster. The tech used to Bruce Willis–ify Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s face is distracting, and the third act’s retreat from the postapocalyptic city of the future to the postapocalyptic corn farm of the future is a brave choice that the film struggles to land. Still, Johnson’s vision of a future in which organized crime runs time travel is compelling and well worth a watch.

Looper is streaming on Netflix .

8. Donnie Darko (2001)

Donnie Darko is a bit of a genre mash-up. Part high-school movie, part sci-fi flick, part bleak meditation on the soullessness of late-’80s America, it’s nevertheless a weirdly successful piece of filmmaking that makes fantastic use of a young Jake Gyllenhaal, a great supporting cast (Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Jena Malone, and Patrick Swayze among others), and an absolutely iconic haunting cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World.” Watching high schoolers navigate parallel universes, wormholes, and time travel is a dicey proposition, but director Richard Kelly makes it work, somehow.

Donnie Darko is streaming on HBO Max .

7. Back to the Future (1984)

While it’s clearly superior to the sequel (and leagues ahead of the final film in the trilogy), the original Back to the Future is a bit of a mess (John Mulaney was right , to be honest). Its racial and gender politics are cringey, and the incest subplot is weird (“It’s your cousin Marvin. Marvin Pornhub . You know that new plot element you’ve been looking for?”), but there’s a clear interest in time travel beyond its shimmering surface: the very real addressing of the “grandfather problem” in time travel via the slow disappearance of Marty from his family photo, the accidental invention of rock music, and a genuine curiosity about the nuts-and-bolts mechanics of time machines. Ahh, what the hell. It’s a romp.

Back to the Future is available to rent on Amazon .

6. Palm Springs (2020)

No offense to Gen-Xers and boomers, but the best time-loop movie of all time is Palm Springs . The film isn’t without its missteps, but it’s much more curious about life than Groundhog Day was through the eyes of Murray’s misanthrope. Cristin Milioti and Andy Samberg‘s characters, stuck in the loop together, are a perfect comedic match, and their shared humanity makes for a beautiful arc. The film raises questions about what’s worth doing in life when nothing lasts and how to stay sane when every day is the same. Of course, as a sort of polar opposite of Tenet , it benefited from coming out during the pandemic by speaking, as it does, to the experience of lockdown.

Palm Springs is streaming on Hulu .

5. Tenet (2020)

Interstellar wasn’t enough for Chris Nolan, apparently. Tenet ’s legacy may end up being little more than that of the COVID action movie no one saw — a bloated thriller that Nolan fought to get into theaters and bar from home viewing reportedly to swell the size of his own pockets. It really did suffer from bad timing, though, because this is genuinely a quintessential big-screen popcorn movie whose absurdity is all the more palatable when it’s given the audiovisual bombast it deserves. Ambitious in scope as it traces a war on the past by the future (yes, you read that right), Tenet is as enamored of action tropes as it is in bucking them, and its investment in rendering visible the brain-bendingly knotty mechanics of moving through time is laudable, even when the movie itself remains opaque — as impenetrable as the future, as hazy as the past.

Tenet is streaming on HBO Max .

4. The Terminator (1984)

A partner to Blade Runner in the mid-’80s invention of sci-fi noir, The Terminator is a stunning film in many ways, despite the third act’s now-iffy visual effects. While it’s not James Cameron’s debut, and it would go on to be bested by its sequel , it functions as an incredible showcase for an emerging young director who would exclusively make big stories for the rest of his career. Arnold Schwarzenegger is perfectly cast as the relentless, unemotional killer cyborg sent back from the future to terminate the mother of the eventual resistance leader, and the film’s romantic subplot has just the perfect amount of time-travel-induced cheesiness for it to work.

The Terminator is streaming on Amazon Prime Video .

3. Interstellar (2014)

It’s not inaccurate to say Christopher Nolan is a director who’s more interested in scale and scope than in expressing the minutiae of the human experience in its purest form. But in Interstellar, a Nolan movie in its titular ambitions, there’s a core element of time travel wrought not as sci-fi fireworks but as a paean to the sheer force and will of the power of love. It both does and doesn’t work, depending on your capacity for cheese in space, but even besides that, Nolan’s use of time as story arc — the way Miller’s planet functions, in particular — is conceptually masterful in the best kind of time-travel-movie way.

Interstellar is streaming on Paramount+ .

2. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Whereas the franchise’s first movie spends more time on the question of time travel, in the second it takes a bit of a back seat to the action itself. It’s hard to fault director James Cameron for this decision; T2 remains one of the best action movies of the ’90s and — along with Jurassic Park and The Matrix — one of the decade’s best when for special effects. The groundbreaking T-1000 would honestly be enough to get this movie on the list; a tween John Connor grappling with questions of predestination and the fact that he is vicariously responsible for his own conception feel almost like icing on the time-travel cake. Much as in 12 Monkeys , time travel here is mistaken for delusion, as valiant Sarah Connor, in a Cassandra-esque nightmare, has to battle against the future only she knows is coming. Of course, Cassandra never had access to any firepower stored in underground desert arsenals.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day is streaming on Netflix .

1. Arrival (2016)

It’s fair to wonder whether Arrival really is, in fact, a time-travel movie. The Ted Chiang short story it’s based on isn’t about time travel per se; rather, it’s an exploration of alternate forms of temporal understanding. The linguist protagonist, played by Amy Adams, doesn’t travel through time so much as come to experience it differently. Still, the plot ends up hinging on foreknowledge that she is granted not via visions but by actually experiencing her future simultaneously with her present and past. For our purposes, though, that’s time fuckery enough to merit inclusion, and boy howdy does the film deliver in overall quality. Partly, that’s simply a question of the source material. Chiang is arguably the most talented (and possibly the most decorated) American sci-fi writer of his generation. But the source story is not especially Hollywood friendly, and director Denis Villeneuve has adopted it lovingly, borrowing a plot device from another of Chiang’s stories, the more straightforwardly time-travel-based “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate,” in order to add some third-act blockbuster flavor. The result is a beautiful meditation on love, choice, and courage that packs art-film ethos into a genuine sci-fi blockbuster.

Arrival is streaming on Hulu and Paramount+ .

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The 20 best time-travel movies – ranked!

As Adam Driver accidentally winds up 65m years ago , facing not just dinosaurs but an asteroid, we count down the best films about going backwards, or forwards, through the ages

20. Timecop (1994)

Regardless of what anyone says, I believe in my heart that Timecop was greenlit because someone showed a studio executive a picture of Jean-Claude Van Damme and said the word “Timecop” out loud, at which point they had to throw a script together as quickly as possible. Nothing about Timecop makes sense. It is the most 90s film ever made.

19. Tenet (2020)

I have to be careful here, because Tenet might not be a time-travel movie. Certainly time passes in it and some of the people are going backwards in time in it. But I’ve seen this movie twice now, and it mainly just seems to be about people mumbling everything, except for Kenneth Branagh, who gets to shout very loudly three times. Anyway, here it is.

18. Cavegirl (1985)

Finally, a film that uses time-travel for the correct reason; to allow a horny 1980s high school student to go back to prehistory so that he can convince a smoking hot, bikini-wearing cavegirl to have it off with him. You will note I’ve ranked this above Tenet .

17. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

Weird to think that Austin Powers was originally a fish-out-of-water comedy, in which the promiscuous titular character had to navigate the (then) uptight world of the 1990s. That all fell apart for the sequel, where Powers was sent back to the 60s to shout his catchphrases at people who actually appreciated them. That makes it a time-travel movie, right?

16. The Butterfly Effect (2004)

God, this film. In summary: Ashton Kutcher plays a man who experiences blackouts, only to learn some years later that he can travel back in time and inhabit his younger self’s mind during the blackouts. But in doing so, he unleashes a world of unintended consequences. He becomes a murderer and loses limbs. Seek out the director’s cut if you can, because it ends with Kutcher’s character deliberately strangling himself in the womb with his umbilical cord. No, really.

15. The Tomorrow War (2021)

Wherein Chris Pratt is drafted into a war that takes place 26 years later, because the invading aliens have already killed all the soldiers who were alive at the time. It’s a great premise for a film – we all pay the price for the actions of other generations – let down by a truly confusing ending. Admit it, you forgot this film even existed, even though it cost $200m to make and only came out 18 months ago.

14. The Time Travelers (1964)

A 1964 movie made on the cheap with genuinely terrible effects, The Time Travelers is about a group of scientists who travel to the future, fight some mutants and then return. What sets it apart, though, is its crazed ending. The film ends with the scientists venturing into the distant future, whereupon the film plays through again, faster and faster and faster until it cuts away to a still of the galaxy. Are they trapped in a loop? Is free will an illusion? Did the producers just run out of money? We may never know.

13. The Adam Project (2022)

In which a young boy’s life is turned upside down when he is visited by an older version of himself from the future. The good news? He grows up to be a fighter pilot. The bad news? He also grows up to have all the cadences and surface-level snarky patter of Ryan Reynolds. What follows is a buddy movie where the two buddies are the same person.

12. Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

So seminal that it was namechecked in Avengers: Endgame . A flat-out comedy that primarily exists to allow a bunch of middle-aged men to act like teenagers, Hot Tub Time Machine is a film about an enchanted Jacuzzi that sends people back to the mid-1980s. Possibly a bit too bawdy for its own good, there’s a hint of a message about the unreliability of nostalgia here.

11. Flight of the Navigator (1986)

This family film involves a young boy who goes missing in a Fort Lauderdale ravine, only to show up eight years later having not aged. There are UFOs and rubbery little creatures and whatnot, but there’s a real emotional wallop to the moment when the boy realises that the world has moved on without him, right down to the scene (that plays out like a horror movie) where the boy realises that his parents have become unrecognisably ancient, even though they are probably only in their early 40s.

10. Primer (2004)

Some see Shane Carruth’s Primer as the gold standard of what a time-travel film should be. It’s the sort of movie that seems unnervingly realistic, from the down-at-heel engineers to the unshowy nature of time travel itself, where people in effect just get in and out of some boxes. Almost entirely unwilling to explain itself, for years Primer fans have come to rely on a series of graphs and charts to figure out what the film actually is.

9. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

A time-travel movie that may or may not have any actual time-travel in it, Colin Trevorrow’s Safety Not Guaranteed is a delicate wonder of a thing. A man places an ad in a magazine asking for a time-travel companion – “Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before” – and the respondents slowly come to realise that all is not quite as it seems.

8. Planet of the Apes (1968)

If you haven’t seen Planet of the Apes, then the fact that I’ve put it on a list of time-travel movies is probably quite a heavy spoiler, and for that I’m sorry. But what a reveal this is – what seems at first like a silly movie about Charlton Heston being persecuted by some monkeys quickly becomes something darker and much more sinister. That new Adam Driver movie probably could have achieved something similar, if it hadn’t blabbed its big secret in the trailer.

7. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Endgame is a lot, so much so that it is effectively a time-travel movie bookended by two entirely separate movies. And, yes, it takes a lot of liberties with time-travel, from Tony Stark’s “Huh, I did it” invention to the lazy referencing of other time-travel movies as a shorthand for what the characters can do. Nevertheless, when they get to it, the film nails it. The Battle of New York is the obvious highlight, with Captain America fighting Captain America and the Hulk embarrassed by his unreconstructed former self, but the heart of the film really comes when Tony meets his father as a man and learns to let go of the past.

6. Interstellar (2014)

Interstellar is also a lot. But at its core is a simple ethical quandary: would you try to save the world if it meant missing your children’s entire lives? Matthew McConaughey has to touch down on a planet during a space trip. The problem is that every hour he spends there is equal to seven years on Earth. Is the trip important enough for him to miss seeing the wonder of his children grow into adults? Technically, if you want to be fussy about this, Interstellar is a time dilation movie rather than a time-travel movie. But it gets a pass, largely because McConaughey sells the agony of the moment so beautifully.

5. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

There are times when Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure feels like it was written by a toddler off his face on pop. But that’s a deliberate ploy, a way to camouflage all the careful rigour that underpins the script. The lead characters are initially reluctant to embark on their time-travel adventure, until they’re visited by versions of themselves from the near future who compel them to do it; a beautiful and hilarious example of predestination in action. Extra points are awarded thanks to the film’s total lack of interest in consequences. Swiping Abraham Lincoln and Napoleon from their respective eras has no bearing on world history whatsoever, which is probably quite lucky.

4. Looper (2012)

One problem with time-travel movies is that the rules always need to be explained upfront. In lesser hands, this can lead to all manner of clunky, stilted exposition. But when Rian Johnson dabbled in the genre with Looper , he gave us a masterclass in “show, don’t tell”. The sequence where poor Paul Dano’s character is tortured at two different points in time simultaneously, with the older version following instructions carved into the younger version’s arm, is arguably one of the most inventive uses of time-travel in the entire history of cinema. All that plus this is Bruce Willis’s last truly great performance.

3. The Terminator (1984)/Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

The lure of the first two Terminator movies were the killer robots running around murdering everyone. But they were very smartly built around a framework of pure time-travel. We only see the future in brief flashes, but what’s important is the present. It is very, very important that Kyle Reese (a guy from the future) has sex with Sarah Connor (a woman from the present), because only that will save humanity as we know it. It’s a hell of a pickup line, but the device also elevates what could have simply been a shonky B-movie into the realm of the classics.

2. Idiocracy (2006)

The smartest time-travel movies use the device as a mirror, telling us more about the times we live in now than the times the characters visit. Enter Idiocracy, Mike Judge’s stinging satire about modern times. An average person is cryogenically frozen and wakes up in the future, shocked to discover that the global IQ has fallen off a cliff in the intervening years. Surrounded by aggressive stupidity, he single-handedly saves the US from famine by suggesting that they use water – and not an electrolyte drink – to grow crops. We are conservatively 15 years from this happening in real life.

1. Back to the Future (1985)/Back to the Future Part II (1989)

The only conceivable first choice. The first two Back to the Future films (the third, which is basically just a western, is far less imaginative) have come to define time-travel as a genre. They deliver a complex set of hard sci-fi rules about what can and cannot happen during time-travel and – miraculously – manage to do it in a way that kids can understand. Good music, cool clothes, a million catchphrases and, in the case of the second film, an unnervingly prescient prediction of how Donald Trump would turn out. Just perfect.

• Science fiction and fantasy films
• Back To The Future
• Avengers: Endgame
• Interstellar

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Screen Rant

15 forgotten 1990s sci-fi/adventure movies that were excellent.

From Strange Days to Dark City, the 90s were a glorious time for sci-fi adventure movies - here are some that are well worth seeking out.

The 1990s was a great time for science fiction adventure movies. This was the decade of Jurassic Park , Men In Black, and The Matrix . A time when sci-fi went mainstream and the multiplex experience was all the richer for it.

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Even so, some of the era’s best and most inventive sci-fi adventure movies went under-appreciated – save for a few video store rentals and occasional late-night TV broadcasts. Thankfully, the dawn of the internet and rise of streaming services means it has never been easier to seek some of these forgotten screen gems out – starting with these.

Updated on October 21st, 2020 by Mark Birrell: As time passes, the memory of great movies can actually become stronger. So, as more time has passed, more excellent sci-fi adventure movies have come flooding back to genre fans. From space and cyberpunk to monster movie madness in several different ways, here are 5 more outstanding science-fiction adventures from the 90s that deserve to be remembered. 

Screamers (1995)

A financial flop on release and a dud with critics, this seemingly bargain-bin-quality sci-fi monster movie is actually quite an immersive adaptation of Philip K. Dick's short story "Second Variety" and has developed a strong following over the years.

With an original screenplay by cult sci-fi legend Dan O'Bannon (whose  earlier Philip K. Dick adaptation,  Total Recall , became one of the most famous sci-fi movies of the decade), the story revolves around warring factions on a far-flung planet who discover that machines built to finish the conflict have rebelled and begun their own war against humanity. Lead by RoboCop himself, Peter Weller,  Screamers  is entertainingly schlocky, surprisingly thought-provoking, and certainly worth rediscovering.

Nirvana (1997)

Nirvana  is an existentialist cyberpunk road movie about a video game designer in your typical  Blade Runner  dystopia who embarks on a quest to break into his own company's servers to delete his own game in an act of mercy after he learns that the main character has become sentient.

With the movie cutting back and forth between realities and jumping through time, it may seem like an overly serious plot but there's always an emphasis on quirky comedy that helps it sell its heavily philosophical plot.

Darkman (1990)

Over a decade before helping to define the current age of Marvel, iconic horror director Sam Raimi invented his own superhero with  Darkman . Liam Neeson's tortured antihero is made in the image of icons from as far and wide as pulp detectives to the Phantom of the Opera.

Packed with a smorgasbord of the kind of 90s VFX shots that were necessary before the days of modern computer effects,  Darkman  is a hugely creative movie and a very interesting stepping stone between Tim Burton's  Batman  and Raimi's own  Spider-Man  movie .

Deep Rising (1998)

Before achieving mainstream success with his hit movie  The Mummy  the following year, writer and director Stephen Sommers delivered a much bloodier–and critically mauled–aquatic monster movie in the same vein with  Deep Rising .

A heist adventure survival horror comedy set on a cruise ship, the movie is gleefully overflowing with gore and wisecracking action movie tropes. The gruesomeness of the tentacle monsters that attack the ship gives the story a real sense of threat and horror despite it mostly being a comedy and, while it may not quite have  The Mummy 's universal appeal, it's a must for fans.

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Sphere (1998)

On the opposite end of the spectrum in terms of prestige, yet hated even more by critics than  Deep Rising , is this second forgotten underwater sci-fi horror movie from 1998.

Directed by Barry Levinson and adapted from Michael Crichton 's novel of the same name,  Sphere  ends up biting off a little more than it can chew with its time-bending story of an alien spacecraft discovered on the ocean floor. But that doesn't undo the frightening quirks of the complex story and the immense strength of its cast.

Abraxas: Guardian Of The Universe (1991)

After standout supporting turns in Predator and The Running Man , the ‘90s saw wrestler-turned-actor Jesse Ventura finally get top billing in Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe . Ventura plays the titular Abraxas, an intergalactic cop hot on the tail of renegade ex-partner Secundus, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger ’s stuntman, Sven-Ole Thorsen.

Matters are complicated further when Secundus heads to Earth. Once there he wastes no time in impregnating a woman with a potentially deadly mutant embryo (simply by touching her belly) in the hopes of gaining planet-conquering powers. Featuring a cameo from Jim Belushi, this is big, brash action sci-fi adventure fun.

I Come In Peace (1990)

Two years before Jurassic Park , screenwriter David Koepp got his first taste of sci-fi with this buddy cop B-movie effort starring everyone’s favorite  Rocky villain, Dolph Lundgren.

I Come in Peace  centers on Lundgren’s brilliantly named renegade lawman, Jack Caine, and his investigations into a string of drug-related slayings. Things take an unusual turn, however, when Caine learns an alien is behind the homicides, as part of an elaborate plan involving him shooting people full of heroin in order to extract the endorphins created to sell as a drug called Barsi on his home planet.

Timescape (1992)

Released on video as  Grand Tour: Disaster in Time ,  Timescape  paired a Jeff Daniels with Jurassic Park child star Ariana Richards for a time travel caper that belies its modest budget.

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They play a widower and his daughter who – after moving back to their small-town guest house – encounter a strange group of travelers with an unusual interest in historical disasters. That sets in motion an engrossing sci-fi tale offering fresh twists on the familiar time travel tropes. Adapted from a novella by Henry Kuttner and CL Moore, and directed by  Pitch Black ’s David Twohy,  Timescape  is well worth seeking out.

Fortress (1992)

Whisper it quietly among Highlander fans, but Fortress might actually be Christopher Lambert’s best movie. The premise is certainly a lot easier to follow. Lambert plays John Henry Brennick, an inmate at a private underground prison known only as 'the Fortress', overseen by a sadistic warden and an evil corporation intent on perfecting mind control.

Incarcerated alongside his wife, Brennick is forced to hatch a plan to get them both out of the hi-tech hellhole after learning his other half is illegally pregnant. With a stellar supporting cast including Kurtwood Smith and Jeffrey Combs, Fortress offers high concept action high jinks.

No Escape (1994)

Ray Liotta channels his inner Mad Max for this inspired play on  Lord of the Flies . He plays John Robbins, a former Marine serving out a life sentence on a remote island inhabited by a collective of cannibalistic prisoners known as “The Outsiders”.

Thankfully for Robbins, the island is also home to “The Insiders”, a group of convicts led by Lance Henriksen’s The Father who are intent on forming some semblance of a society. Soon enough, Robbins is leading the Insiders in an all-out war against their island rivals, all while trying to engineer an escape home.

Guyver: Dark Hero (1994)

Not to be confused with The Guyver , this 1994 sequel serves as a more faithful adaptation of the cult manga and anime series it was based on. It centers on the exploits of Sean Barker, played by David Hayter, who after discovering an alien artifact known as “The Unit” is transformed into an alien-hybrid super-soldier called “The Guyver”.

Significantly darker and more serious than the original, this follow-up was released direct-to-video in the US but, thanks to its R-rating, boasts an impressive amount of gory action that helps give proceedings the feel of a very violent episode of  Power Rangers .

Strange Days (1995)

Kathryn Bigelow ’s criminally underrated cyberpunk thriller centers on Ralph Fiennes’s Lenny Nero, a former vice cop now trading in illegal “squid” recordings made directly via the cerebral cortex which allow viewers to essentially “live” someone else’s experience as if they were there.

Lenny’s life is turned upside down when he ends up in the possession of a “squid” showing someone doing some very, very bad things. Soon he's drawn into a murky conspiracy that threatens to unravel everyone and everything he knows. Visually stunning and brimming with creativity, Strange Days was–and still is–ahead of its time.

Existenz (1999)

eXistenZ  suffered the misfortune of being released in the same year as The Matrix , but it makes for a fascinating companion piece.  David Cronenberg ’s film pairs Jennifer Jason Leigh with Jude Law for an inventive sci-fi thriller boasting some of the gooiest, most grotesque technology ever committed to film.

Leigh plays an enigmatic game designer who, after a run-in with an assassin, jumps into her latest virtual reality creation to determine whether her work has been damaged. Joined by Law’s marketing trainee, she soon encounters conflict in the virtual world where a bounty has been placed on her head.

The City of Lost Children (1995)

Jean-Pierre Jeunet is best known for films like Delicatessen and Amelie , but  The City of Lost Children is arguably his most striking and ambitious.  Set in a dystopian alternate reality, a young(ish) Ron Perlmann stars as One, a fairground strongman who sets out to find his brother following his kidnapping by a mad scientist intent on capturing children and harvesting their dreams in the hope it will slow the aging process.

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A dark and vividly realized tale, Jeunet injects the bleak premise with enough humor and eye-catching visuals to make it a mesmerizing must-see for fans of the genre.

Dark City (1998)

Director Alex Proyas followed his infamous movie  The Crow with another cult classic,  Dark City , which remains among the most underrated sci-fi adventure movies ever. It stars Rufus Sewell as John Murdoch, a man who awakens in a strange hotel with no memory and an arrest warrant out on his head for a series of gruesome murders.

On the run from William Hurt’s Inspector Frank Bumstead, Murdoch’s situation turns increasingly bizarre when he stumbles upon a fiendish underworld being controlled by a mysterious group known only as The Strangers, and that’s only the beginning of it. A must watch.

NEXT:  5 ’80s Sci-Fi Movies That Didn’t Age Well (& 5 That Are Timeless)

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Time Travel Movies From The 80s

Have you heard these Time Travel Movies From The 80s? We guarantee you'll find some new movies. We found 21 of the top ones.

