The 12 Greatest Time Travel Films We Have Ever Watched

      Here are the 12 finest time travel films we've ever watched.

      The fascination with time travel in cinema is understandable, as it offers an experience that many of us may never achieve: filmmakers from the past narrating stories for future audiences. As the divide between creation and viewer expands, the significance of each film as a representation of its era increases.

      As people and locations fade away, films often serve as our most effective means to recall and immerse ourselves in times we may only vaguely remember, if at all.

      In a sense, every film is a time travel movie. However, the following selections explicitly revolve around characters transitioning from one time period to another.

      It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

      Donna Reed, Jimmy Stewart, and Karolyn Grimes in It’s a Wonderful Life. RKO Radio Pictures

      If you believe It’s a Wonderful Life isn’t a time travel film, we would ask: Why not? This somber holiday classic by Frank Capra follows George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart at his finest) as he revisits his past — or rather, an alternate version of his existence in which he was never born.

      Instead of altering the past, George must face the present, thereby influencing the future, much like we all do daily.

      While the multiverse idea is quite popular today, it’s interesting to note that It’s a Wonderful Life explored it long ago. Credit goes to Capra and co-writers Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, alongside Philip Van Doren Stern, who penned the story that inspired the film.

      The Time Machine (1960)

      When Morlocks attack: Yvette Mimieaux as Weena in The Time Machine. MGM

      Any conversation about time travel must acknowledge H.G. Wells’ influential 1895 novel The Time Machine.

      George Pal’s film adaptation depicts a future divided into two classes wherein humans have evolved into Eloi and Morlocks. The submissive, herbivorous Eloi appear to live a pleasant life — above ground, no less.

      However, this idyllic existence is deceptive, as it becomes evident that the Eloi (including Yvette Mimieaux as Weena) serve as mere livestock for the resentful Morlocks, who occasionally emerge from their underground lairs to prey on their pampered relatives.

      The Time Machine is a profound time travel film that has inspired many entries on this list and offers relevant social commentary.

      La Jetée (1962)

      Hélène Châtelain in La Jetée. Argos Films.

      Chris Marker’s La Jetée introduces itself as “the story of a man marked by an image from his childhood”— a violent memory witnessed “before World War III.”

      He learns to understand it through repeated experiences in a time loop portrayed almost entirely through still photographs. His connection to the past revolves around a woman (Hélène Châtelain, above) he once met at the observation platform, or jetty, of Paris’ Orly Airport.

      With its purposeful repetition, monochrome visuals, and disconcerting atmosphere — we witness the past's forecast of our potential future, which feels both antiquated and surpassing — La Jetée is captivating.

      Time After Time (1979)

      Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen in Time After Time. Warner Bros.

      Nicholas Meyer’s Time After Time boasts one of the most intriguing premises of any movie. Heavily influenced by The Time Machine, it kicks off in Victorian London, where Jack the Ripper (Dr. John Leslie Stevenson, played by David Warner) has just committed another murder.

      He joins a gathering at H.G. Wells’ (Malcolm McDowell) residence, where Wells reveals his somewhat hesitantly crafted time machine.

      As police close in, Stevenson escapes to the future using the machine, and H.G. follows. They arrive in 1979 San Francisco, where the out-of-place Stevenson adapts oddly well to the era's violence, while the gentle H.G. tries to prevent him from killing again.

      Assisting him is bank employee Amy (Mary Steenburgen), who becomes Jack’s target. While the climax may be a bit lacking, the film is brimming with thoughtful moments and enjoyable interactions.

      In a charming behind-the-scenes twist, Steenburgen and McDowell fell in love and married for a decade.

      The Terminator (1984)

      Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn in The Terminator. Orion Pictures. – Credit: C/O

      When the budget-conscious Terminator debuted in 1984, some viewers dismissed it as a mindless, violent action film about a murderous robot.

      While it certainly stands as one of the most entertaining killer robot films ever, it also presents one of the most inventive interpretations of time travel.

      In The Terminator’s universe, time travel resembles an unavoidable cycle that spans calendar years: Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) is sent back to save Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) so that she can give birth to