Summary
From slashers to comedies, 2024 continues to be a strong year forhorrormovies, and I’ve had fun checking out the latest releases, includingBlumhouse’s remake ofSpeak No Evil.There’s an upcomingNetflixhorror movie calledTime Cutthat also looks promising, but I have some thoughts about the plot and the main trope that it’s using.
Time CutstarsMadison Bailey asa teenage girl named Lucy Fields who travels back in time to stop her sister, played by Antonia Gentry, from being murdered.The two leads are strong actors who are both known for their main roles on Netflix shows. Bailey plays Kiara “Kie” Carrera onOuter Banksand Gentry plays Ginny Miller onGinny and Georgia, which is getting a third season. While I’m excited to check outTime Cut,I don’t always enjoy the way that the horror genre uses time travel tropes.
Why I Don’t Like The Time Travel Horror Trope Used In Movies Like Time Cut
My main problem with the time travel horror movie trope is that it often results ina movie that sags in the middle and doesn’t live up to the premise. The Amazon Prime Video horror movieTotally Killer, which has a great ending, suffers from this issue, and it seems possible thatTime Cutcould as well. In that film, Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) is 17 years old and finds herself back in 1987. When she realizes this, she realizes that she has the chance to save her mom from being murdered by a serial killer. While it’s interesting to learn about Jamie’s life in the present day along with the terror of what happened to her mother, the rest of the movie isn’t as engaging as it should be.
When a character goes back in time, the same thing usually happens. They’re shocked by the hairstyles and fashion they see and if they meet a teenage version of their mom or relative, they can’t believe how different they seem. These scenes are sweet, but they often leave me wanting more. While there are somegreat sci-fi movies about time travel,Totally Killerfocuses more on Jamie’s teenage mom than on Jamie herself. I wanted to learn more about her, and hope thatTime Cutdevelops each of its characters instead of just focusing on Lucy’s sister’s scary story.
The short-lived Prime seriesPaper Girlsuses time travel tropesbut makes some changes, which is why it was so well-crafted. While the show didn’t find a large audience, it was a great character study since it’s about teenagers meeting their future selves and learning how things worked out for them.This was a sharp and different take on the usual trope.Totally Killerused a time travel machine but didn’t offer up much of an explanation about why it worked. While I know that movies can’t give a full, proper explanation since time travel doesn’t actually exist, I always hope that we’ll get more information than we do. I’m not sure ifTime Cutwill tell us exactly how the machine works, but I hope it does.
Horror movies that usecommon time travel tropesalso have to wrestle with “The Butterfly Effect” or the fact that when you change even one thing in the past, the future shifts as well. I always want a more unique ending. I’ll definitely check outTime Cutand hope the movie will be funny or satisfying. But I do want something more than the typical time travel tropes.
What Else Should Horror Fans Know About Time Cut?
WhenTime Cutwas announced in 2021, it was described as"FreakymeetsScream,“according toJoBlo.com. Hannah MacPherson directed the movie and co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Kennedy based on a story by Michael Kennedy.Christopher Landon is a producerand he is known for his horror moviesFreaky,Happy Death Day, andHappy Death Day 2U. Whilefans hope forHappy Death Day 3, they can check outTime Cutas it will likely have the same heartwarming and entertaining yet creepy tone as Landon’s other movies.
In an interview withNatural Diamonds,Time Cutstar Madison Bailey talked about the upcoming horror movie and said:
“There’sTime Cut, which is a feel-good slasher movie, if that’s possible. We go back in time. There’s an aspect that’s just a story of two sisters and then there’s the slasher aspect. It’s a fun concept and I had a lot of fun shooting it.”