The Goonies (1985)

From Richard Donner, starring Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen, Corey Feldman Rated PG

The Goonies is a 1985 adventure-comedy directed by Richard Donner and produced by Steven Spielberg. The film follows a group of misfit kids from the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon, as they search for the lost treasure of One-Eyed Willy, a legendary 17th-century pirate. On their quest, they encounter a variety of obstacles, including the Fratellis, a family of criminals who are also in pursuit of the treasure. Along the way, the kids must battle their fears and use their wits to find the treasure and save their homes from foreclosure. The Goonies is considered to be a cult classic, and has become a staple of popular culture.

The NeverEnding Story (1984)

From Wolfgang Petersen, starring Noah Hathaway, Barret Oliver, Tami Stronach, Gerald McRaney Rated PG

Repo Man (1984)

From Alex Cox, starring Harry Dean Stanton, Emilio Estevez, Tracey Walter, Olivia Barash Rated R

Flight of the Navigator (1986)

From Randal Kleiser, starring Joey Cramer, Paul Reubens, Cliff De Young, Veronica Cartwright Rated PG

The Brother from Another Planet (1984)

From John Sayles, starring Joe Morton, Daryl Edwards, Rosanna Carter, Ray Ramirez Rated R

*batteries not included (1987)

From Matthew Robbins, starring Hume Cronyn, Jessica Tandy, Frank McRae, Elizabeth Peña Rated PG

Short Circuit (1986)

From John Badham, starring Ally Sheedy, Steve Guttenberg, Fisher Stevens, Austin Pendleton Rated PG

Flashpoint (1984)

From William Tannen, starring Kris Kristofferson, Treat Williams, Rip Torn, Kevin Conway Rated R

The Star Chamber (1983)

From Peter Hyams, starring Michael Douglas, Hal Holbrook, Yaphet Kotto, Sharon Gless Rated R

Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)

From Stephen Chiodo, starring Grant Cramer, Suzanne Snyder, John Allen Nelson, John Vernon Rated PG-13

Flashdance (1983)

From Adrian Lyne, starring Jennifer Beals, Michael Nouri, Lilia Skala, Sunny Johnson Rated R

Iceman (1984)

From Fred Schepisi, starring Timothy Hutton, Lindsay Crouse, John Lone, Josef Sommer Rated PG

Lifeforce (1985)

From Tobe Hooper, starring Steve Railsback, Mathilda May, Peter Firth, Frank Finlay Rated R

Trancers (1984)

From Charles Band, starring Tim Thomerson, Helen Hunt, Michael Stefani, Art LaFleur Rated PG-13

The Wraith (1986)

From Mike Marvin, starring Charlie Sheen, Nick Cassavetes, Sherilyn Fenn, Randy Quaid Rated PG-13

Leviathan (1989)

From George P. Cosmatos, starring Peter Weller, Richard Crenna, Amanda Pays, Daniel Stern Rated R

DeepStar Six (1989)

From Sean S. Cunningham, starring Greg Evigan, Nancy Everhard, Taurean Blacque, Miguel Ferrer Rated R

Spaced Invaders (1990)

From Patrick Read Johnson, starring Douglas Barr, Royal Dano, Ariana Richards, J.J. Anderson Rated PG

Red Sonja (1985)

From Richard Fleischer, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Brigitte Nielsen, Sandahl Bergman, Paul L. Smith Rated PG-13

Saturn 3 (1980)

From Directors: Stanley Donen, John Barry, starring Farrah Fawcett, Kirk Douglas, Harvey Keitel, Ed Bishop Rated R

The Visitor (1979)

From Giulio Paradisi, starring Mel Ferrer, Glenn Ford, Lance Henriksen, John Huston Rated R

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10 Underrated Time Travel Movies from the 1980s

April 3, 2024 by Billy Oduory

Billy Oduory with ten underrated time travel movies from the 1980s…

With timeless blockbusters like Back to the Future setting the highest standards for 1980s sci-fi, many great films from the decade that didn’t hit similar heights in theatres failed to receive the credit they deserved. The creativity and innovation that went into 1980s sci-fi still transformed the whole movie industry and time travel films were not left behind. Films like The Final Countdown and Timerider , which weren’t instant hits when they were released, have continued to gain popularity in recent years as more people now appreciate the charm of 20th-century creativity.

With the surge in demand for classic gems from the decade, these underrated 80s time travel films have received the credits they deserve in public forums such as IMDB. For a modern audience wishing to travel back in time, the attraction from the past has to be something more than a typical time travel narrative, which is why these films have earned a cultic following for their eccentric stories and impressive cinematography that makes them feel like they were way ahead of their time…

Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann (1982)

While testing a new bike, Lyle Swann (Fred Ward), a dirtbike racer, strays into the field of a time travel experiment in the desert and is thrust back in time, finding himself in November 1877. The stubborn rider doesn’t realize the change in his surroundings until he is set upon by a gang of outlaws who would really love to lay their hands on the nice ride from the future. As Swann Grapples with his new reality, he finds refuge in the friendly town of San Marcos and now has to find a way to save the town from the outlaws and survive long enough for the scientists to come to his rescue.

Directed by William Dear, Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann has everything fans would expect from a classic Western, while still telling the interesting story of a time traveler. Despite its modest rating, the film boasts of impressive action sequences and a charismatic performance by Fred Ward as he brings life to the character. The blend of romance, crime, and sci-fi complements the intricately written film turning it into a worthy cult classic. 

My Science Project (1985)

Michael Harlan (John Stockwell) has nothing to submit for his final science project, so he breaks into a government aircraft boneyard and steals a strange-looking globe hoping to use it to impress his teachers. However, when he plugs the globe into a power source, he discovers that it has strange abilities including sucking the power grid dry and causing time travel. His project, which unleashes chaos on the school and his hometown, turns out to be a piece of alien technology. This is a coming-of-age comedy with a touch of Sci-Fi that transcends the traditional premise of time travel films to tell the human story.

Directed by Jonathan R. Betuel, My Science Project offers a humorous take on time travel. The film’s quirky premise and endearing characters make it an enjoyable watch for audiences of all ages, which explains its enduring popularity. With its blend of adventure, humor, and nostalgia for 1980s high school culture, the film offers a delightful trip down memory lane.

Trancers (1984)

Serial killers still make the most dreaded villains in TV and films, but a serial killer traveling through time takes the idea of dark comedy and time travel to a whole new level which explains why Trancers is now a whole franchise. The serial killer, in this case, is Martin Whistler (Michael Stefani) a 23rd-century criminal mastermind who discovers a way to turn people into senseless killers known as Trancers, whom he wants to use to destroy humanity. When his evil plans are thwarted by the relentless detective Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson) the serial killer uses a special drug to travel back in time to 1985 to continue his reign of terror, but Jack Deth won’t let him off that easily.

Directed by Charles Band, Trancers brings zombies and time travel into its action-packed storyline, making a simple-sounding storyline interesting. Moreover, despite its modest IMDb rating, the film has gained a cult following over the years, appreciated for its imaginative storyline and entertaining performances. With its blend of gritty noir elements, futuristic dystopia, and time travel shenanigans, the film offers a unique and enjoyable experience for viewers craving a dose of 1980s nostalgia.

Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

Starring a young Nicolas Cage and Kathleen Turner, Peggy Sue Got Married is the comedic tale of the second chance at a better life for 43-year-old Peggy Sue who is planning to divorce her cheating husbands but feels trapped and regrets the decisions she made in her teenage years. While attending her high school reunion party, Peggy collapses and finds herself transported back in time to her senior year of high school with the chance to relive her past and make better choices all over again.

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, this charming romantic comedy offers a whimsical take on the time travel genre. Peggy Sue Got Married features one of Cage and Turner’s best performances in a romantic comedy. With its nostalgic 1950s setting, witty dialogue, and heartfelt exploration of regret and second chances, the film offers a delightful blend of humor and sentimentality that a modern classics fan will enjoy.

The Final Countdown (1980)

Filmed on the real-life aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, The Final Countdown tells the story of sailors and a civilian observer on the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that gets sucked back in time to December 7, 1941, just a day before the Pearl Harbor attack, while on a training exercise. After discovering the Japanese fleet planning to attack the US fleet, the commanders and the sailors are torn between changing history by preventing the most devastating attack on US soil in WWII or letting history take its course.

Being Don Taylor’s last film, The Final Countdown was a great way to sign out for the talented director as it features an epic combination of action and historical drama. Its impressive special effects and suspenseful storyline keep viewers hooked as they present the thrill of an epic war film as well as a travel drama. The film explores the ethical dilemmas and the consequences of altering history.

The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (1988)

The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey follows a group of villagers from 14th-century England who, while tunneling through the earth on a mission to make a sacrifice and save the world from the Black Death, inadvertently find themselves transported to modern-day New Zealand. Struggling to comprehend their new surroundings, the villagers embark on a quest to find a way back home, all this time, relying on the visions of a “gifted boy” called Connor (Bruce Lyons). 

It is a visually stunning film that seamlessly blends historical drama with elements of fantasy and science fiction, making it feel way ahead of its time while retaining the charm of black-and-white cinema. The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey won multiple awards in Australia and New Zealand for its thought-provoking storyline and eccentric performances by the cast and is only now receiving global recognition as seen in its improving IMDB ratings.

Flight of the Navigator (1986)

While walking through the woods to pick up his little brother on July 4, 1978, 12-year-old David Freeman stumbles into a canyon and disappears, only to reappear eight years later, having not aged a single day. An experiment by NASA doctors reveals that David was abducted by aliens who took him to a strange planet and used him in part of a scientific experiment on humans. David’s time with the aliens turns out to have more consequences on the future of humanity than previously thought and his adventures with the aliens are far from over. 

Directed by Randal Kleiser, Flight of the Navigator has become a cult classic over the years with Disney announcing that its remake is in the works. It was one of the very first Hollywood films to use CGI resulting in impressive visual effects that stand out from other 1980s Sci-Fi films. With its heartwarming themes of friendship and self-discovery, the film remains a beloved favorite among classic film fans.

Time Bandits (1981)

Time Bandits is a Terry Gilliam cult classic that has earned a top spot in the fantasy comedy genre over the years because of its innovative approach to telling a time travel story. The subject of the film is a young history nerd called Kevin who gets caught up with a group of time-traveling dwarves who have stolen a time-space map from their boss known as the Supreme Being. Kevin gets the chance to relive some of his best moments in history including the Napoleonic Wars and the Titanic and also meet legends like Robin Hood and King Agamemnon. However, his fun trip threatens to ruin his life back in 1981 as the stolen map catches the interest of a villain known as Evil.

Time Bandits is one of the best Terry Gilliam films and fans continue to enjoy its witty humor and innovative storytelling despite its moderate IMDB ratings. With its blend of adventure, satire, and philosophical undertones, the film offers a thought-provoking exploration of themes such as greed, mortality, and the nature of reality that still captivates a modern audience.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

Directed by Leonard Nimoy, The Voyage Home is one of the most overlooked Star Trek films as far as ratings go, but it features one of the most captivating storylines with unconventional humor that many people are beginning to appreciate. The film follows the crew of the USS Enterprise as they travel back in time to 20th-century Earth to save the planet from an alien probe. This film holds a special place in history as it was dedicated to the crew of The Challenger Space Shuttle.

Environmentalism is at the center of the film’s message as the main story rotates around preventing the villains from contacting Humpback whales which are extinct in the year 2286 when the movie is set. Its modern-sounding themes and engaging storyline make it a standout entry in the series.

Somewhere in Time (1980)

The idea of a romantic relationship that transcends time itself is one of the few things that time travel films and that is exactly what Somewhere in Time brings to life. The film follows Richard Collier (Christopher Reeve) who becomes obsessed with the photo of the actress Elise McKenna (Jane Seymour) while residing at The Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island, Michigan. Collier believes that the woman is the love of his life and he must find a way to go back in time to 1912 to be with her. With the help of an old pocket watch and a little self-hypnosis, Collier manages to manifest himself back in time to meet the actress, but their romance isn’t as straightforward as he imagined.

Also starring Christopher Plummer, Somewhere in Time is a timeless romantic classic in which the chemistry between Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve is intoxicating. Seymour later admitted that she fell in love with Reeve on the film set, although they didn’t end up together as is the case with their characters. With its timeless themes of love, longing, and destiny, the film continues to captivate audiences decades after its initial release.

