The 12 Most Exciting Time Travel Films We've Ever Watched

      Happy New Year! Let's ring in the year by looking back at the 12 most fascinating time travel films we've ever encountered.

      The film industry's fascination with time travel is understandable, as movies may be the closest many of us will get to that concept: creators from the past crafting narratives for future audiences. As the separation between creation and viewers expands, each film becomes a time capsule of its era.

      As individuals and locations fade from existence, films can serve as our most effective means to recall them and immerse ourselves in periods that we might only vaguely remember, if at all.

      In this sense, every film is a type of time travel story. However, the films listed here explicitly focus on characters moving from one time period to another.

      It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

      Featuring Donna Reed, Jimmy Stewart, and Karolyn Grimes, It’s a Wonderful Life is often overlooked as a time travel film. Yet how can it not be? Frank Capra's poignant Christmas classic showcases George Bailey (a stellar Jimmy Stewart) as he revisits his past — or, more accurately, a version of his life where he never existed.

      Instead of altering past events, George must endure his present and in doing so, influence his future—much like we all strive to do daily.

      It's noteworthy that while the multiverse idea is popular today, It’s a Wonderful Life explored this concept long ago, thanks to Capra and co-writers Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, along with Philip Van Doren Stern, who crafted the story that inspired the film.

      The Time Machine (1960)

      Every discourse on time travel must acknowledge H.G. Wells’ 1895 book, The Time Machine, one of the most significant narratives ever.

      George Pal’s adaptation reveals a future divided into two classes, where humanity has evolved into the Eloi and Morlocks. The seemingly carefree, vegetarian Eloi enjoy a peaceful life above ground.

      However, things take a sinister turn when we realize the Eloi, including Yvette Mimieaux as Weena, are essentially livestock for the resentful Morlocks, who occasionally emerge from hiding to prey on their affluent counterparts.

      The Time Machine is not only a remarkable time travel film that has inspired many others listed here but is also a compelling critique of society.

      La Jetée (1962)

      In Chris Marker’s La Jetée, audiences are informed that they are witnessing “the tale of a man forever marked by an image from his childhood”—a haunting memory from “before World War III.”

      He comes to terms with it only by reliving it in a loop depicted primarily through still photographs. His connection to the past involves a woman (Hélène Châtelain, pictured above) he once met at Paris’ Orly Airport’s observation platform, or jetty.

      Through its intent repetition, monochrome imagery, and unsettling ambiance—depicting a past envisioning a possible future that feels both archaic and transcendent—La Jetée is captivating.

      Time After Time (1979)

      Nicholas Meyer’s Time After Time features one of cinema’s most engaging premises. Drawing inspiration from The Time Machine, it opens in Victorian London, just after Jack the Ripper (Dr. John Leslie Stevenson, portrayed by David Warner) has committed a murder.

      He joins a gathering at the residence of his friend H.G. Wells (Malcolm McDowell), who reveals a time machine he is hesitant to utilize.

      When authorities close in, Stevenson escapes to the future via the time machine, with H.G. trailing behind. They find themselves in 1979 San Francisco, where out-of-place Stevenson easily adapts to the era's violence, while gentle H.G. attempts to prevent further mayhem.

      With the help of bank worker Amy (Mary Steenburgen), who becomes Jack's new target, the story builds toward a somewhat underwhelming conclusion. However, the thoughtfulness and joy throughout make it more than worthwhile.

      In a charming twist, Steenburgen and McDowell fell in love during production and were married for a decade thereafter.

      The Terminator (1984)

      Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn star in The Terminator, which, when it premiered in 1984, some dismissed as a mindless, violent film about a killing machine.

      While it indeed stands as one of the finest killer robot movies ever, it also proposes an intriguing interpretation of time travel.

      In The Terminator’s universe, time travel unfolds like an inevitable cycle transcending years: Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) is sent back to safeguard Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) so she can bear John, humanity's savior in a dystopian future rife with machines. Curiously, Kyle becomes John's father—who ultimately sends him back in time.

      Brilliantly circular.

      Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

      Yes, both Terminator films make the list, as the concept of an inevitable loop intensifies in T2 when