The Butterfly Effect (2004) User Reviews

Wow. What a film

[danielmanson · 9/10 · 5 December 2020]

Okay, so after years of just hearing about this film and not seeing it (I have no excuses) I finally put it on. And wow, it's an absolutely fantastic film.

Ill start by giving my reason why I haven't watched for so long and that's because I was told it was really complicated and confusing. And I'll be honest, 10 minutes into this film I was completely out of whack. I had absolutely no idea what's happening. But after around half an hour or so it becomes really apparent what's happening and the story just becomes more and more interesting. So if you're worried about complexity of the plot. Don't, you'll be fine.

The ending as well I liked. You honestly don't know how this film will end, I was 10 minutes from the film ending and I still didn't know what was going to go down. But it's done really nicely and closes off any unanswered questions. Watching films like Donny Darko you end up confused by the end and have several questions whereas this doesn't have this and I prefer that. (Donny Darko is great by the way, I was just giving an example).

Beyond that I thought the acting was really good, the managed to pull off good character development and the changes of memory were quite obvious so there wasn't any overlapping or confusion on what you were watching.

It's just overall an absolutely fantastic film and I highly recommend watching this if you haven't done so already.

How Kelso lost his mind.

[Jonathon_Natsis · 8/10 · 25 July 2011]

Every so often we all seem to move away from the usual nothings we talk about amongst our friends, and instead get into a deeply philosophical conversation about the workings of Chaos Theory and the existence of parallel universes. No? Okay, just me then. In any case, this discussion just the other day led to a friend recommending The Butterfly Effect, a film that puts both a stylistic and sinister spin on the idea that even the mere flapping of a butterfly's wings can result in drastic changes in another place or time. Being initially sceptical because of the generally negative reaction from critics, I was certainly not disappointed by film's end.

Ashton Kutcher couldn't be more different that his concurrent role as the dimwitted Kelso from That '70s Show in his lead performance as Evan Treborn, a man who has suffered blackouts since his childhood, and realises that he can access and relive vital gaps in his memory through the help of other sources like journals or images. He uses this skill to, in his eyes, right the wrongs of the past. Namely, injustices that were performed upon his friends Lenny and Tommy and only love Kayleigh (Amy Smart). What he doesn't realise is that the changes he thinks are made for the better actually result in a severely changed future that threatens his own life.

Without trying to sound like a sadist, The Butterfly Effect excels in presenting a consistently dark, melancholy atmosphere. Indeed, there is hardly a happy moment in the entire film, although that may be untrue depending on which ending you watch (more on that later). Any event that looks as if it might provide a slim ray of hope for Evan to make things right is quickly dashed by a sudden escalation of the plot, maintaining the viewer's interest the whole way through. The film doesn't shy away from heavy subject matter either, including prostitution, murder, paedophilia and drug use, all of which culminates in an enjoyably gritty, underground tone.

Positively, the menacing nature of the movie isn't weighed down by comic relief. I suppose when many of us think of this sort of plot, we first think of the Simpsons Halloween special when Homer invents the time-travelling toaster. Not knowing quite how dark the film would turn out to be, I was concerned The Butterfly Effect would go down a similar path, in which Evan keeps returning to the present to find that all humans have grown wings or Pauly D has become President. Instead, any changes are limited to the persona of the characters, rather than altering the physical environment, which was definitely the professional path to take.

The pacing is another strength. For a film that comes in well under two hours, directors Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber deserve credit for packing a lot in, and doing it well. Certainly, some thrillers benefit from slow-moving scenes to draw suspense (the superb Eyes Wide Shut, for example) but Butterfly manages to combine compounding urgency with engaging character development in constructing a fast-moving film that requires both thought and stamina to decipher, without being needlessly confusing.

Oddly, the film possesses four different final scenes, and so the lasting message of the movie may differ depending on the copy viewed. My favourite ending is the 'official' one applied to the theatrical release. It is satisfying, yet open-ended, as is the case with its alternate cut. Another is uncharacteristically upbeat and illogical, perhaps suggested in the editing room as a way of appeasing confused screen-test viewers. But if you really want to get down to brass tax, go with the Director's Cut: a far more morbid conclusion with a surreal twist. Intrigued? Don't let me stop you.

*There's nothing I love more than a bit of feedback, good or bad. So drop me a line on [e-mail] and let me know what you thought of my review.*

Mindf@ck film just like they should be

[kowloonzai · 8/10 · 27 July 2012]

I seldom come out and write movie reviews in IMDb but I felt this one deserved some effort from me. I don't recall any movie which made me shiver thinking about what was gonna come next when I hit pause to go for a pee or any other reason. This one is really something. There is a "Lost Highway" feel to it and the themes are closely related but...The Butterfly effect is in fact more complex.It is a really disturbing movie, not so much for what it shows, but for what it keeps you guessing - like all true thriller masterpieces - , about events that take or might take place, and above all, about human sanity and the subtle twist there is between the average Joe's walk of life and outright perversion. Requires multiple - rewarding - viewings.

Outstanding !

[desire_911 · 9/10 · 2 August 2008]

First of all, a fair warning to EVERYONE... this movie is NOT for all audiences. The "R" rating was very well earned in this one; you'll be thinking about how seriously twisted the movie dares to go LONG after you leave.

If you are mature enough to get past the fact that this movie introduces themes that most movies nowadays are too hesitant to venture into, this movie is a beautiful and moving piece of art.