SEE ALSO: 10 Most Underrated Sci-Fi Movies of the 1980s

What 80s time travel movies are worthy of a spot on this list? Let us know on our socials @FlickeringMyth …

Billy Oduory

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15 Best Time Travel Movies & Shows to Stream Now

May 6, 2022

Time travel, much like magic wands or fairy godmothers, seems like something out of stories and not real life. While that may ( or may not ) be true, that doesn’t make it any less fascinating. 

Even though the events in time travel movies and shows are improbable (though not proven to be entirely impossible ), getting the chance to go back and fix wrong decisions or save someone important is something we all have fantasized about. 

Whether you’re into infinite time loops or races to prevent apocalyptic events, Hulu is the place to find some of the best time travel movies and shows.

Time Travel Movies on Hulu

In 2074, the mob has gotten… creative in how they handle hits. When they’re ready to “get rid of” someone, they simply send them to the past where specialized assassins, called “Loopers,” are waiting in the middle of the desert to finish the job. Eventually, every looper has to “close the loop” or, in other words, murder their future self to protect the secrets of their trade—but what happens when a looper’s future self outsmarts them?

Watch: Looper

Fast forward 45 years into the future. The earth has been destroyed by climate change, forcing humanity to live on artificial oxygen that is causing an incurable illness in humans. The only hope for the future of humankind comes in the form of one message: “Send Ethan Whyte.” In this pulse-pounding sci-fi thriller , Ethan Whyte (Kodi Smit-McPhee), an underground tunnel worker, is called to the future to finish the job his scientist father started.   

Watch: 2067

Demolition Man

In 1996, Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes), one of the world’s most prolific criminals and his arresting officer, John Spartan (Sylvester Stalone), aka “The Demolition Man,” were sentenced to life in a cryogenic prison meant to reprogram their violent nature. Decades later, in a utopian, post-apocalyptic society, Phoenix is unfrozen for a parole hearing and escapes. With a police force that has forsaken violence in any form, no one is able to catch him—no one except The Demolition Man.

Watch: Demolition Man

Peggy Sue Got Married

Back in high school, Peggy Sue (Kathleen Turner) was completely infatuated with her boyfriend (now husband), Charlie (Nicholas Cage). However, just before their high school reunion, Charlie runs off with another woman, sparking a divorce and forcing Peggy Sue to rethink her entire life. When Peggy Sue passes out at the reunion, she wakes up in her high school gymnasium—as a senior in high school. With the chance to live her life over again, will Peggy Sue make the same choices, romantic and otherwise?   

Watch: Peggy Sue Got Married

Time Loop Movies

Groundhog day.

We can’t talk about time loops without mentioning the most iconic time loop movie ever— Groundhog Day . 

Disgruntled weatherman Phil Conners (Bill Murray) is sent to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to cover Groundhog Day and report on whether or not the groundhog sees his shadow. Upset by the assignment, Phil is glad when the day is over. But, when he wakes up in the morning and it’s Groundhog Day…again, Phil decides to use it to his advantage—until he realizes he could be stuck in this time loop forever.

Watch: Groundhog Day *

*Groundhog Day requires STARZ® on Hulu add-on subscription.

Palm Springs

When Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) have an interrupted encounter while at a wedding in Palm Springs, they find themselves waking up to the same day over and over again. When faced with this situation, there’s only one thing to do—whatever you want. 

In this outlandish and hilarious romantic comedy , Nyles and Sarah have free reign over the wedding day—and they make the most of it. However, eventually even a rule-free life has to come to an end. The only problem is that no one knows how to end it.

Watch: Palm Springs

In one of the best movies on Hulu , former special forces agent, Roy Pulver (Frank Grillo) gets trapped in a time loop that forces him to relive his assassination day over and over again. As he fights through each somewhat new day, Roy discovers a secret government project that may explain his repeated death. The more times he dies, the closer he gets to discovering the truth, saving his ex-wife and son, and staying alive.

Watch: Boss Level

Time Travel TV Shows

While you may not be able to watch time travel favorite, Manifest on Hulu anymore, that doesn’t mean all time travel shows are in the past. From Hulu Original Future Man , to Rick and Morty , check out our favorite time travel shows streaming now on Hulu.

From Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg comes the Hulu Original Series , Future Man , which follows Josh Futturman, aka “Future Man” (see what we did there?), in his attempt to save the human race. 

Josh (Josh Hutcherson), a janitor in a medical research facility, is an avid gamer—but when he beats “Bionic Wars,” he learns his favorite futuristic video game isn’t just futuristic, it is the future. When tasked with saving the world before it’s wiped out, Josh must use his gaming skills to defeat his former boss and protect humankind from a terrible fate.

Watch: Future Man

Cole (Aaron Stanford), a time traveler from a post-apocalyptic future, has traveled back in time in hopes of preventing a deadly plague that wiped out 7 billion people. The virus was released by an elusive organization called the “Army of the 12 Monkeys,” whose leader, “The Witness,” is a mystery and the key to saving humanity. Cole, with the help of renowned virologist Cassie Railly (Amanda Schull), must find The Witness and prevent him from unleashing the virus before it’s too late.  

Watch: 12 Monkeys

On November 22, 1963, the world was rocked by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Based on the novel by Stephen King, 11.22.63 follows Jake Epping (James Franco) as he’s asked to do the impossible—travel back in time to solve the mystery of JFK’s death and perhaps, even prevent it from happening. However, changing the course of history can have devastating effects on the present. Can Jake solve the mystery without disrupting the future? 

Watch: 11.22.63

Time travel is real. The past can be altered. The future is in danger. 

When scientist Lucy Preston (Abigail Spencer) discovers that time travel is real and, at the same time, that a man has stolen a time machine and is going back in time to change history, her world is turned upside down overnight. Alongside a soldier and a history professor, Lucy travels to the past in order to apprehend the man and save the future from a catastrophe before everything is erased.

Watch: Timeless

Rick & Morty

Rick, a scientific genius and alcoholic, and Morty, Rick’s average teenage grandson, embark on dangerous and mind-bending adventures into alien worlds , alternate dimensions, and infinite universes. The adult animated show follows the pair as they cause mayhem and get into trouble across the multiverse and at home. 

Watch: Rick and Morty

Time Travel Anime

Japanese anime , InuYasha , follows Kagome Higurashi, a 15-year-old girl living at a historic Japanese shrine, who just so happens to be the reincarnation of ancient priestess Kikyo, guardian of the Shikon no Tama, or Jewel of Four Souls. When Kagome accidentally falls into a well, she’s thrust back to feudal Japan in order to help young half-demon InuYasha find the scattered shards of the Shikon Jewel and protect it from the demons who seek it.   

Watch: InuYasha

Steins;Gate

Okabe Rintarou, or self-proclaimed Crazy Mad Scientist Hououin Kyouma, and his team of university science students are working on a device to send messages to the past. Much to their surprise, it works! Once the device is operational, Okabe and his team must stop an evil organization from carrying out their diabolical plans.

Watch: Steins;Gate

29-year-old Satoru Fujinuma is a struggling manga artist with a secret and strange ability—he can travel back in time to the moment before something life-threatening happens and is forced to continue doing so until the event is prevented. 

In this limited series , Satoru and his mother are in a deadly accident. In hopes of saving his mother, Satoru travels back in time, but finds himself traveling all the way back to his childhood, where he uncovers a series of events that led to his mother’s death.

Watch: Erased

Feel like traveling back in time yourself? We’ve got you covered—check out the nostalgic blasts from the past in our watchlists featuring shows from the 80s , 90s , 2000s , and old-school MTV.

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The Best Time Travel Comedies, Ranked

The best time-travel comedies hold a special place in the hearts of movie enthusiasts, delivering captivating stories and hilarity in equal measure. These cinematic gems transport viewers through time, exploring the complicated nature of human relationships, life choices, and alternate realities, all while delivering a hearty dose of humor. As the popularity of this genre continues to grow, audiences can expect even more delightful and thought-provoking time travel comedy movies. 

The genius of comedy time-travel movies lies in their ability to delight audiences while simultaneously delving into the intricacies of human existence. Filmmakers have the exceptional ability to intertwine complex theories with relatable life experiences, resulting in comedy time-travel movies that examine the intricacies of married life, friendship, or personal growth. Ultimately, it is this expert combination of raw emotions and laughter that distinguishes these films within the world of cinema. 

Among the collection of best time-travel movies, a few stand out as quintessential examples. Back to the Future , for instance, has become a classic for its witty writing, memorable characters, and the unforgettable DeLorean time machine. Groundhog Day masterfully showcases the comedic genius of Bill Murray in a film that explores the existential implications of living the same day over and over again. Moreover, Back to the Future Part II ingeniously expands upon the original film's concept, offering an exhilarating glimpse into a futuristic world filled with hoverboards and self-tying shoes. 

These notable movies are just a fraction of the incredible lineup of comedy time-travel movies available to moviegoers.  From past to future, the legacy of the best time-travel comedy movies will persist, as they continue to enthrall viewers with delightful narratives and relatable themes. With their ability to provoke laughter, inspire deep reflections, and challenge preconceived notions of reality, these films have found their way into cinematic history. 

Back to the Future

Marty McFly's life takes an unexpected turn when he accidentally activates his eccentric inventor friend Doc Brown's latest creation - a DeLorean outfitted with a flux capacitor allowing for temporal displacement. As Marty races against time to correct the course of history, audiences are treated to a thrilling and hilarious ride through the intertwining timelines of 1985 and 1955, sparking a pop culture phenomenon that would endure for decades. The charming chemistry between Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, combined with Robert Zemeckis' masterful direction, makes this film an enduring classic in the realm of comedies.

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Groundhog Day

Phil Connors, a grumpy and self-absorbed weatherman played by Bill Murray, finds himself caught in an inexplicable time loop, forced to relive the same day - Groundhog Day - over and over again. This brilliantly constructed comedy, directed by Harold Ramis , explores the themes of personal growth and redemption as Phil gradually learns to appreciate the small moments in life and become a better person. Groundhog Day 's unique blend of humor, romance, and subtle philosophic undertones has consistently resonated with audiences since its release, earning it a place among the best comedies of all time .

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Back to the Future Part II

The second installment in the beloved trilogy picks up immediately where the first left off, with Marty McFly and Doc Brown embarking on an adventure to the distant future of 2015 to prevent a catastrophe involving Marty's future children. Director Robert Zemeckis deftly weaves together multiple timelines, exploring not only the future but also revisiting iconic moments from the original film to create a complex but highly entertaining narrative. With clever storytelling, memorable set pieces, and engaging performances by its leads, this sequel stands as a worthy continuation of the journey initiated in the first film.

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Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure

High school slackers Bill and Ted, played by Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves, receive a timely intervention from Rufus (George Carlin), a time-traveling guide from the future who sets them on a journey through history to collect notable figures for their final report. This comedic romp through time showcases the endearing friendship between the dimwitted duo as they face challenges that could alter the course of human existence. The film's blend of absurd humor, catchy catchphrases, and historical cameos has garnered a cult following, earning it a place in the annals of comedy history.

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When young Alan Parrish discovers a mysterious board game, he unwittingly unleashes a dangerous world filled with wild animals and treacherous traps that force him to navigate his way back to reality. Years later, two unsuspecting children come across the same game and inadvertently release Alan, now played by Robin Williams, from his jungle imprisonment. A perfect blend of humor, adventure, and heart-pounding action, this film's legacy has continued to endure, spawning sequels and inspiring new generations of viewers.

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Back to the Future Part III

In the final chapter of the iconic trilogy, Marty McFly finds himself once more traversing the fabric of time as he travels back to the Wild West of 1885 to rescue his imperiled friend Doc Brown. The film masterfully showcases the chemistry between its leads while blending humor, romance, and action through its exploration of the untamed frontier and the challenges of reconciling past, present, and future. This fitting conclusion to the series continues to delight fans and solidifies the trilogy's status as one of the greatest time-bending adventures in cinematic history.

