"For a Few to be Immortal, Many Must Die" - In Time

It is an interesting topic – living forever.  We all have said at one point or another we want the fountain of youth to bless us with eternal beauty and life.  But what would living forever mean? You would see history happen right before your eyes – and see it written in history books for children to read during school.  If you had been living forever, you could have seen the curse start for the Red Sox in 1918 and then get broken in 2004.  And again in 2007.  But what it would it mean?  By living forever, you don’t like a day in your life. If you live forever, what makes tomorrow so special.  The people in District 12 have it better than the rich – they have to make very moment, every second count.

In Time, starring Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried, is set in 2161 where a genetic alteration has allowed humanity to stop aging past age 25.  But people are required to earn more time in order to stay alive past age 25 or their time runs out and they die.  Time is the new currency and can be transferred by body contact.  The US is made up of districts which simulate social class living situations. Will (Timberlake) likes in District 12 the farthest from New Greenwich where the wealthy live forever.  He meets a rich man in District 12 that should not be there. The man, Henry Hamilton (Matt Bomer) explains to Will that “for few to be immortal, many must die.”  Will doesn’t want to understand what Henry means so while Will is asleep, Henry transfer his remaining years (116 years) to Will and goes to die.  Will doesn’t know what to do until he fails to give his mother more time to take the bus home and she dies just as he reaches her, before he can give her any more time.  His mind set changes and he understands what Henry meant and vows revenge on the people in New Greenwich.  Enter Sylvia (Seyfried) who Will meets at a party in New Greenwich and takes her captive to escape custody (as he was charged with stealing time).  So begins his adventure to find the truth – even though there is a lot of time to sell to keep the truth hidden.

Besides living forever and its consequences and moral implications, the theme of the wealthy versus the middle class is seen throughout the movie – the wealthy can buy as much time as they want and the middle class have to scrape around to survive.  The wealthy live in luxury, surrounded by the finest in clothes, food, games, cars that time can buy.  The middle class don’t have enough time to afford those luxuries but they see luxuries as food, companionship, family and staying alive for 1 more day. No matter what the theme is, it always circles back to living for the moment.

As much as Justin Timberlake is not an actor, this movie suits him.  He seems to enjoy himself in the movie and does not seem as uptight or stiff.  It seems he is coming into his own as an actor.  He will never win an academy award or a golden globe but he isn’t the worst actor in the world.  Seyfried keeps amazing people with every role she takes on. She has come a long way from being a ditsy high school mean girl and really solidified herself as a serious actress.  Her ability to take on a role in any genre makes her marketable and easy to use in any setting.

What would you do if you could live forever?  This writer would probably live forever, completely naïve to the fact that I wouldn’t be living for the moment but just living, existing.  I would be afraid of death.  But after a while, my mind might get tired even if my body doesn’t. And as Henry told Will, “we want to die. We need to.”  It is natural.  It is the course of life.