I, like maybe most everyone that went to see it, went off of the trailer that it was just another "going back in time to change the future" movie, which has been done before.

This one is COMPLETELY different.

The Butterfly Effect starts actually in the early stages of each character's life, which I think is effective. You don't really see Ashton Kutcher or Amy Smart until about 30 minutes into the movie, and just when you think the movie won't get any more sick and twisted... you figure out what's ACTUALLY going on during Evan's childhood blackouts.

Every character is built from the ground up, and they maintain true to the plot, even if their roles get switched up a bit.

Some might say that special effects weren't really needed for this movie, but its the special effects that make this all believable.

Every actor in this movie pulls off their parts just right (I feel sorry for the kid that plays Tommy.. I won't throw a spoiler - see it!), and they all come together to make a masterpiece. I was surprised this movie got so many bad reviews.

If you throw the fact that time-travel isn't possible, and that there will always be obvious plot holes in a movie such as this one, and are ready for an emotional roller coaster (you'll either cry or grimace about twice the amount of times you crack a smile), go see this beautiful movie.

Entertainment: 9.0/10

Overall score: 9.5/10

What if there's an alternate life for you somewhere, out there, where the cumulative sum of your choices leads to a better reality, a happier and more fulfilling existence?

[saarvardi · 10/10 · 28 July 2007]

What if you could go back to major junctions in your life and take the other path? What if there's an alternate life for you somewhere, out there, where the cumulative sum of your choices leads to a better reality, a happier and more fulfilling existence? On the flip-side - what if, at the end of the day, you really can't achieve a solid grip on these things, no matter how hard you try?

A great deal of science fiction works of art have tried to approach these meaningful questions throughout the years, all presenting many philosophical ideas and notions as to how one man can change his own fate, for better or for worse. In this surprisingly good sci-fi adventure from 2004, directors Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber (who are also behind the screenplay of Final Destination 2) raise all these questions once again, but use a different angle this time around. Time travel is not the issue here. Instead, our lead protagonist, Evan Treborn (portrayed by Hollywood prankster Ashton Kutcher – but more on that later) leads his whole life up until his early 20's without knowing he has a rare medical condition that seemingly helps him shut away traumatic incidents that occurred throughout his childhood and adolescence years. All he remembers from these various occasions are bizarre blackouts. But when a blast from his past comes back into his life only to leave it ever so tragically (Kayleigh Miller, portrayed by the lovely Amy Smart who we've since seen in films such as Just Friends and Crank), Evan learns that he can return to those important lost moments in his life and re-inhabit his younger body, thus changing the present and future. However, with every shift in the past comes an alternate present that may seem better at first, but is in fact a far harsher reality than the original one Evan has left.

What truly touched me about this film was the essence in which it captured the troublesome youth of my generation, that was born in the 1980's, grew up in the 1990's, and is ever since trying to adapt to the ever changing reality in which we all live in. Here, one man tries to alter all this, and his own personal journey is parallel in many ways to the journey many young people go through nowadays. Part of capturing this Generation X notion is the pop-culture presented throughout the film. When you see the young actors and actress fall in love, fight, and grow up real fast, it all happens amidst references to films of the period (Se7en, etc.), outfits, 1980's technology and other devices that fill you up with an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia and sentiment, as if you were there yourself, living these events and going through all these horrible/wonderful events.

Above all things, the makers of The Butterfly Effect do the unbelievable and turn Ashton Kutcher into a good actor – a feat I thought was unachievable at best. However, in this sci-fi epic it appears as though anything is possible. Bottom line, it was a fresh breath of air when I saw it, left me pondering for days, and gave me the inspiration and write something myself after a long period of writers block. If a film manages to be this inspirational and keep you on the edge of your seat throughout its 113 minutes duration, all I can do is humbly bow down in front of its makers' talents. I'm eagerly waiting for other outings by these young folks.

Surprisingly a great movie

[christian123 · 7/10 · 14 November 2004]

Ashton Kutcher plays Evan Treborn, a troubled man who suffered blackouts as a child. When he discovers a way to travel back into the body of his past self, his time trips start to cause negative results on his present. As he uses his powers to try to fix his past and present, the effect escalates, creating alternate realities, many of which are worse than the past that he is trying to change.

The Butterfly Effect is a terrific thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. The previews looked very intense and the whole film is pretty much like that. It held onto the audience right at the start and it didn't let go until the end. The plot is nothing new but the execution was very nice. It offers a bunch of interesting and unpredictable twists so it's hard to see where things are going. The whole film is like that, just one long engaging thrill ride.

The acting is okay, some people did better than others. Ashton Kutcher is surprisingly good as Evan and he does a good job for his first serious movie. Amy Smart is very pretty and talented and she plays Kayleigh perfectly. The only person I didn't really like was Melora Walters. She was pretty wooden and unconvincing. Besides for her, the acting was pretty good and convincing. No one really did a bad job.

This film was directed and written by both Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber. They did make their mistakes but the film is still pretty good. The critics never gave this movie a chance. As soon as they heard Ashton Kutcher was in it, they all prepared to give it thumbs down. The movie moves around a lot that its hard to keep up but it also keeps you paying attention. Plenty of movies have gone back in time before but this one does it so more effectively that its almost original in that sense. The beginning is done well, the middle it starts dragging but it starts picking up and the ending is done extremely well. This is one of the best films of 2004 and certainly an entertaining one. In the end, this underrated gem is worth checking out. Rating 8/10

A Real Tripped Out Roller Coaster

[view_and_review · 8/10 · 7 January 2005]

Man... Whew... Wow! I'm at a loss of words to describe this high octane, tantalizing, brain-stimulating movie. The acting: excellent. The plot: superb. The story: great. The drama/suspense: mind numbing.