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This biting satire delves into a dystopian future where simple-mindedness prevails, and societal decline is rampant, making for a both humorous and cautionary tale. Director Mike Judge tells the story of average Joe Bauers, played by Luke Wilson, who awakens from a suspended-animation experiment to find himself in an absurd world governed by idiocy, armed only with his moderate intelligence and the knowledge of a time long past. Among a sea of mindless entertainment, the film stands as a thought-provoking comedy that hits closer to home than one might expect.

• Dig Deeper... 17 Ways Idiocracy Has Actually Come True
• # 560 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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Hot Tub Time Machine

A drunken night in a ski resort hot tub sends four friends - played by John Cusack, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, and Clark Duke - back in time to the glory days of their youth in the 1980s, where they are presented with an opportunity to correct past mistakes or completely rewrite history. Laden with raunchy humor, fun nods to '80s pop culture, and memorable performances from its ensemble cast, this irreverent comedy has earned its place among fan-favorite films that toy with the concept of altering one's own past.

• # 709 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

This modern take on the Jumanji story breathes new life into the franchise, swapping the original's board game for a video game that transports four teenagers into a dangerous jungle world where they must save the day as their chosen avatars. The film ingeniously capitalizes on the talents of its leading cast members, including Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan, who bring to life their roles with humor, heart, and no shortage of action-packed set pieces. The result is a highly entertaining romp that pays homage to its predecessor while forging a fresh path for the franchise.

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In this modern retelling of Charles Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol , Bill Murray plays Frank Cross, a cynical and selfish television executive who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve. Director Richard Donner expertly blends sharp-witted humor with sentimental moments, creating a film that pays homage to its source material while carving out its unique niche in the holiday movie genre. Murray's impeccable comedic timing, combined with a supporting cast of eccentric characters, ensures that this film remains a crowd-pleasing favorite during the festive season.

• # 18 of 126 on The Best Christmas Movies Of All Time
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13 Going on 30

After wishing for adulthood, a young girl named Jenna Rink wakes up the next morning as her 30-year-old self, played by Jennifer Garner, with no recollection of the past 17 years. As Jenna navigates the foreign landscape of her adult life, she learns valuable lessons about friendship, love, and self-acceptance while grappling with the possibility of reversing the course of her life. Garner's endearing performance, coupled with charming comedic moments and a heartfelt message, makes this movie a delightful entry in the pantheon of age-altering comedies.

• # 420 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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Galaxy Quest

This loving spoof of the science-fiction genre and its rabid fandom centers around the cast of a canceled TV show, who find themselves unwittingly recruited by real aliens to defend their species from a deadly foe. Boasting a superb ensemble cast that includes Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, and Alan Rickman, the film offers a hilarious and insightful look at the blurred lines between fantasy and reality, combining genuine laugh-out-loud moments with thrilling action sequences. Through its affectionate skewering of genre tropes and endearing celebration of fandom, Galaxy Quest remains a beloved cult classic among sci-fi comedy enthusiasts.

• Dig Deeper... Why 'Galaxy Quest' Is Pretty Much The Best 'Star Trek' Movie Ever Made
• # 316 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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Army of Darkness

Cult filmmaker Sam Raimi brings his unmistakable style to this third installment of the Evil Dead series, which sees protagonist Ash Williams, played by Bruce Campbell, transported back to the medieval era where he battles demonic forces in his quest to return to his own time. Campbell's wildly entertaining, over-the-top performance lends itself perfectly to the film's blend of horror, slapstick comedy, and action-adventure. Army of Darkness has become a beloved midnight movie favorite and a testament to the enduring appeal of B-movie schlock when handled with a deft touch.

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Men in Black 3

The third installment of the popular franchise sees Agent J, played by Will Smith, embark on a mission through time in order to prevent an alien assassination that would have dire consequences for Earth and his partner, Agent K, played by Tommy Lee Jones . Along the way, audiences are treated to unexpected twists, humorous encounters with historical figures, and a brilliant performance from Josh Brolin as the younger version of Agent K. The balance of heart, action, and comedy spliced with elements of time-manipulation make this a welcome addition to the beloved Men in Black series.

• # 111 of 178 on The 150+ Best Movies With Aliens
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Pleasantville

Two siblings, played by Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon, are transported into the black-and-white world of a 1950s television show, where their presence begins to challenge the idyllic yet repressed society's norms. By showcasing the stark contrast between nostalgic idealism and modern-day realities, writer-director Gary Ross crafts a captivating and thought-provoking tale that touches upon themes of racism, censorship, and self-discovery. Pleasantville 's ability to balance humor and heart while exploring complex societal issues cements it as a poignant and timeless classic.

• # 369 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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• # 132 of 379 on The Best Movies Of The 1990s

Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey

In this sequel to the cult classic Excellent Adventure , the titular duo is pitted against evil robot versions of themselves sent from the future in an attempt to thwart their destiny of creating a utopian society through their music. Along the way, Bill and Ted navigate the afterlife, compete with Death in a series of games, and form their band, Wyld Stallyns. The film's unique blend of surreal humor, zany characters, and philosophical undertones ensures it remains a fan favorite among the pantheon of time travel comedies.

• # 529 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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This body-swapping comedy stars Zac Efron as a disillusioned adult who is mysteriously transformed back into his 17-year-old self to give him a second chance at reliving his youth and reshaping his destiny. With a heartfelt performance from Efron and solid comedic support from Thomas Lennon and Matthew Perry, the film tackles themes of redemption, regret, and rebirth with a light-hearted and feel-good touch. Maintaining an engaging blend of humor, drama, and nostalgia, 17 Again offers a fresh spin on the familiar trope of revisiting one's past to alter the course of one's life.

• # 40 of 112 on The 100+ Best Movies About High School
• # 27 of 168 on The 150+ Best Teen Romance Movies, Ranked
• # 47 of 469 on The 400+ Best Chick Flicks Ever

Time Bandits

In this fantastical adventure, a young boy named Kevin is swept away by a group of dwarves who traverse time and space in pursuit of treasure, guided by a magical map stolen from their former employer, the Supreme Being. Directed by Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam, Time Bandits expertly mixes whimsy with satire, resulting in a film that appeals to both children and adults alike. Its unique blend of humor, visual enchantment, and historical figures has earned it a special place in the hearts of fans of time-traveling adventures.

• # 675 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 103 of 115 on 50+ Movies That Need Sequels
• # 441 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films

The Muppet Christmas Carol

In this delightful adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic yuletide tale, the iconic Muppets take on the story of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, portrayed by Michael Caine, who learns the true meaning of Christmas through a series of ghostly visitations. The film expertly blends the charm and humor synonymous with the Muppets franchise with the heartfelt message of Dickens' timeless story. With its colorful cast of characters and unforgettable musical numbers, The Muppet Christmas Carol has become a beloved holiday classic for generations of viewers.

• # 12 of 126 on The Best Christmas Movies Of All Time
• # 40 of 204 on Musical Movies With The Best Songs
• # 273 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies

The Family Man

When high-powered Wall Street executive Jack Campbell, played by Nicolas Cage, awakens one day to find himself living an alternate life as a family man, he is forced to reevaluate his priorities and reconsider the choices he made along the way. The film's portrayal of life's "what ifs" is brought to life through the engaging performances of Cage and his co-stars, Tea Leoni and Don Cheadle. While exploring themes of regret and the importance of appreciating what one has, The Family Man delivers heartwarming laughs and emotional depth, establishing it as a poignant modern-day fable.

• # 58 of 126 on The Best Christmas Movies Of All Time
• # 418 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 68 of 134 on The 100+ Best Movies For Date Night

With the aid of a magical universal remote control that allows him to manipulate time, workaholic architect Michael Newman, played by Adam Sandler, discovers the bittersweet consequences of fast-forwarding through life's most significant moments. The film skillfully balances its comedic elements with a more somber look at the importance of cherishing the time spent with loved ones - a theme that resonates with viewers even after the credits roll. Click showcases Sandler's versatility as an actor while offering a thought-provoking take on the common desire to control aspects of one's life.

• # 114 of 168 on The 165 Best Tearjerker Movies of All Time, Ranked
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• # 450 of 630 on The 600+ Funniest Movies Of All Time

Director Richard Curtis weaves a poignant and heartwarming tale of love, family, and the power of time as Tim, played by Domhnall Gleeson, discovers he has the ability to travel back in time and alter his life's course - a gift passed down through generations of men in his family. Alongside Rachel McAdams, who gives a captivating performance as Tim's love interest, the film explores the possibilities and pitfalls of manipulating time to achieve happiness while maintaining a balance of humor and sentimentality. About Time resonates with audiences for its tender storytelling and memorable performances, solidifying its place among cherished romantic comedies.

• # 54 of 134 on The 100+ Best Movies For Date Night
• # 107 of 469 on The 400+ Best Chick Flicks Ever
• # 25 of 58 on Romantic Movies Your Girlfriend Forces You To Watch

Meet the Robinsons

This animated adventure follows young inventor Lewis as he embarks on a thrilling journey into the future, where he encounters the eccentric and lovable Robinson family. As Lewis unravels the mystery of his own destiny amid a backdrop of colorful characters and imaginative inventions, the film delivers a heartfelt message about family and the power of perseverance. With its inviting blend of humor, adventure, and emotional depth, Meet the Robinsons has become a beloved classic in the realm of animated time-travel tales.

• # 104 of 447 on The 400+ Best Animated Kids Movies
• # 63 of 139 on The Best Movies Of 2007
• # 129 of 200 on The 195+ Greatest Adventure Movies

Futurama: Bender's Big Score

In this feature-length continuation of the cult TV series , the Planet Express crew faces an evil alien conspiracy, which involves the use of time travel to alter history for nefarious purposes. The fan-favorite character, Bender the robot, is at the center of the story as he carries out a series of increasingly bizarre time-traveling missions. Combining the show's signature blend of biting satire, rapid-fire gags, and endearing character moments, Bender's Big Score provides fans with a satisfying and hilarious addition to the Futurama canon.

Kate & Leopold

In this charming romantic comedy, Hugh Jackman plays a 19th-century Duke who is accidentally transported to modern-day New York City, where he falls for a jaded marketing executive played by Meg Ryan. As the two navigate their vastly different worlds, they find that time may not be as much of an obstacle to love as they initially thought. The film's enchanting blend of humor, romance, and period-piece charm makes it a unique and engaging entry in the genre of time-traveling romances.

• # 545 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
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• # 197 of 469 on The 400+ Best Chick Flicks Ever

Flight of the Navigator

In this thrilling family adventure, a young boy named David awakens after a mysterious disappearance to find himself eight years in the future, still the same age and with no memory of the time that has passed. As he forms a bond with an alien spaceship and its AI pilot, David embarks on a journey through space and time to unravel the mystery of his lost years. Blending humor, wonder, and engaging storytelling, Flight of the Navigator remains a cherished favorite among fans of family-friendly time-travel tales.

• # 76 of 178 on The 150+ Best Movies With Aliens
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• # 145 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked

Midnight in Paris

Woody Allen's enchanting tale follows disillusioned writer Gil Pender, played by Owen Wilson, as he stumbles upon a magical portal that transports him to the golden age of 1920s Paris, where he meets and mingles with literary and artistic icons of the era. This captivating journey through time serves not only as a love letter to the City of Lights but also as a thoughtful reflection on nostalgia and the allure of the past. Beautifully shot, expertly written, and featuring a stellar ensemble cast, Midnight in Paris remains one of Allen's most beloved and critically acclaimed films.

• # 703 of 772 on The Most Rewatchable Movies
• # 663 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
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Peggy Sue Got Married

This quirky comedy-drama follows the life of Peggy Sue, played by Kathleen Turner, who faints during her high school reunion and wakes up in her teenage years with adult knowledge of her future life. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the film combines a nostalgic affection for the 1960s with the heavy burden of regret and second chances. Turner's captivating performance, alongside a young Nicolas Cage, makes Peggy Sue Got Married a memorable and touching exploration of the human propensity to revisit the past.

