奇幻新片《時空戀旅人》:真愛穿越之旅

If time travel were possible, what would you do? Visit a deceased family member? Correct past mistakes? Perhaps even change history a little bit?

　　如果可以穿越，你會做些什麼？看望已故的家人？糾正過去的錯誤？或是改變一下歷史？

Tim Lake (Domhnall Gleeson), the protagonist in the new romantic comedy About Time, uses his ability to travel back in time to find the love of his life.

　　最新浪漫喜劇《時空戀旅人》的主角蒂姆?雷克(多姆納爾?格里森飾)就利用時間穿梭的特異功能回到過去，尋找一生所愛。

The element of time travel in romantic dramas is certainly not new. Movies such as Kate & Leopold (2001), The Time Traveler’s Wife (2009) and Midnight in Paris (2011) are all based on premises taken right out of sci-fi fantasy. Only these films, in spirit, aren’t science-fiction — they’re closer to sweet fables of destiny.

穿越在愛情片中早已不是什麼新鮮元素。2001年上映的《隔世情緣》、2009年的《時間旅行者的妻子》以及2011年的《午夜巴黎》皆是將科幻情節搬到大銀幕上。但是，這些影片實質上並非科幻片——它們更像是美好的命運寓言。

About Time is also a film in that tradition. Tim comes from a nice, comfortable British family, and he has no serious worries, except for his luck with women. On his 21st birthday, his father (Bill Nighy) reveals a major secret: The men in their family have the ability to go back in time.

　　《時空戀旅人》也延續了這一慣例。蒂姆來自一個溫馨富足的英國家庭，儘管生活無憂無慮，但是愛情方面卻一直不走運。21歲生日那天，父親（比爾?奈伊 飾）告訴他一個天大的祕密：他們家族的男人具有穿越時空、回到過去的能力。

Soon, Tim gets his chance to work on the romance issue when he meets Mary (Rachel McAdams) in a restaurant. He “re-meets” her, perfecting their “chance” encounter. They fall in love, marry and have children.

　　很快，蒂姆在一家餐館邂逅了瑪麗（瑞秋?麥克亞當斯 飾），他終於有機會來塑造自己的愛情故事了。他穿梭時空回到過去，與瑪麗再次重逢，創造出了一次完美邂逅。他們雙雙墜入愛河，結婚生子。

It may sound cliched, but About Time has more than romance and comedy on its mind. “What keeps it from straying into cloying sitcom turf is the presence of real-life problems and issues, and the comforting and humorous manner in which director Richard Curtis tackles love, sorrow and death,” Claudia Puig writes in a review for USA Today.

　　儘管劇情聽起來可能有些老套，但是《時空戀旅人》並非只是一部愛情喜劇。克勞迪婭?普伊格在《今日美國》中評論道：“ 該片之所以並未落入情景喜劇的俗套，一則是因爲片中再現了一些現實生活中的問題，二來是由於導演理查德?柯蒂斯在處理愛情、悲傷與死亡等橋段時運用的治癒系幽默手法。”

To Curtis’ credit, the acclaimed screenwriter (Notting Hill) and director (Love Actually) finds a convincing mix in About Time, making the film feel grounded and authentic. “Time passes, Tim matures, his relationship stabilizes, and the film turns its focus to the whole of life, to other facets of love,” an NPR review says.

　　該片之所以大獲成功，自然也少不了柯蒂斯的功勞。在這位廣受讚譽的編劇（作品有《諾丁山》）兼導演（作品有《真愛至上》）的執導下，影片《時空戀旅人》的情節令人信服。美國國家公共電臺評論道：“隨着時間流逝，蒂姆逐漸成熟，戀情也穩定下來，該片着眼於人的一生以及愛情的其他側面。”

While time travel may give Tim the unique ability to go back and help friends and family in their struggles, Curtis also explores the limits of this gift — or, according to The New York Times’ review, “the inevitability of life’s end”, which gives the story more emotional weight.

　　雖然蒂姆擁有了穿越時空、回到過去的神奇能力，他能夠幫助朋友和家人擺脫困境，但導演柯蒂斯在電影中也探討了這種超能力的侷限性——即《紐約時報》影評中所提及的“人固有一死”，這爲該片增加了一絲傷感。

“About Time is about time,” the article says. “It asks us to reflect on how we all use that resource, how the hours and minutes that make up a day or a life align with our intentions and values.”

　　《紐約時報》在該篇文章中評論道：“《時空戀旅人》講述的是一個光陰的故事。讓我們反思如何去運用時間，如何將生命中的每一天、每一個分分秒秒同我們的目標與價值觀聯繫起來。”