How the writers were able to put this story together so flawlessly, I don't know, and how the director was able to actualize it, even more amazing. There was plenty of visual stimuli as well as mental stimuli as you waited to see the outcome of each alteration made by the main character, Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher).

The movie kept me guessing and kept me at the edge of my seat, and the writers outdid themselves by making sure the movie didn't peter out with some lame ending. The ending was icing on the cake and it capped what should be a classic.

Haunting, Tragic, but ultimately Brilliant

[doner_morferelli · 25 January 2004]

I have seen this movie just a few hours ago and i have to say that it is brilliantly conceived. Definately not a feel good film, but rather dark and tragic in every sense of the word. Yes the performances were above and beyond etc etc... and it helped, but the film itself is an emotionally provacative piece of work that had me feeling sad, morose and depressed. Nonetheless i think that this makes it a very powerful film to evoke such strong feelings while watching it. It is, for lack of a better term, very human. On a different note there were also many complexities to do with chaos theory inderlying the raw emotional turmoil that the characters endure such as time travel, alternate universes and such, but rather than rely on these interesting ideas and theories to carry the movie, it is instead simply used as a background setting for an incredible story. I loved it for what it is, but not something you see to be entertained. See this movie but don't take your family.

One good turn....

[glamslamking1 · 7/10 · 7 February 2005]

This movie received WAY too many bad reviews. The only reason was to PUNK Ashton Kutcher. Say what you will, Kutcher did a fair to midland acting job here. There have been a lot worse performances on film in much better reviewed movies. I tell you, you will NOT be disappointed watching the Director's cut Alternate ending. It is a story of how one action causes a series of reactions...no matter the intentions, be careful what you wish for. This film's biggest mistake was promoting it in the horror genre. It is NOT! It is a nice dark fantasy film, nothing more, nothing less. There are 2 different endings, with 2 different meanings for me. I preferred the Alternate ending in lieu of the Theatrical ending. A great "popcorn" movie. Don't believe the (bad)Hype!

See it more than once!

[daugaard4 · 10/10 · 4 January 2005]

The film has never been showed in Denmark, (where I come from) so the press has never reviewed it. It took me 2 times to get the point but when I realized every part of the film, I felt a huge rush! I'm sure when I see it the 3rd time it will be an even bigger experience to me. Every part of the film plays an important role to the main thread. Every details have a role! The film is like reading a poem from the 18th century, where every sentence means something. The director is a pure genius! Those who've criticized the film, should really see it again, because you'll then notice all the details which makes this film excellent! Without a doubt one of the best films I've seen!

Like swiss cheese - tasty but full of holes.

[sikobabel · 6/10 · 7 July 2004]

I should state up front that this review is for the director's cut.

To put it bluntly, this movie suffers from having a smart heart and a stupid brain. Any movie like this requires the viewer to suspend disbelief. In doing so the storytellers have the option to establish replacement rules to govern the universe they've created. This movie sets up well, giving the main character (Evan) blackouts which it will fill in later. However, once Evan ventures into his past to 'fill in' the empty spaces, the movie begins to contradict itself. This would be excusable if it was a lighter, more amusing movie. But this is far from light material. It is extremely morbid. The audience is bombarded with this darkness, which attempts to engage us, to give us something deeper. Unfortunately, it doesn't take much digging before you get frustrated.

For me, there are two particularly frustrating aspects to this film:

First, the tagline of this movie is "change one thing, change everything". As such, I expected that when Evan goes back to change something, everything from that point forward will be different. In other words, if Evan has ten blackouts, and goes back to visit the fifth one, then all the following blackouts would either vanish or be completely different. Instead, the blackouts are always the same. Evan jumps around to whatever blackout is convenient. However, this betrays the movie's central concept. This could have been fixed with a more careful storyline, where the blackouts were visited in reverse order.

The second frustrating aspect is the gross simplifications in Evan's revised histories. When Evan goes back and changes over a decade of history, the effects of his change are summed up far too easily and conveniently, almost as if the other people are all in on some cruel joke being played on Evan. I understand that this is done to keep the pace moving, but again the central theme of "change one thing, change everything". But even after multiple changes, a lot of the world stays pretty much the same.

Comparisons to Donnie Darko are inevitable. Donnie Darko was a superior film in this regard because it did not make the mistake of laying down ground rules and then breaking them. Instead, it hides the rules from the audience and leaves them up for discussion. As a result, you have a much more interesting conversation piece. The Butterfly Effect essentially outsmarts itself by trying too hard.

For some, my comments may seem like cynical over-thinking. This movie has a lot of polish on it to make it look good, and if you want to keep your brain turned off, you may enjoy it considerably. Some people may not like Ashton Kutcher and discredit the movie based on that, but honestly I thought his performance was far more convincing than the script itself.

Like I said before, this movie does have a smart heart. It tries very very hard to bring something interesting to the table. The setup and ending are good, but the path between is too dark for its own good and ultimately a mess of contradictions. 6 out of 10.

