Clockstoppers (2002)

Director:

Jonathan Frakes

Writers (WGA):

Rob Hedden (story) &
Andy Hedden (story) ...

Release Date:

29 March 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The adventure of a lifetime, in a few mere seconds.

Plot:

A teenager accidentally activates a machine that enables him to speed up his body so that other people seem to be standing still.

Plot Keywords:

Teenager | Time Manipulation | Watch | Foreign Agent | One Word Title

Cast

Jesse Bradford	...	Zak Gibbs
French Stewart	...	Dr. Earl Dopler
Paula Garcés	...	Francesca
Michael Biehn	...	Henry Gates
Robin Thomas	...	Dr. Gibbs
Garikayi Mutambirwa	...	Meeker
Julia Sweeney	...	Jenny Gibbs
Lindze Letherman	...	Kelly Gibbs
Jason Winston George	...	Richard
Linda Kim	...	Jay
Ken Jenkins	...	NSA Agent Moore
Esperanza Catubig	...	Ticket Agent
Jennifer Manley	...	Security Officer
Scott Thomson	...	Tourist Dad
Deborah Rawlings	...	Tourist Mom

Also Known As:

Clockstoppers (Argentina) (video title) (Spain) [es]
Ajanpysäyttäjät (Finland) [fi]
Clockstoppers (Germany) (DVD title) [de]
Clockstoppers (Denmark) (video title) [da]
Clockstoppers (Finland) (DVD box title) [fi]
Clockstoppers (Greece) (DVD title) [el]
Clockstoppers - O Filme (Brazil) [pt]
Clockstoppers: Detener el tiempo (Spain) [es]
Les horlogers du temps (Canada: French title) [fr]
Time Machine (Japan: English title) (video title) [en]
Top chronos (France) [fr]
Zamani durduranlar (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]

MPAA:

Rated PG for action violence and mild language.

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate #38491) | Iceland:12 | Australia:PG | Netherlands:6 | Finland:K-11 | Argentina:Atp | Brazil:Livre | Canada:PG | France:U | Germany:12 | Norway:11 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Long Beach, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The plot was inspired by two earlier stories. The first, H.G. Wells' "The New Accelerator" (1901) about a scientist who develops a drug enabling him to move so fast that no-one can see him. From his viewpoint, everyone else is frozen in time. The second inspiration, a 1963 episode of "The Twilight Zone" titled "A Kind Of Stopwatch" in which an irritating little man is given a stopwatch which allows him to freeze everyone else in time while he cam move normally.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Zak presses the button on the watch and shock-wave is sent through the environment, it is only he who should be affected by the watch.

Quotes:

Kelly: May I borrow some money?
Zak: "Let's see... make new car payment? Or lend money to Satan?

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror XIV (#15.1)" (2003)

Soundtrack:

Quicksand

Although Being a Screenplay Full of Flaws, It Entertains

Zak Gibbs (Jesse Bradford) is a teenager, son of Dr. Gibbs (Robin Thomas), a brilliant scientist. He wants to buy a car, but the attention of his father is to his own research work. Zak likes Francesca (Paula Graces), a new student from Venezuela. One day, Zak finds by accident a watch developed by Earl Dopler (French Stewart), a former student of Dr. Gibbs, with capability of accelerating time. Henry Gates (Michael Biehn), the villain of the story, stole this research and wants to make lots of money with this device. Zak and Francesca will face lots of adventures due to this finding. The screenplay of this film has lots of flaw, but anyway it entertains. There are lots of inconsistency in the story, but if the viewer do not pay attention to these details, may have some fun. The special effects are very reasonable. Teenagers are certainly the public-target of this movie. My vote is six.