This science fiction thriller is set in the year 2169 and people are genetically engineered to stop aging at 25 with one year allotted after that.

Rating: 7/10 (2 November 2013)

This science fiction thriller is set in the year 2169 and people are genetically engineered to stop aging at 25 with one year allotted after that. If they don't keep their time replenished, they are susceptible to "time out" after they use up all their time. Time is used as a means of currency for the world. The main character is Will Salas, played by Justin Timberlake, and he works in a factory as a way to earn a living in the ghetto, literally. He comes in contact with a girl named Sylvia Wise, played by Amanda Seyfried who lives in a rich neighborhood called New Greenwich, and they run off together. They are up against time and struggle to stay alive. Both have come to the understanding that the rich is stealing time from the poor. The basis of the movie becomes: only the strong will survive.
The theme for In Time focuses on ideas. Will and Sylvia represent figures from two different aspects of life but still, in time, come to trust, need, and help one another as well as others in the film. In a particular scene, Will asks Sylvia to give allow him to borrow some time and she refuses. Fast forward a few scenes, Sylvia becomes the one who is almost out of time and asks Will for some time and he obliges. The mood in the film which the director is trying to display is compassion and understanding for those around us who are from different social classes. The film also displays the struggle for human dignity because Will truly does believe that everyone should be given the opportunity to survive, regardless of their status in life. Through his determination to emphasize this he displays courage, sensitivity, intelligence, and strong individualism as mentioned in The Art of Watching Films written by Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie. (p. 27) The movie is similar to another sci-fi flick, After Earth. The main character was given a few skills to survive, but beyond those skills he had to figure it out to make sure that the rest of the world didn't die as a result of his mistake. He portrayed many of the same characteristics as Will Salas.
The movie had a few other plot points within the man plot. One in particular involves the fact that the ghetto is always being watched by video surveillance. This is true in modern day society. The ghetto represents people who will steal from one another which are represented by the Minutemen; they will kill each other, and go to great lengths to survive. Due to this fact there are always police, represented as Time Keepers, lurking around to catch criminals. The separation of time zones between the ghetto and New Greenwich is also a reality. Such as the rich are separated from those who are poor by different suburbs, housing communities, lifestyles, and social classes. Deep into the movie we come to an understanding of why prices are steadily increasing on a daily basis. The rich are trying to kill off the poor to make space for themselves. The movie also weaves in a romance between Sylvia and Will to show that they are human and have emotions that don't rely on the time they have allotted.
Two techniques that were used in the movie are motifs and lighting. Throughout the film we see each character look at a digital clock on their forearm. The clock represents how much time they have. We see and hear the clock as time adds up, is taken away, or is cleared off and becomes the end of a person's life. There is great emphasis put on the clock because it allows us to see what that person is worth and we see how precious it is to each character. The lighting in this film is great in the fact that there are great scenes when the low-key lighting helps us to understand the mood of the scene. During these moments there is usually a struggle or fight and we only see the defining moments needed to interpret what is happening.