Buy the Director's Cut and watch ONLY this version

[fandago2003 · 10/10 · 12 November 2007]

OK it's a bit to late to write a comment about this movie but let me tell you about it. Don't by any means watch the theatrical version!!! The first time I watched the movie was when I rented the Director's cut version. I was fascinated, really stunned by this movie. It kept me wondering why I haven't heard of that movie before and the answer was that people didn't see the Director's cut but the Theatrical version instead. Oh yes there are no similarities between those versions. The theatrical version is a light version if you like, a version at the end of which you will say "well OK nice movie", but(!!!!) the Director's cut gives the real meaning of the movie. It changes the whole idea, it adds new scenes and omits others, it changes the whole movie with a new outstanding ending and the plot in general is more concrete!!! I won't say anymore so jump to the Director's cut at once and if by any chance the TV broadcasts the theatrical version just change the channel!!!

Promises more than it delivers

[kylopod · 6/10 · 28 October 2005]

If we want to analyze where this movie fails, we can look no further than the title. It alludes to a popular metaphor in chaos theory, the idea that a butterfly flapping its wings could cause a storm on the other side of the world. It also draws heavily on Ray Bradbury's classic short story in which the entire history of mankind is affected by someone stepping on an insect.

Based on this background, you'd think this movie would be about how tiny, trivial events can have monumental, unpredictable consequences. I would have liked to see a film that truly addresses this possibility, since most time-travel movies ignore it. In "Back to the Future," for example, I could never believe that Marty would ever be able to set the past straight after his initial interference. Just his setting foot in the 1950s ought to have threatened his existence. Why? It's quite simple. Even though his parents will get married to each other, how can he be sure they'll have the same kids? "Back to the Future" set the standard for the genre by narrowing the scope of possible changes when dealing with time paradoxes.

The main problem with "The Butterfly Effect" is that it doesn't transcend this level but simply thinks that it does. Take the scene where Kutcher tries to stop the exploding mailbox. The chain reaction of events that result from this act may be drastic, but there is nothing unpredictable about it. He affects a crucial event in his life and the result is a straightforward, logical consequence, hardly akin to stepping on an insect and changing the course of man. The writers could have used far more imagination when devising the plot. Other changes that the character makes are unconvincing, such as the notion that he could prevent recurrent child abuse simply by threatening someone on a single occasion. That scene, in any case, is not a good example of little things affecting the world in big ways. It's an example of wishful thinking, plain and simple. When the scenario finally goes wrong, it happens because of the way Kutcher's character acts in the altered present, not because of the altered time-line itself.

The film's first forty-five minutes are somewhat more promising. These early scenes deal with Kutcher's childhood experiences, how he blacks out whenever his life becomes too traumatic. It's an intriguing setup that would have left me wondering where the story was headed had I not already seen the trailer, where I learned that it was going to be about time travel. On a dramatic level, the movie's biggest failing is that it never follows through with the tone it sets up in the beginning. We're promised a thriller, but the movie degenerates into what can best be described as an episodic black comedy, almost a dark version of "Bedazzled."

This is sort of entertaining, but I was hoping for more. I may have been influenced by the fact that shortly before seeing the film, I read "Bid Time Return," the Richard Matheson novel on which the 1980 movie "Somewhere in Time" is based. This book, even more than the movie adaptation, strongly leads us to suspect that the time-traveling experience occurs only in the protagonist's mind. "The Butterfly Effect" has a similar ambiguity that it never truly addresses, perhaps because mainstream audiences would have found such an approach too disturbing.

You may notice that I have so far not talked about the acting, and I will resist the temptation to rag on Kutcher's performance more than others have done. He's not terribly engaging, but it's not all his fault (especially considering that his character is played by other actors for a good portion of the film). The real problem lies at the level of the script, which doesn't give Kutcher much to do. The film is so plot-driven it doesn't spend much time on its characters.

Ultimately, this movie has nothing new to contribute to the time travel genre. While it tries to pass itself off as a twist on the old premise, it quickly becomes a fairly routine thriller about a man tweaking his past. I hope that the next time they decide to do such a film, they'll leave cool metaphors like butterfly effects to a script that is truly willing to deal with such concepts instead of simply pretending to.

Sore Disappointment

[ClonakillaShirazViognier2009 · 4/10 · 21 March 2023]

The butterfly effect in chaos theory and time travel have nothing to do with each other, thus the title of the movie has nothing to do with the movie. At best, it is an average time travel movie. At worst, it is the vision of someone who read something interesting in physics once, understood absolutely nothing, and made a movie about it. Unnecessarily dark and at some point the scenarios seem almost comically exaggerated. Maybe I'm "objectively wrong" but that was my impression. The Butterfly Effect feels like one of those really pretentious films that tries to be the big thing of its generation, but it turned out to be a sore disappointment due to lazy inconsistent writing. As much as I tried to I could not care about the main character because of how stupid he was. Not only that, but most characters actions and dialogue did not feel natural at all, they felt like they were simply pasted there solely for plot convenience. The time travel also does not make sense, I hate that they never even try to explain how it works, all that you get it "When he looks at book he goes back in time and everything becomes bad.

Change one thing. Change everything

[Mappyman · 9/10 · 2 January 2005]

Evan has always suffered from something that causes him to "blackout" during times of extreme crisis. All through his childhood he would blank out right before something drastic happens and not remember anything that happened. Now in college, he reads through a journal he used to write as a kid to notice that all of a sudden these harmful memories are coming back to him. When he goes to ask his childhood sweetheart about it she doesn't want to talk about it. He finds out however, that he can actually tap into his past and change what happened in these events. Unfortunately, every time he changes the past, even in the slightest way the future is also effected.