• # 232 of 399 on The Best Movies Of The 1980s, Ranked
• # 214 of 675 on The Best Movies Roger Ebert Gave Four Stars
• # 122 of 233 on The Best '80s Comedy Movies, Ranked

A Kid in King Arthur's Court

When a baseball game turns into a fantastical adventure, modern-day teenager Calvin Fuller is transported back in time to Camelot, where he uses his 20th-century knowledge to help King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table save their kingdom. Amidst jousting tournaments and medieval misadventures, Calvin discovers his inner hero and learns valuable life lessons. A Kid in King Arthur's Court offers a whimsical and exciting twist on the classic fish-out-of-water story that has delighted audiences for decades.

• # 4 of 50 on 50 Movies That Contained Future Stars
• # 15 of 17 on '90s Movies Where Kids Get To Be In Charge
• # 19 of 20 on 20 Movies Where A Magic Portal Hides Another World

Bill & Ted Face the Music

In this long-awaited third installment of the popular franchise, the lovable duo - once again portrayed by Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter - have failed to live up to their prophesied destiny of uniting the world through their music, and are faced with a warning from the future that they must create an all-important song to save humanity. The film successfully evokes the spirit of the original movies, blending nostalgic charm with a fresh perspective that resonates with both devoted fans and newcomers alike. The return of Bill and Ted's unique friendship, hilarious antics, and endearing optimism solidifies this film as a worthy addition to the beloved series.

• # 513 of 702 on The All-Time Greatest Comedy Films
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• # 79 of 89 on The Most Rewatchable Comedy Movies
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Movies Featuring Time Loops & Time Travel

The most complete list of movies in which time traveling or time looping are a prominent plot device. Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space, generally using a theoretical invention known as a "time machine". Let's face it, the time traveling concept was always an preoccupation in literature and filmography. You can't find a person who didn't think about time traveling or building a time travel machine. That's why movies with those themes were and always will be interesting and amusing to watch. P.S. Although this list is about movies only, I highly recommend watching the tv show Dark (2017) . Notable mentions: Travelers (2016) and Timeless (2016) . Tags: Time Loop, Time Travel, Day Repetition, Time Traveler, Leaping Through Time, Time Machine, Chrononaut.

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1. Donnie Darko (2001)

R | 113 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a man in a large rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.

Director: Richard Kelly | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal , Jena Malone , Mary McDonnell , Holmes Osborne

Votes: 849,631 | Gross: $1.48M

Best of its kind, hands down.

2. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)

TV-PG | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy

A high-school girl named Makoto acquires the power to travel back in time, and decides to use it for her own personal benefits. Little does she know that she is affecting the lives of others just as much as she is her own.

Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Riisa Naka , Takuya Ishida , Mitsutaka Itakura , Ayami Kakiuchi

Votes: 70,827

Best anime movie revolving around time travel.

3. Time Traveller (2010)

Not Rated | 122 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi

A high-school girl acquires the ability to time travel.

Director: Masaaki Taniguchi | Stars: Riisa Naka , Akiyoshi Nakao , Munetaka Aoki , Anna Ishibashi

Votes: 1,721

4. Steins;Gate (2011–2015)

TV-14 | 24 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama

After discovering time travel, a university student and his colleagues must use their knowledge of it to stop an evil organization and their diabolical plans.

Stars: Mamoru Miyano , Asami Imai , Kana Hanazawa , Ashly Burch

Votes: 73,298

Best anime series revolving around time travel.

5. 12 Monkeys (1995)

R | 129 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

In a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.

Director: Terry Gilliam | Stars: Bruce Willis , Madeleine Stowe , Brad Pitt , Joseph Melito

Votes: 646,441 | Gross: $57.14M

Second only to Donnie Darko. Absolute time travel classic.

6. The Visitors (1993)

R | 107 min | Comedy, Fantasy

A medieval knight and his servant ask a familiar wizard to move them back in time to prevent father-in-law's accidentally killing. Instead, they fly away to the 20th century.

Director: Jean-Marie Poiré | Stars: Christian Clavier , Jean Reno , Valérie Lemercier , Marie-Anne Chazel

Votes: 37,959 | Gross: $0.70M

A pretty good comedy including time travel. It features a sequel: Les couloirs du temps: Les visiteurs II from 1998. and a third part coming in 2016. named La Terreur: Les Visiteurs III. Furthermore, there is a spin-off named Just Visiting from 2001.

7. Groundhog Day (1993)

PG | 101 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A narcissistic, self-centered weatherman finds himself in a time loop on Groundhog Day.

Director: Harold Ramis | Stars: Bill Murray , Andie MacDowell , Chris Elliott , Stephen Tobolowsky

Votes: 684,680 | Gross: $70.91M

Probably the best known movie about a time loop.

8. Looper (2012)

R | 119 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi

In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits - someone like Joe - who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.

Director: Rian Johnson | Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt , Bruce Willis , Emily Blunt , Paul Dano

Votes: 602,733 | Gross: $66.49M

9. The Terminator (1984)

R | 107 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A human soldier is sent from 2029 to 1984 to stop an almost indestructible cyborg killing machine, sent from the same year, which has been programmed to execute a young woman whose unborn son is the key to humanity's future salvation.

Director: James Cameron | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger , Linda Hamilton , Michael Biehn , Paul Winfield

Votes: 923,573 | Gross: $38.40M

10. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

R | 137 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A cyborg, identical to the one who failed to kill Sarah Connor, must now protect her ten year old son John from an even more advanced and powerful cyborg.

Director: James Cameron | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger , Linda Hamilton , Edward Furlong , Robert Patrick

Votes: 1,173,280 | Gross: $204.84M

11. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)

R | 109 min | Action, Sci-Fi

A machine from a post-apocalyptic future travels back in time to protect a man and a woman from an advanced robotic assassin to ensure they both survive a nuclear attack.

Director: Jonathan Mostow | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger , Nick Stahl , Kristanna Loken , Claire Danes

Votes: 418,379 | Gross: $150.37M

12. Terminator Salvation (2009)

PG-13 | 115 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

In 2018, a mysterious new weapon in the war against the machines, half-human and half-machine, comes to John Connor on the eve of a resistance attack on Skynet. But whose side is he on, and can he be trusted?

Director: McG | Stars: Christian Bale , Sam Worthington , Anton Yelchin , Moon Bloodgood

Votes: 377,160 | Gross: $125.32M

13. Source Code (2011)

PG-13 | 93 min | Action, Drama, Mystery

A soldier wakes up in someone else's body and discovers he's part of an experimental government program to find the bomber of a commuter train within 8 minutes.

Director: Duncan Jones | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal , Michelle Monaghan , Vera Farmiga , Jeffrey Wright

Votes: 549,473 | Gross: $54.71M

14. Sphere (1998)

PG-13 | 134 min | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi

A spaceship is discovered under three hundred years' worth of coral growth at the bottom of the ocean.

Director: Barry Levinson | Stars: Dustin Hoffman , Sharon Stone , Samuel L. Jackson , Peter Coyote

Votes: 112,480 | Gross: $37.02M

15. Primer (2004)

PG-13 | 77 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.

Director: Shane Carruth | Stars: Shane Carruth , David Sullivan , Casey Gooden , Anand Upadhyaya

Votes: 114,099 | Gross: $0.42M

16. Triangle (2009)

R | 99 min | Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Five friends set sail and their yacht is overturned by a strange and sudden storm. A mysterious ship arrives to rescue them, and what happens next cannot be explained.

Director: Christopher Smith | Stars: Melissa George , Joshua McIvor , Jack Taylor , Michael Dorman

Votes: 129,687

17. Timecrimes (2007)

R | 92 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi

A man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.

Director: Nacho Vigalondo | Stars: Karra Elejalde , Candela Fernández , Bárbara Goenaga , Nacho Vigalondo

Votes: 68,739 | Gross: $0.04M

18. Dead End (I) (2003)

R | 85 min | Adventure, Horror, Mystery

Christmas Eve. On his way to his in-laws with his family, Frank Harrington decides to try a shortcut, for the first time in 20 years. It turns out to be the biggest mistake of his life.

Directors: Jean-Baptiste Andrea , Fabrice Canepa | Stars: Ray Wise , Lin Shaye , Mick Cain , Alexandra Holden

Votes: 32,261

19. Time Lapse (2014)

Not Rated | 104 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Three friends discover a mysterious machine that takes pictures twenty-four hours into the future, and conspire to use it for personal gain, until disturbing and dangerous images begin to develop.

Director: Bradley King | Stars: Danielle Panabaker , Matt O'Leary , George Finn , John Rhys-Davies

Votes: 49,115

20. Project Almanac (2015)

PG-13 | 106 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

A group of teens discovers secret plans for a time machine, and construct one. However, things start to get out of control.

Director: Dean Israelite | Stars: Amy Landecker , Sofia Black-D'Elia , Virginia Gardner , Jonny Weston

Votes: 84,211 | Gross: $22.35M

21. Timespace (2014)

90 min | Drama, Sci-Fi

After successfully traveling back in time, an inquisitive up-and-coming physicist combats protesters, naysayers, tragedies, and a guilt-ridden conscience on a quest to discover the meaning of life.

Director: Daniel Ziegler | Stars: Bryan Raiton , Jessica Mirl , Ben Miller , Sarah France

22. Coherence (2013)

Not Rated | 89 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Strange things begin to happen when a group of friends gather for a dinner party on an evening when a comet is passing overhead.

Director: James Ward Byrkit | Stars: Emily Baldoni , Maury Sterling , Nicholas Brendon , Elizabeth Gracen

Votes: 145,751 | Gross: $0.07M

23. The I Inside (2004)

R | 90 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

An amnesiac discovers himself leaping through time between 2000 and 2002 as his past returns to him.

Director: Roland Suso Richter | Stars: Ryan Phillippe , Sarah Polley , Piper Perabo , Robert Sean Leonard

Votes: 11,381

24. Retroactive (1997)

R | 91 min | Action, Crime, Drama

A psychiatrist makes multiple trips through time to save a woman that was murdered by her brutal husband.

Director: Louis Morneau | Stars: Jim Belushi , Kylie Travis , Shannon Whirry , Frank Whaley

Votes: 6,700

25. Time (2006)

Not Rated | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance

To save her relationship, a woman puts herself through extensive plastic surgery.

Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Ha Jung-woo , Park Ji-yeon , Baek Gwang-Doo , Jung Gyu-woon

Votes: 12,875 | Gross: $0.01M

26. Lost Highway (1997)

R | 134 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Anonymous videotapes presage a musician's murder conviction, and a gangster's girlfriend leads a mechanic astray.

Director: David Lynch | Stars: Bill Pullman , Patricia Arquette , John Roselius , Louis Eppolito

Votes: 153,106 | Gross: $3.80M

Two words: David Lynch

27. Dark Country (2009)

R | 88 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller

A couple en route from Las Vegas are forced to deal with a body in the desert, making their honeymoon one hellish ride.

Director: Thomas Jane | Stars: Thomas Jane , Lauren German , Ron Perlman , Chris Browning

Votes: 4,862

28. Repeaters (2010)

89 min | Action, Crime, Drama

Three twenty-somethings find themselves in an impossible time loop, where each day they awaken to the same terrifying day as the preceding one.

Director: Carl Bessai | Stars: Dustin Milligan , Amanda Crew , Richard de Klerk , Alexia Fast

Votes: 7,053

29. Memory Lane (III) (2012)

Not Rated | 70 min | Crime, Sci-Fi, Thriller

An orphaned war veteran routinely travels between our world and the afterlife in search of his fiancée's killer by stopping and starting his own heart.

Director: Shawn Holmes | Stars: Michael Guy Allen , Meg Braden , Julian Curi , Zac Snyder

Votes: 1,633

30. The Reeds (2010)

R | 86 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller

A weekend boating party turns into a nightmare for a group of young Londoners when they stumble upon a terrifying secret hidden in the reeds.

