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Butterfly Effect, The

Fans of Ashton Kutcher’s comedic prowess were vindicated when he took on the serious role of Evan Treborn in the time-bending thriller, The Butterfly Effect. People watch this film with the caveat that Kutcher is funny, and probably butchers his part. I was such a skeptic, and was pleasantly surprised not only by Kutcher’s performance, but by Amy Smart (who plays Kutcher’s love interest), John Patrick Amedori (who plays Evan at age 13) and Logan Lerman (who plays Evan at age 7).

The premise is that Evan can go back to certain days of his life by reading through his journals. On these days, he blacked out during painful situations, and didn’t remember anything that happened. When he got older, he learned that he could channel these forgotten memories, and in doing such, change the outcome. What prompts his first foray into “time-travel” is when he realizes he can help his friend out of a nearly catatonic state. He finds his childhood love, Kayleigh, and asks about the situation, which prompts her to commit suicide. No matter how many times he goes back, he can’t seem to prevent something awful from happening to Kayleigh, or provoking a future where he is much worse off (like when he woke up with no arms in the future).

Finally, Evan wakes up in an asylum, having never created the journals. He begs his mother to bring home movies, and finally creates a future where he and Kayleigh aren’t together, but are both safe and happy. It’s a shocking film that only gets better with each flashback. Even though it begins with a hardcore blackout, it continues to build until it is successfully resolved. The music is well-chosen and compliments the tone of each scene accordingly.

If the viewer is willing to look past the fact that Ashton Kutcher does not seem capable of turning off the humor, they’re in for a thrill ride of this interesting take on lost love, and the push to proactively seek redemption.

Written by: Tracy Elledge

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