All scores are out of a possible 10:

Story: 9 - VERY interesting story on psychology and how the mind sometimes blanks out events. Also playing on the theory of Butterfly Effect which is explained in the very beginning of the movie "If a butterfly flaps its wings on one side of the world, the ripple effect could cause a tempest on the other"

Acting: 8 - The lead girl in this movie did a great job. Since she was the result of many of the alternate realities, she had to go though as a crack whore, a sorority princess, a broken waitress and other things. Kutcher seemed to do what he does best... playing a crazy college kid. He's not as comedic in this role, but adds his charm in for fun. This isn't a comedy but its got its moments.

Music: 8 - A few good scores. On the more peaceful moments it sounds real well.

Sound Mix: 8 - Freaking scary! There are parts that really jump out at you. Since one of the dramatic events in the main character's life was dynamite going off, the sounds of him blacking out goes off like the dynamite exploding. I'll admit, i even jumped a few times.

Camera-work / Lighting: 7 - It suited the scenes real well. In some of the fight scenes it gets pretty wavy for effect that does real well and makes it more intense.

Editing: 9 - This must have been one of the hardest things in this movie. Since it involves alternate realities as well as time, a lot of thought must have gone into making all world seem to make sense. Since changing the reality effects where the main character is when he wakes up in the present, all of his "missed" memories flood back into him. They did really well with keeping the continuity up to par.

Uniqueness: 8 - Its not horror. It is scary most of the time, but its also a romance for the most part since his largest goal is making his girlfriend happy while keeping everything else in the world tame. It doesn't go into the sci-fi time travel stuff either which is good since its more of a mental thing than flux capacitors and DeLoreans.

Worth: 8 - Worth seeing. Even if you aren't a fan of Punk'd or Dude Where's My.. you'll enjoy seeing Kutcher in this role. The story is very gripping and almost makes you review how things could have changed in your life had some different events altered it.

Overall Score (Not an average): 8 - Really good movie. The sound is powerful, there's a good romance about this which should be cute for the tearjerkers who want something new. The acting is really good for the most part and the shock of some of the scenes will definitely grab people.

Reviewer's Insight (Including bias): Time travel has always been an interest for me. BackToTheFuture, my favorite book "Replay" by Ken Grimwood and some others. This movie isn't ALL about time travel. Its what small events in life end up resulting to, whether it be the biggest event in your life or a small one. Changing reality isn't truly the answer to happiness. As they say in the movie, You Can't Play God. Time will catch up to you no matter what you do to change it. "Change one thing. Change everything" as the movie's caption says and it definitely shows in every alternate reality he tries to effect.

The critics really dropped the ball and turned a cold shoulder on a fine film here

[zetes · 9/10 · 6 July 2004]

(note: this is a review of the director's cut of the film, which has a completely different ending than the theatrical release)

The Butterfly Effect was either ignored or ridiculed by most major critics. Most minor ones, too. In reality, while it has its flaws, and some rather big ones, too, it is one of the best films to be released so far in 2004. It is already being rediscovered by audiences, and I think it will find a home amongst the lovers of gimmick films such as Memento and Donnie Darko. I am a fan of all three of these films, and it's not because they're based on clever gimmicks. Plenty of films have clever gimmicks and completely fail. I like these three particular films because they're intelligent and have strong stories that move them beyond their central gimmicks. The Butterfly Effect is about a young man (Ashton Kutcher) who experienced severe blackouts during traumatic moments when he was a child. As an adult, he discovers that he can travel back to these forgotten events and change their outcome. Unfortunately, every time he changes things for what should be the better, some individual always gets the shaft. Besides himself, the major players in the story are his mother (Melora Walters), his girlfriend, Kayleigh, her brother, Tommy, and their friend, Lenny. The story is gripping. It's hard not to imagine situations in your own life that you'd want to change, so the appeal is universal. As Kutcher changes time and time again, he starts to lose grip of reality. His desperation grows deeper each time he changes the past.

The movie does lose its footing as it nears the finish. One can imagine how hard it must be to end a story like this. It looked as if they were going to go with the 'It's all just a dream' ending, which really p***ed me off. Then they cheated their gimmick a little, which, as annoying as that was, it wasn't as annoying as the previous option. Then came kind of an ugly ending which really angered me, and which upsets a lot of what happened in the film in the first place. After a bit of time thinking it over, though, it didn't seem quite as bad as it first did. There are still some major holes this way around, but it made sense thematically.

As for the technical feats, The Butterfly Effect is very well done. The writers/directors, Bress and Gruber, may not get everything right, but they have delivered an ambitious and thoughtful film. Better yet, they delivered it right to a multiplex audience who doubtless went in expecting escapism. What they'll get is something ten times more challenging than anything else they'll see this year. The look of it is good, it's well edited, and there's really good use of music and sound.

The final question has to be this: so, can Ashton Kutcher deliver a dramatic performance? The answer is yes, but not an unqualified yes. Truthfully, the protagonist of the story could have been improved. He's more of cypher than anything, and a lot of the emotional value comes from the side characters whose lives he effects. Kutcher isn't asked to do too much. Still, he holds his own in plenty of scenes. He was quite good, for instance, in the sequence where he goes to prison. I wonder if all the pans this film received came because it was a drama starring that goofball from Dude, Where's My Car? I think, in the long run, if Kutcher wants to become a dramatic actor, he could pull it off. He's a handsome guy with a lot of charm. 9/10.

One Big Butterfly!!