Director: Nick Cohen | Stars: Anna Brewster , Geoff Bell , Daniel Caltagirone , Emma Catherwood

Votes: 2,794

31. The Butterfly Effect (2004)

R | 113 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Evan Treborn suffers blackouts during significant events of his life. As he grows up, he finds a way to remember these lost memories and a supernatural way to alter his life by reading his journal.

Directors: Eric Bress , J. Mackye Gruber | Stars: Ashton Kutcher , Amy Smart , Melora Walters , Elden Henson

Votes: 520,883 | Gross: $57.94M

If you liked this movie, don't watch its sequels: The Butterfly Effect 2 from 2006. and The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations from 2009.

32. Extracted (2012)

R | 89 min | Drama, Sci-Fi

A scientist who has invented a technology to construct virtual realities from people's memories finds himself in a perilous situation, after he reluctantly allows it to be used for a purpose he never imagined.

Director: Nir Paniry | Stars: Sasha Roiz , Jenny Mollen , Dominic Bogart , Richard Riehle

Votes: 12,513

33. 11 Minutes Ago (2007)

Not Rated | 83 min | Romance, Sci-Fi

Traveling in 11-minute increments, a time-tumbler from 48 years in the future spends two years of his life weaving through a two-hour wedding reception.

Director: Bob Gebert | Stars: Ian Michaels , Christina Mauro , Evan Lee Dahl , Taryn Reneau

34. Premature (2014)

R | 93 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A high school senior has to re-live losing his virginity over and over again until he gets it right, with the right girl.

Director: Dan Beers | Stars: John Karna , Caroline Traywick , Kate Kneeland , Steve Coulter

Votes: 10,693

Your usual teen comedy meets Groundhog Day.

35. Fetching Cody (2005)

Not Rated | 86 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

Art, a drug-addicted dealer and hustler, arrives at his girlfriend Cody's apartment to find that she has overdosed on heroin. He tries to fix things by traveling back in time in an attempt to prevent her death.

Director: David Ray | Stars: Jay Baruchel , Sarah Lind , Jim Byrnes , Lucas Blaney

Votes: 1,472

36. Ditto (2000)

110 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi

Two students, separated in time, are somehow able to talk to each other using amateur radio, one in 1979 and the other in 2000.

Director: Jeong-kwon Kim | Stars: Yoo Ji-tae , Kim Ha-neul , Ha Ji-Won , Do-Yoon Kim

Votes: 2,226

37. The Door (2009)

103 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

A successful artist loses control of his life after his young daughter's death. A chance for a new start appears, but all is not what it seems.

Director: Anno Saul | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen , Jessica Schwarz , Valeria Eisenbart , Thomas Thieme

Votes: 6,354

38. Enter Nowhere (2011)

Three strangers arrive one by one at a mysterious cabin in the middle of nowhere only to learn they've been brought together for a reason.

Director: Jack Heller | Stars: Katherine Waterston , Scott Eastwood , Sara Paxton , Shaun Sipos

Votes: 12,621

39. Happy Accidents (2000)

R | 110 min | Comedy, Romance

New Yorker Ruby Weaver believes she has found the man of her dreams in Sam Deed, who is her best catch in some time--except that he assures her that he came from the future.

Director: Brad Anderson | Stars: Marisa Tomei , Vincent D'Onofrio , Holland Taylor , Mick Weber

Votes: 10,224 | Gross: $0.69M

40. Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel (2009)

PG-13 | 83 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi

While drinking at their local pub, three social outcasts attempt to navigate a time-travel conundrum.

Director: Gareth Carrivick | Stars: Chris O'Dowd , Marc Wootton , Dean Lennox Kelly , Anna Faris

Votes: 36,549

FAQing funny.

41. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

R | 86 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama

Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.

Director: Colin Trevorrow | Stars: Aubrey Plaza , Mark Duplass , Jake Johnson , Karan Soni

Votes: 130,832 | Gross: $4.01M

42. Pleasantville (1998)

PG-13 | 124 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

Two 1990s teenage siblings find themselves transported to a 1950s sitcom where their influence begins to profoundly change that colorless, complacent world.

Director: Gary Ross | Stars: Tobey Maguire , Jeff Daniels , Joan Allen , William H. Macy

Votes: 136,275 | Gross: $40.57M

43. The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)

PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

Henry DeTamble, a librarian, possesses a unique gene that lets him involuntarily travel through time. His wife, Claire Abshire, finds it difficult to cope with it.

Director: Robert Schwentke | Stars: Eric Bana , Rachel McAdams , Ron Livingston , Michelle Nolden

Votes: 157,859 | Gross: $63.41M

44. About Time (I) (2013)

R | 123 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

At the age of 21, Tim discovers he can travel in time and change what happens and has happened in his own life. His decision to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend turns out not to be as easy as you might think.

Director: Richard Curtis | Stars: Domhnall Gleeson , Rachel McAdams , Bill Nighy , Lydia Wilson

Votes: 385,581 | Gross: $15.32M

45. Midnight in Paris (2011)

PG-13 | 94 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

While on a trip to Paris with his fiancée's family, a nostalgic screenwriter finds himself mysteriously going back to the 1920s every day at midnight.

Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Owen Wilson , Rachel McAdams , Kathy Bates , Kurt Fuller

Votes: 449,719 | Gross: $56.82M

More like "visiting the past".

46. The Time Machine (1960)

G | 103 min | Adventure, Romance, Sci-Fi

A man's vision for a utopian society is disillusioned when travelling forward into time reveals a dark and dangerous society.

Director: George Pal | Stars: Rod Taylor , Alan Young , Yvette Mimieux , Sebastian Cabot

Votes: 44,818

47. The Lake House (2006)

PG | 99 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

A lonely doctor who once occupied an unusual lakeside house begins to exchange love letters with its former resident, a frustrated architect. They must try to unravel the mystery behind their extraordinary romance before it's too late.

Director: Alejandro Agresti | Stars: Keanu Reeves , Sandra Bullock , Christopher Plummer , Ebon Moss-Bachrach

Votes: 157,606 | Gross: $52.33M

48. The Time Machine (2002)

PG-13 | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Hoping to alter the events of the past, a 19th century inventor instead travels 800,000 years into the future, where he finds humankind divided into two warring races.

Director: Simon Wells | Stars: Guy Pearce , Yancey Arias , Mark Addy , Phyllida Law

Votes: 130,351 | Gross: $56.68M

49. La Jetée (1962)

Not Rated | 28 min | Short, Drama, Romance

The story of a man forced to explore his memories in the wake of World War III's devastation, told through still images.

Director: Chris Marker | Stars: Étienne Becker , Jean Négroni , Hélène Chatelain , Davos Hanich

Votes: 37,038

Short but epic.

50. Timeline (2003)

PG-13 | 116 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A group of archaeologists get embroiled in an adventure where they must travel back in time to 14th Century France, to save their professor before the French battle the English at Castlegard. If they fail, they won't be able to return.

Director: Richard Donner | Stars: Paul Walker , Gerard Butler , Billy Connolly , Frances O'Connor

Votes: 65,872 | Gross: $19.48M

51. Slaughterhouse-Five (1972)

R | 104 min | Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi

Billy Pilgrim has mysteriously become unstuck in time. He goes on an uncontrollable trip back and forth from his birth in New York to life on a distant planet and back again to the horrors of the 1945 fire-bombing of Dresden.

Director: George Roy Hill | Stars: Michael Sacks , Ron Leibman , Eugene Roche , Sharon Gans

Votes: 13,902 | Gross: $0.57M

52. Time After Time (1979)

PG | 112 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi

H.G. Wells pursues Jack the Ripper to the 20th Century when the serial murderer uses the future writer's time machine to escape his time period.

Director: Nicholas Meyer | Stars: Malcolm McDowell , Mary Steenburgen , David Warner , Charles Cioffi

Votes: 20,625

Unfortunately, the soundtrack isn't featuring Cyndi Lauper. :(

53. The Final Countdown (1980)

PG | 103 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Director: Don Taylor | Stars: Kirk Douglas , Martin Sheen , Katharine Ross , James Farentino

Votes: 26,893 | Gross: $16.65M

54. The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)

PG | 102 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance

A United States Navy destroyer escort participates in a Navy "invisibility" experiment that inadvertently sends two sailors forty years into the future.

Director: Stewart Raffill | Stars: Michael Paré , Nancy Allen , Eric Christmas , Bobby Di Cicco

Votes: 16,745 | Gross: $8.10M

Not nearly as good sequel: The Philadelphia Experiment from 1993.

55. Back to the Future (1985)

PG | 116 min | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

Marty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown.

Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Michael J. Fox , Christopher Lloyd , Lea Thompson , Crispin Glover

Votes: 1,305,819 | Gross: $210.61M

56. Back to the Future Part II (1989)

PG | 108 min | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

After visiting 2015, Marty McFly must repeat his visit to 1955 to prevent disastrous changes to 1985...without interfering with his first trip.

Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Michael J. Fox , Christopher Lloyd , Lea Thompson , Tom Wilson

Votes: 572,203 | Gross: $118.50M

57. Back to the Future Part III (1990)

PG | 118 min | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

Stranded in 1955, Marty McFly learns about the death of Doc Brown in 1885 and must travel back in time to save him. With no fuel readily available for the DeLorean, the two must figure how to escape the Old West before Emmett is murdered.

Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Michael J. Fox , Christopher Lloyd , Mary Steenburgen , Tom Wilson

Votes: 480,479 | Gross: $87.73M

58. S. Darko (2009)

R | 103 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Donnie Darko's little sister Samantha and her best friend Corey are on a cross-country road trip, but soon find themselves entangled in a dangerous glitch in the time-space continuum.

Director: Chris Fisher | Stars: Daveigh Chase , Briana Evigan , James Lafferty , Ed Westwick

Votes: 14,472

Donnie Darko's little sister. As one critic nicely put it: "All style, no substance."

59. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

PG | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

To save Earth from an alien probe, Admiral James T. Kirk and his fugitive crew go back in time to San Francisco in 1986 to retrieve the only beings who can communicate with it: humpback whales.

Director: Leonard Nimoy | Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan

Votes: 91,448 | Gross: $109.71M

60. Star Trek (2009)

PG-13 | 127 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

The brash James T. Kirk tries to live up to his father's legacy with Mr. Spock keeping him in check as a vengeful Romulan from the future creates black holes to destroy the Federation one planet at a time.

Director: J.J. Abrams | Stars: Chris Pine , Zachary Quinto , Simon Pegg , Leonard Nimoy

Votes: 620,122 | Gross: $257.73M

61. Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

PG | 90 min | Adventure, Comedy, Music

Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.

Director: Stephen Herek | Stars: Keanu Reeves , Alex Winter , George Carlin , Terry Camilleri

Votes: 141,583 | Gross: $40.49M

62. Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)

PG | 93 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

A tyrant from the future creates evil android doubles of Bill and Ted and sends them back to eliminate the originals.

Director: Peter Hewitt | Stars: Keanu Reeves , Alex Winter , William Sadler , Joss Ackland

Votes: 81,012 | Gross: $38.04M

63. Biggles: Adventures in Time (1986)

PG | 108 min | Adventure, Family, Sci-Fi

Daring British WWI fighter pilot James "Biggles" Bigglesworth and 1980s low-level business executive Jim Ferguson discover that they can time travel to each other's eras. They try to stop the Germans from changing the outcome of WWI.

Director: John Hough | Stars: Neil Dickson , Alex Hyde-White , Fiona Hutchison , Peter Cushing

Votes: 3,360 | Gross: $0.11M

64. Timestalkers (1987 TV Movie)

Not Rated | 100 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi

Scott McKenzie, a history professor, becomes involved with two time travelers from the year 2586 after making a discovery in an old photograph from 1886.

Director: Michael Schultz | Stars: William Devane , Lauren Hutton , John Ratzenberger , Forrest Tucker

Votes: 1,541

65. The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (1988)

PG | 92 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

Men seeking relief from the Black Death, guided by a boy's vision, dig a tunnel from 14th century England to 20th century New Zealand.

