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Final Grade: F-

Ben Kingsley, you won an Oscar and you have been in some successful films lately. Why would you agree to a script like this? Shame on you Ed Burns, I used to have respect for you and your acting. I have said this many times, but this is the worst movie that I have ever seen.

It’s the year 2054 and Time Safari Inc. offers the rich and famous the opportunity of a lifetime. Clients are able to travel back in time to hunt dinosaurs. CEO Charles Hatton (Ben Kingsley) has employed the famed scientist Travis Ryer (Edward Burns) to lead the expeditions and the hunt. There are a few rules during time travel, such as do not change anything and don’t bring anything back. But when someone gets a little too ambitious and breaks the rules, bringing something from the past back to the present, the present begins to change for the worst.

Forewarned by ex Time Safari employee Sonia Rand (Catherine McCormack), Ryer realizes what has happened and races against time to stop the constantly evolving environment. Ryer and his team must figure out what was brought back from the past, and then travel back to prevent the mishap. While trekking through the streets of Chicago, they encounter highly evolved bloodthirsty plants and animals and must fight for the survival of all man-kind.

This movie is adapted from a short story by Ray Bradbury. Bradbury is considered the father of literary sci-fi by many, and I really have no idea why he would associate himself with a movie that butchers his work and his name. The screenplay adaptation of Bradbury’s story contains plot holes the size of my, never mind. The entire process of the time travel revolves around counting on several events happening in order. Within the span of 5 minutes, Ryer and his team wait for a T-Rex to approach and walk into a tar pit, and since he will die trapped in tar anyways the team shoots the dinosaur to his death. The team escapes into the time portal just before the 5 minute mark, when a volcanic eruption occurs. For instance, the supposed trigger of this evolutionary change was the death of a butterfly. The theory is that the butterfly never got to breed and create more life, thus triggering catastrophic evolutionary change. Wouldn’t the butterfly have died in the volcanic eruption anyways from the dust and debris? The other plot hole (pointed out on IMDB) is that if Ryer and his team travel to the same spot and time wouldn’t they constantly meet multiple versions of themselves?

The estimated budget for A Sound of Thunder was 52 million dollars; they clearly couldn’t have spent it on visual effects because the green screen effects and CG were barely better than most TV movies. Maybe 25 million was spent on Ed Burns, who used to show his skills in good movies like Saving Private Ryan, Confidence, or She’s The One. Maybe Oscar Winner Ben Kingsley also received 25 million for his role, which would be the only explanation for being associated with this movie. My guess is that another $50 was spent on a green screen, and the remainder of the cash was spent on god only knows.

This is simply one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Sadly, I wasted 103 minutes of my life that I can never get back. This is also one of the first DVD’s that I have seen in years which only include trailers. It causes one to wonder why they would not include any production diaries or featurettes. Could this be a hint? I would say so.

The Upside:
I didn’t spend any money to see this movie.
The Downside:
There are people out there that have spent money to see this movie
On The Side:
This film was originally set for release in 2003. One major reason for the film’s long delay is that the original production company went bankrupt during post-production, and there simply wasn’t money to finish the film.

Breaking Down the DVD:
The Film: F
The Delivery: F
The Extras: F

DVD Stats:
Release Date: March 28, 2006
Starring: Edward Burns, Ben Kingsley, Catherine McCormack
Directed by: Peter Hyams
Writing Credits: Ray Bradbury (short story) Thomas Dean Donnelly (screen story) Joshua Oppenheimer (screen story) Gregory Poirier (screenplay)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi violence, partial nudity, and language.
Country: USA
Run Time: 102 min.
Studio: Warner Brothers
Trailer: Click Here

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