[LorNic · 6/10 · 26 June 2005]

I found "The Butterfly Effect" to be a pretty good movie for the most part. I saw nothing wrong with the acting and had no preconceived notions about Ashton Kutchner to poison my view (have never seen the Dude, Where's My ... movies). He played Evan well given how one would react to these events if they were to occur to one in real life.

The storyline was good and the powers that be brought the events together well, for the most part. The movie kept me interested throughout, although the mysterious events (blackout moments of Evan's childhood that are not shown to the viewer), while well hinted at before and after the blacked-out portion, were not handled well. Let me elaborate. Evan's friends would not tell him what had actually happened during these periods (for one reason or another). This, I felt, was a downfall of the storytellers. While it supposedly produced the effect on the viewer in wanting to know what happened, it left in me a feeling of unbelievability in the plot (somewhat).

As to what the Butterfly Effect is and Chaos Theory in general, note the following quote: "The flapping of a single butterfly's wing today produces a tiny change in the state of the atmosphere. Over a period of time, what the atmosphere actually does diverges from what it would have done. So, in a month's time, a tornado that would have devastated the Indonesian coast doesn't happen. Or maybe one that wasn't going to happen, does. (Ian Stewart, Does God Play Dice? The Mathematics of Chaos, pg. 141)".

Chaos Theory can be explained using the Butterfly Effect but it's relation to the movie is in name only. I say this because the wing flaps (childhood events in the movie) are HUGE events in anybody's childhood. Changing these events would, of course, have a huge impact on any child's later life. So, this butterfly is one whopping big one.

The movie has some inexplicable events and doesn't tie everything up neatly for us, the viewer. This is a good thing in that it leaves them open for discussion as to what there meaning is. This is bad in that the lesser-thinking viewers may be left scratching their heads and disliking the movie because of it.

It all relates to the idea of time-travel and what happens in the original time-line. Will it, in fact, be affected by the subsequent time travel events? I don't want to get into the specific details as it would give spoilers. I can only say that these are the things that one is left pondering.

A Much Better Movie Than You Would Suspect...

[hokeybutt · 8/10 · 21 November 2004]

THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT- THEATRICAL CUT (4 outta 5 stars)

THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT- DIRECTOR'S CUT (3+ outta 5 stars)

Now normally I tend to prefer movies that let the writer/director tell the story that they want to without having to water it down for mass consumption. In this case I have to say that the ending they they were forced to re-shoot for the theatrical release of this movie is a much more emotional, resonant and appropriate ending than the bleak, cold and grotesque finale they had originally planned. On the US DVDs you get the choice of which version to see (foreign editions only have the less compelling director's version)... so North American viewers can make up their own mind about which ending they prefer. I would suggest watching the theatrical cut first... and then check out the director's cut... which would you prefer to think of as the "real" ending?

As for the movie itself... don't be put off by the idea of Ashton Kutcher in the lead role. He does quite a good job in a serious part quite different from his usual TV persona. He plays a college student who, having been plagued by mental blackouts all his life, devotes himself to the study of human memory. Eventually he finds that by re-reading old journal entries he can will himself back in time to experience the events he had blacked out... and even CHANGE THEM using the knowledge that his older self possesses. Unfortunately one small change in the past causes some HUGE ramifications in his present day world. Can't say too much more about the plot without giving away the many fun surprises. Believable performances and a basic seriousness give the film an urgency that is sometimes missing in modern fantasy films of this type.

The unintentional hilarity saves this junk from the lowest rating.

[fedor8 · 10 January 2007]

First of all, I haven't laughed during a "thriller", much less a "sci-fi thriller", this much in years. They should have called the film "Those Damn Vibrating Letters". Or perhaps "Comedy Of Errors", because whichever new reality Ashton creates - it turns into a complete disaster, either for him, for someone else, or for everybody in his life. I can see Laurel & Hardy in Ashton's role, screwing up one time after another – in a zany slapstick comedy. But Ashton in this role, and in a THRILLER?! I think not.

This film is a cross between the very good "Sliding Doors", in which alternate destinies are explored, and "12 Monkeys", which plays with time-travel. Just having one of these two premises is complex enough to handle for such lousy writers as the two who wrote "Butterfly Effect", but to have BOTH these ideas meshed into one script – that is truly far too ambitious for writers of this caliber. "Sliding Doors" handles its theme with intelligence and control – unlike "BE" which is frantic, and manic, and so overly dramatic that it quickly becomes funny instead of suspenseful. "12 Monkeys", which was a solid movie, stumbled on logic because time-travel plots rarely work because of the inherent traps they entail due to the (scientific) complexity of the idea..

The way the destinies of the four central characters changes with every one of Ashton's "experiments" often makes no sense. For example, we are lead to believe that Tommy would be a raving lunatic/psychopath in the first 2-3 realities, while a totally religious do-gooder in another! The writers actually want to make us believe that the way Stoltz brings up his son will make THAT much of a difference! Excuse me, but psychopaths are born, not created – and Tommy's behaviour in the first half of the film leaves without any trace of a doubt that he IS a psychopath, and that means that Tommy cannot be a nice guy in ANY reality which Ashton creates.

