Fresh and Exciting

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Low-end science-fiction adventure from American International, and just a wee bit insane. Story concerns three scientists in 1964 who, along with a joshing technician, find themselves in the strife-ridden future after their experiments in time travel have opened up a portal to the year 2071. Strictly a second-biller, though writer-director Ib Melchior manages to take his premise pretty far on not a lot of money. Earth life in the future is divided between the high-ranking officials and hard-working citizens who live underground and the war-mongering mutants outside--the educated haves and the primitives have-nots--and the conception of the underground city (while obviously restricted by finance) is interesting. The B-list cast isn't allotted much fun within this scenario, however, what with war breaking out and the interlopers from the 1960s potentially being left behind when Earth's finest board a rocket for a distant star. However, the solemnity actually works in the picture's favor: it has the markings of a cult film rather than a camp film. **1/2 from ****

American International Pictures produced this science fiction film about four time travelers to the future who wind up in a conundrum. Preston Foster, Philip Carey, Merry Anders, and Steve Franken are the four intrepid travelers without a TARDIS.What they have instead is a time portal, created quite accidentally because all they wanted was a window of the future in their university laboratory. Instead they get a portal and all step into a world over a 100 years in earth's future.As for earth it has been ravaged by atomic war and the survivors are either these advanced scientists, savage mutants, or something in between. The scientists led by John Hoyt, Joan Woodbury and Dennis Patrick are constructing a rocket to take the survivors on a pre-set course to a new earth in the Alpha Centauri system. Will they make it before the mutants invade their citadel and how will that effect The Time Travelers?This film will never be a classic in the genre, but it's not too bad and does raise some interesting questions especially with the conundrum ending that it has.At least Rod Taylor when he was time traveling had a much better machine.

An aged and out of shape Preston Foster leads a small group of scientists through a time portal into a future where nuclear war has decimated the Earth and the few humans left are holed up in a mountain stronghold. Outside, hostile mutants roam the arid wasteland. The concept is fine, and the acting passable, but the cardboard sets are from hunger. Irwin Allen, never one to pass up an opportunity, stole the basic elements of this Ib Melchior movie for his "Time Tunnel" TV show. It also appears to have strongly influenced certain "Star Trek" episodes. The main reason to watch this moldy oldie is to see the lovely Merry Anders wearing skintight jumpsuits and also doing a nude shower scene. Several other undressed and semi-dressed Hollywood starlets are in the shower scene with her. Shot in color, which is a good thing, and a pretty decent musical score helps a lot. Worth a look for what passed for a sci-fi flick in 1965. Big changes in the genre were only a few years off, of course..

American International Pictures had a reputation for turning out cheap sensational movies. But every once in a while they would spend money on a project to make a respectable movie and this is one of them. Ah, the days when independent stations would show movies like this Saturday afternoon or late Saturday nights. Many a rainy day was spent with a local host watching screen gems like this. An excellent and provocative movie from the 60's! One of the overlooked gems of sci-fi. It explored some real paradoxes and took some real risks--including an actual physically-challenged actor to play an atomic-scarred mutant. Watch for the scene where "Famous Monsters" editor Forrest Ackermann has a cameo. The screenplay was by Ib Melchior, who also did the excellent "Robinson Crusoe on Mars". This film concept, storyline and even direct dialog were later used to create the 1967 low budget film "Journey Through The Center of Time." While I have just rediscovered "Journey..." I had absolutely no idea that "TTT" existed, with "Journey..." even getting more theater exposure and later television airplay. I am a big fan of "Journey..." but I am also a HUGE fan of AIP, Sam Arkoff is my hero. It is rumored that this film was the basic idea for the Irwin Allen's TV show, "The Time Tunnel". I saw this film as a matinée item sometime in the mid-sixties, and of course never forgot it. Later at the Hollywood Egyptian theater around 2003, Steve Franken and director Ib Melchior hosted a screening and Q&A afterward. I should have been there to honor both of them. The film gave me a lot of entertainment. I recall the mutant attack on the androids, and one of them being beaten to a pulp. I'll look forward to getting the original length movie on DVD one day...