Director: Vincent Ward | Stars: Bruce Lyons , Chris Haywood , Hamish Gough , Marshall Napier

Votes: 3,974 | Gross: $1.33M

66. Millennium (1989)

PG-13 | 108 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

An NTSB investigator seeking the cause of an airline disaster meets a warrior woman from 1000 years in the future.

Director: Michael Anderson | Stars: Kris Kristofferson , Cheryl Ladd , Daniel J. Travanti , Robert Joy

Votes: 6,959 | Gross: $5.78M

67. Grand Tour: Disaster in Time (1991)

PG-13 | 99 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi

Before they can complete renovations on their new inn, Widower (Ben Wilson) and daughter (Hillary) are visited by a woman seeking immediate lodging for her strange group of travellers. Why ... See full summary  »

Director: David Twohy | Stars: Jeff Daniels , Ariana Richards , Emilia Crow , Jim Haynie

Votes: 3,095

68. Time Runner (1993)

R | 90 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

During the unstoppable alien invasion of 2022, one man flees through a wormhole to 1992 in hope of changing the future. But attempt after attempt is made by someone there to catch and kill him.

Director: Michael Mazo | Stars: Mark Hamill , Rae Dawn Chong , Brion James , Mark Baur

Votes: 1,144

69. Magic Müller (1993 TV Movie)

Mueller is a young and unsuccessful actor who has one big problem. He does not have time. He does not have time for his little daughter Elina and he does not have time for Petra who ... See full summary  »

Director: Thomas Bohn | Stars: Ingo Naujoks , Maria Schrader , Julia Böning , Jaymes Butler

70. Run Lola Run (1998)

R | 80 min | Action, Crime, Thriller

After a botched money delivery, Lola has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 Deutschmarks.

Director: Tom Tykwer | Stars: Franka Potente , Moritz Bleibtreu , Herbert Knaup , Nina Petri

Votes: 206,914 | Gross: $7.27M

71. 12:01 (1993 TV Movie)

PG-13 | 92 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi, Thriller

A man likes a woman at work. He sees her get murdered. He gets drunk and zapped at 12:01AM. Next morning she's back and everything is exactly like the day before. The time loops gives him chances to save her.

Director: Jack Sholder | Stars: Helen Slater , Jonathan Silverman , Nicolas Surovy , Robin Bartlett

Votes: 5,512

72. Timecop (1994)

R | 99 min | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi

Max Walker, an officer for a security agency that regulates time travel, must fend for his life against a shady politician who's intent on changing the past to control the future.

Director: Peter Hyams | Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme , Mia Sara , Ron Silver , Bruce McGill

Votes: 64,144 | Gross: $44.85M

Timecop 2: The Berlin Decision is a 2003. direct to video sequel of this movie.

73. Demolition Man (1993)

R | 115 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller

A police officer is brought out of suspended animation in prison to pursue an old ultra-violent nemesis who is loose in a non-violent future society.

Director: Marco Brambilla | Stars: Sylvester Stallone , Wesley Snipes , Sandra Bullock , Nigel Hawthorne

Votes: 193,199 | Gross: $58.06M

74. 100 Million BC (2008 Video)

R | 85 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A scientist leads a team of Navy SEALs back in time to the Cretaceous Period to rescue the first team he sent back during the 1940s. Things go wildly when he accidentally brings a giant dinosaur back into Los Angeles.

Director: Griff Furst | Stars: Michael Gross , Christopher Atkins , Greg Evigan , Marie Westbrook

Votes: 4,778

Trashy trash but surprisingly fun.

75. Moebius (1996)

88 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

A train on the Buenos Aires subway system suddenly vanishes.

Director: Gustavo Mosquera R. | Stars: Guillermo Angelelli , Roberto Carnaghi , Annabella Levy , Jorge Petraglia

Votes: 2,173

76. Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

PG-13 | 111 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

The Borg travel back in time intent on preventing Earth's first contact with an alien species. Captain Picard and his crew pursue them to ensure that Zefram Cochrane makes his maiden flight reaching warp speed.

Director: Jonathan Frakes | Stars: Patrick Stewart , Jonathan Frakes , Brent Spiner , LeVar Burton

Votes: 132,015 | Gross: $92.00M

77. Thrill Seekers (1999 TV Movie)

PG-13 | 88 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller

A reporter, learning of time travelers visiting 20th century disasters, tries to change the history they know by averting upcoming disasters.

Director: Mario Azzopardi | Stars: Casper Van Dien , Catherine Bell , Theresa Saldana , Peter Outerbridge

Votes: 2,744

78. Frequency (2000)

PG-13 | 118 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

An accidental cross-time radio link connects father and son across 30 years. The son tries to save his father's life, but then must fix the consequences.

Director: Gregory Hoblit | Stars: Dennis Quaid , Jim Caviezel , Shawn Doyle , Elizabeth Mitchell

Votes: 115,703 | Gross: $45.01M

79. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

PG | 142 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy

Harry Potter, Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for their third year of study, where they delve into the mystery surrounding an escaped prisoner who poses a dangerous threat to the young wizard.

Director: Alfonso Cuarón | Stars: Daniel Radcliffe , Emma Watson , Rupert Grint , Richard Griffiths

Votes: 691,141 | Gross: $249.36M

80. Slipstream (2005)

R | 89 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller

A scientist goes to a bank to meet a pretty bank teller. His time machine allows him to go 10 minutes back in time and correct his approaches to her. He's shadowed by two FBI agents and the bank gets robbed.

Director: David van Eyssen | Stars: Sean Astin , Vinnie Jones , Ivana Milicevic , Kevin Otto

Votes: 3,512

81. Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

R | 99 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi

A malfunctioning time machine at a ski resort takes a man back to 1986 with his two friends and nephew, where they must relive a fateful night and not change anything to make sure the nephew is born.

Director: Steve Pink | Stars: John Cusack , Rob Corddry , Craig Robinson , Clark Duke

Votes: 186,377 | Gross: $50.29M

Soon: Hot Tub Time Machine 2.

82. All Over Again (2001)

PG | 90 min | Drama

17 year old Z.T., a brilliant mind and solid athlete, dreams of a great college and a future of invention and innovation. But he still grieves over his mother's recent death, a shoulder ... See full summary  »

Director: Noah Knox Marshall | Stars: Ean Mering , Robert Loggia , Craig T. Nelson , John Amos

83. Click (2006)

A workaholic architect finds a universal remote that allows him to fast-forward and rewind to different parts of his life. Complications arise when the remote starts to overrule his choices.

Director: Frank Coraci | Stars: Adam Sandler , Kate Beckinsale , Christopher Walken , David Hasselhoff

Votes: 356,504 | Gross: $137.36M

84. Clockstoppers (2002)

PG | 94 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

A teenager accidentally activates a machine that enables him to speed up his body so that other people seem to be standing still.

Director: Jonathan Frakes | Stars: Jesse Bradford , French Stewart , Paula Garcés , Michael Biehn

Votes: 15,114 | Gross: $36.99M

85. Deja Vu (2006)

PG-13 | 126 min | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi

After a ferry is bombed in New Orleans, an A.T.F. agent joins a unique investigation using experimental surveillance technology to find the bomber, but soon finds himself becoming obsessed with one of the victims.

Director: Tony Scott | Stars: Denzel Washington , Paula Patton , Jim Caviezel , Val Kilmer

Votes: 327,459 | Gross: $64.04M

86. Freejack (1992)

R | 110 min | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi

Bounty hunters from the future transport a doomed race car driver to New York City in 2009, where his mind will be replaced with that of a dead billionaire.

Director: Geoff Murphy | Stars: Emilio Estevez , Mick Jagger , Rene Russo , Anthony Hopkins

Votes: 17,455 | Gross: $17.13M

87. Grand Tour: Disaster in Time (1991)

88. idiocracy (2006).

R | 84 min | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

Corporal Joe Bauers, a decidedly average American, is selected for a top-secret hibernation program but is forgotten and left to awaken to a future so incredibly moronic that he's easily the most intelligent person alive.

Director: Mike Judge | Stars: Luke Wilson , Maya Rudolph , Dax Shepard , Terry Crews

Votes: 182,010 | Gross: $0.44M

89. I'll Follow You Down (2013)

After the disappearance of a young scientist on a business trip, his son and wife struggle to cope, only to make a bizarre discovery years later - one that may bring him home.

Director: Richie Mehta | Stars: John Paul Ruttan , Rufus Sewell , Gillian Anderson , Kiara Glasco

Votes: 8,081

90. Journey to the Center of Time (1967)

Not Rated | 82 min | Sci-Fi

Hard-nosed new boss Stanton takes over a scientific research company upon the death of his benevolent father.

Director: David L. Hewitt | Stars: Scott Brady , Anthony Eisley , Gigi Perreau , Abraham Sofaer

91. Men in Black³ (2012)

PG-13 | 106 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

Agent J travels in time to M.I.B.'s early days in 1969 to stop an alien from assassinating his friend Agent K and changing history.

Director: Barry Sonnenfeld | Stars: Will Smith , Tommy Lee Jones , Josh Brolin , Jemaine Clement

Votes: 386,814 | Gross: $179.02M

92. My Future Boyfriend (2011 TV Movie)

73 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

An archaeologist from 1000 years in the future uncovers a romance novel written in our time. Curious, he journeys back to find out about this thing called "love" from the novel's author.

Director: Michael Lange | Stars: Sara Rue , Barry Watson , Fred Willard , Enisha Brewster

Votes: 2,417

93. Lost in Space (1998)

PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Family

The Robinson family was going into space to fight for a chance for humanity. Now they are fighting to live long enough to find a way home.

Director: Stephen Hopkins | Stars: Gary Oldman , William Hurt , Matt LeBlanc , Mimi Rogers

Votes: 74,846 | Gross: $69.12M

94. The Spirit of '76 (1990)

PG-13 | 82 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi

In 2176, a magnetic storm erases all recorded history, including the U.S. Constitution, so, three time travelers are sent back to July 4, 1776, to retrieve the heritage, but end up in 1976's Bicentennial, while being perceived as aliens.

Director: Lucas Reiner | Stars: Mark Mothersbaugh , Gerald Casale , Carl Reiner , Nancye Ferguson

95. Time Changer (2002)

PG | 95 min | Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

A Bible professor from 1890 comes forward in time to the present via a time machine and cannot believe the things that he sees!

Director: Rich Christiano | Stars: D. David Morin , Gavin MacLeod , Hal Linden , Jennifer O'Neill

Votes: 2,920 | Gross: $1.28M

96. Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann (1982)

PG | 94 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A maverick motorbike racer wanders into a top-secret time-travel research test site which unintentionally teleports him to the mid-1800s and ends up having to fight violent outlaws for his survival.

Director: William Dear | Stars: Fred Ward , Belinda Bauer , Peter Coyote , Richard Masur

Votes: 2,498

97. Timequest (2000)

R | 92 min | Sci-Fi

A story about a man who travels back in time to Fort Worth, Texas on November 22, 1963 and prevents the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Director: Robert Dyke | Stars: Victor Slezak , Caprice Benedetti , Vince Grant , Bruce Campbell

98. The Yesterday Machine (1965)

Not Rated | 85 min | Sci-Fi

A Nazi scientist invents a time machine enabling him to go back to alter the events of WWII.

Director: Russ Marker | Stars: Tim Holt , James Britton , Ann Pellegrino , Linda Jenkins

99. 13 Going on 30 (2004)

PG-13 | 98 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

Unpopular schoolgirl Jenna Rink makes an unusual wish on her birthday. Miraculously, her wish comes true and the 13-year-old Jenna wakes up the next day as a 30-year-old woman.

Director: Gary Winick | Stars: Jennifer Garner , Mark Ruffalo , Judy Greer , Andy Serkis

Votes: 216,626 | Gross: $57.23M

100. 17 Again (2009)

PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

Mike O'Donnell is ungrateful for how his life turned out. He gets a chance to rewrite his life when he tried to save a janitor near a bridge and jumped after him into a time vortex.

Director: Burr Steers | Stars: Zac Efron , Matthew Perry , Leslie Mann , Thomas Lennon

Votes: 216,257 | Gross: $64.17M

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