"BE" is overly dramatic. Everything happens with extra weight. The girl is like De Sade's Justine, always being the victim, always being attacked, ruined, whatever. The movie wants us to feel for her – FINE – but why the pathetic exaggerations? Examples: 1) she gets blown up by the dynamite: this is like a scene out of a Bugs Bunny cartoon! I.e. funny because Ashton does his best to correct things and he just ends up blowing up people!!! (Or himself, later on – sorry, but I thought this was absolutely hilarious); 2) when Ashton visits, seeing her for the first time in 7 years, he observes her working in a diner, and what does he see??? Within seconds she manages to drop her tray, and then gets pinched in the a** by a customer! Talk about clichés! Talk about slapstick comedy! Talk about OVERLY DRAMATIZING THINGS! 3) when Ashton finds her working as a whore: I mean, fine, so she has hit rock-bottom in that particular reality/experiment, but they over-did it, what with the make-up, and her attitude and everything. Why the OVER-DRAMATIZATION? It would have been enough to show her as a prostitute; there was no need to make her look as the most MISERABLE PROSTITUTE IN THE WORLD! Other silly things in the movie? Here we go: 1) when the black teacher shows Ashton's Mom the drawing he (supposedly) did; all they do is comment on the content of the drawing – no-one mentions just how ultra-talented Ashton would have to be to draw like that in primary school! 2) when Ashton meets his father for the first time, guess what happens? His father dies! Talk about drama! You see, they couldn't write a script in which his Dad gets killed on their 3rd or 4th meeting, oh no – it had to be on the very 1ST visit. Why? Because that's how real DRAMA works – at least according to the nitwits who wrote this silly script. 3) it is never explained why it takes Ashton 7 YEARS to finally visit the girl whom he is supposed to love so much; she even ASKS him this, but neither her nor the viewer get ANY answer! 4) Ashton's mother getting so sick in a later "experiment" (the one when he blows himself up so spectacularly), and then later his mother DOESN'T get sick in another experiment when Ashton kills the girl! Wouldn't that event and her son's subsequent demise as a nut-case be enough to make her sick, too??? 5) Ashton's fat, Gothic college room-mate: now, why would they include that character? It only made the movie less serious. Either you make a serious thriller, or you make a teen romp; make up your mind.

Now for the funniest moments, the ones that had me laughing very loudly indeed. The scene in which Tommy beats up somebody in the cinema is HILARIOUS. This little twerp (i.e. the young actor Jesse James(!) who plays him) just looks funny acting like an adult ultra-psychopath! Like a 12 year-old Joe Pesci! But hands-down the funniest part of the film is the entire part in the jail. There are so many over-the-top, silly things happening to Ashton in jail, so much cliché prison-movie stuff going on, that it almost seemed like something out of a ZAZ film! Hilarious! Oh, yes, and Ashton is a bad actor. Almost forgot that.

Everyone in the film is over-acting, over-reacting, everything is over-dramatic. I'm sure many people thought this was a brilliant picture, but I think many of them haven't seen similarly-themed – and better – movies, so they thought "how original!". Original only in its silliness and absurdity. Not to mention far-fetchedness. If a circus clown could take the shape of a movie, it would be "The Butterfly Effect".

Time travel for the masses

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 8 March 2011]

Time travel movies are notoriously difficult to get right, and they tend to work best when the time travel elements are kept simple (think of movies like THE TERMINATOR and TIMECOP, in which the sci-fi stuff is just an excuse to get to the action). THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT jumps right into the deep end by tackling the subject matter head on, and it turns out to make a surprisingly successful job of it.

The story is uncomplicated, presenting events in a chronological order that keeps the viewer's attention. With films like this, there are invariably going to be a ton of plot holes if you think too much about it, but that's part of the charm. The plot features a guy who can travel back in time to various times of his life, and the ensuing chaos that arises when he tries to change things. Yep, it's all about that old standby, you can't change the past, although the protagonist in this film has a damn good try.

Ashton Kutcher is slightly bland in the leading role, but in all fairness he does possess a kind of likability that makes it easy to watch him on screen, so I won't be too critical. In truth, he raises his game in comparison to some of the other non-starters appearing here (Amy Smart for one). The best actor of 'em all is Logan Lerman, who plays the 7-year-old version of Kutcher's character, and it's easy to see why Lerman's gone on to appear in plenty of other stuff since.

In the end, it's not a film that's going to blow you away or change the world, but it does make you sit back and think. I value originality a lot these days - especially from Hollywood - and it's just nice to see something a bit different for once even if there are missteps along the way (the bit where it veers wildly into comedy, for example). What is unsurprising is that two straight-to-video sequels followed, which goes to show that Hollywood greed is alive and well.

NB. I've just rewatched this film, or at least the director's cut version of it. It's certainly the better version - even darker and more graphic, and with a downbeat ending which comes across as profound. No point bothering with the theatrical cut when this exists.

Incredibly Great Film

[drpakmanrains · 10/10 · 23 May 2011]

With over 1000 reviews, chances are not many are going to read this, but I just have to say how much I love this film, which I just discovered about a month ago, and have now watched 7 times, once the theatrical version and six times, the directors version, which I greatly prefer, as it fits the overall script better and what was intended originally. I am 70, and hardly expected this or any new movie to make it to my top 10, especially since I am not a fan of fantasy or time travel movies generally, but "The Butterfly Effect" has become my 4th favorite of the nearly 3000 films I have viewed in my life. The movie has many disturbing scenes, but the pace is amazingly fast, the acting excellent for the most part, and the characters physical continuity from childhood through adolescence to adult was the best I have ever seen in a film with 3 separate periods. The plot has been so thoroughly reviewed, I won't waste time telling the details again. Suffice it to say, if you can handle the elements of child abuse and animal mistreatment, (not graphically depicted) and can ignore the critics and watch the film at least twice, I think you will appreciate what a great film this is. And I have recently watched the director's commentary and deleted scenes, which further illustrate what an ambitious film this is. It should have been a classic, and it shows how off-base the critic's fraternity can be. Roger Ebert was fairer to the film than most of the others among major critics, but I think they were determined to knock the film because they didn't like Ashton Kutcher, and the film came out in January, which predisposes most critics to expect a bomb. Do yourself a favor if interested, and rent this Infinifilm. If you like an intense and entertaining movie experience, you won't be disappointed, and you may be enthralled, as I was, and hope you will be.

Why this movie is just average

[svetaaniston · 6/10 · 16 June 2005]

While many people on here think this movie is 'brilliant', 'stunning' or even 'the best movie of the year', I think it's not only depressing and incoherent, but also cheap and evil in a bad way. The acting of the main characters is said to be good, but never explained. One thing is annoying, though: the actors seem to be more worried about their looks than about their acting. Well okay, perhaps the adults din't act so bad, but the kids terribly overacted and performed rather poor, stereotyped jobs. But that's not the worst, obviously.

First of all, the plot and the idea of this movie is very old and not original at all. It's a normal time-travel story in the same manner as 'The Time Machine' and 'Back to the Future' - but not that fascinating because the aspect of time traveling seems completely natural and not weird at all to all the persons in the movie. This way, the fun of 'discovering' time-traveling by the main characters is not enjoyed in this movie.

Second, the in itself always interesting idea that it's possible to change the past, is not worked-out correctly in this movie. There is always a paradox in time-traveling, and nothing can ever be completely solved, but in this movie, everything fits in the end. That's misleading and an insult to the viewer. It's also a very cheap way of making this movie 'happy ending' after all - probably for the kids watching this.

Thirdly, the movie is very depressing. Sometimes, depressing movies can unsettle you, teach you something or make you think about the sad state of the world - or at least entertain you because they're well made. But this movie actually is just a sequence of scenes that make you feel bad, that depress you and that ultimately have no other point than to make you feel bad. Sure, it's all solved in the end, but the main characters don't seem to have used the bad images to turn into better persons, so why was it necessary to show all this in the first place?

Finally, the title is badly chosen. Supposedly, the 'butterfly effect' is the effect that when a butterfly flaps its wings, it can cause a hurricane on the other side of the world. However, in this movie, when something is changed in the past, only the lives of the main characters change. That's very un-butterfly-effectish, which basically says: change one thing in the past, and *everything* changes, not only the lives of the main characters. Therefore, this whole movie seems based on a wrong conception of the very theory it's trying to work out. Sloppy, to say the least.

These are some of the reasons why this movie is in my opinion at most average and can't possible receive such jubilant reviews on here. People who like this movie perhaps like it because they haven't seen any other time-travel movies, or because they like the main actors, or because they just like easy teenage-thrillers that you instantly forget after you've seen them. It's a choice, but this movie is ultimately just disappointing and leaves a pointless bad taste in your mouth.

Keep you on the edge of your seat from the start to the finish

[kc_220692 · 8/10 · 15 February 2005]

The film that was underrated. The film that only appeared on US cinemas. The Butterfly Effect.

I think Ashton Kutcher did a good job on this film, along with Andrea Treborn. I recall that Kutcher has never made a film like this, and his first thriller was somewhat peculiar. Not just any old thriller, this one would keep you on the edge of your seat from the start to the finish. A weird title however, but the tag line explains all. Change one thing, change everything. I think this automatically gets you thinking, and as the film proceeds, it gets harder. You like thinking? Get this film, because you will not want to miss it!

Compelling and Intriguing Movie About Making Choices and Taking Responsibilities

[Galina_movie_fan · 7/10 · 4 May 2005]

A troubled young boy with the memory issues (Ashton Kutcher) is suddenly able to transport himself back into moments from his past, change them for the better and return to the present. The changes he makes affect not only his life but the lives of his close friends. The problem is - he never knows how exactly the changes made in the past would affect the present. The idea of the movie is anything but new - we all read Ray Bradbury's "A Sound of Thunder," an unforgettable short story about a time-traveler who steps on a prehistoric butterfly and causes the horrible changes in the fate of the whole humanity. We've seen the films Frequency, Groundhog Day, and Memento - Butterfly Effect borrows a lot from them. BE is not as good as they are but it is a compelling and intriguing movie about making choices and taking responsibilities. I recommend watching director's cut with the ending completely different from the theatrical release. The ending that I saw really made this movie for me.

Very respectable even if not completely successful effort for Kutcher to do something different than Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), My Boss's Daughter (2003), and Just Married (2003).

Possible good plot.......destroyed!

[dadie · 5/10 · 19 February 2005]

It's a pity, I still ask me how is it possible to waste such a brilliant idea. From the beginning, the plot catch you, it seems twisted (it is), but easy to understand, and it is effective. Going on it fall into the banality, always worse going to the end. It seems like they had this starting idea, but they were not able to evolve it for the rest of the movie, so it remain as an embryo. It become obvious and often pathetic. The only message escapes is the classic and obvious:"if you want to change the future it could be worse". Another problem: actors! Incredibly not able to act, Kutcher (I don't know if famous in the States) is not "strong" enough to have such a responsibility, Amy Smart is beauty, but just that, Melora Walters is always crying, very far from the good interpretations with P.T.Andersson. Somebody compare it to "Donnie Darko". No way! Another World!