After Star Trek First Contact's success, I wondered if Jonathan Frakes would trade it into a big career as a film director. Alas, all he seems to have been offered is genre kid fare like Clockstoppers. I mean, it kind of fits. Star Trek Insurrection had a (difficult to accept) subplot about people so relaxed they could slow down time, so he had experience with this particular effect. And yes, a whole movie could be built around this idea, I just wish this one had a better understanding - at the script level - of what that meant. I guess the scene at the rave is the most problematic one, since it shows us both real time and "hypertime", and it just looks like it makes people invisible rather than super-fast. Hey maybe it's both. Whatever. But to tell you the truth, Clockstoppers is still goofy fun. I like the sweet teenage romance between the leads more than the plot with Michael Biehn as a cartoon villain, and it was fun revisiting the music of the era (the pop alternative of the late 90s, early 2000s) thanks to the soundtrack (felt like the clock had indeed stopped) - better than the score which I found ugly and one-note. I don't lay it all on Frakes, but maybe the magic of his Star Trek oeuvre is contingent on working with an expert team both behind and in front of the camera, which probably isn't the case here.
Add your comment
Comments 1 - 5 of 5
thaisquisito
i used to watch this all the time, so fun.Sweet Lime
so many major flaws in the plot.. it's hilarious..mgf001
I agree it's funnyMudskipper
such an awesome movie! had fun watching it! 8)Siskoid
After Star Trek First Contact's success, I wondered if Jonathan Frakes would trade it into a big career as a film director. Alas, all he seems to have been offered is genre kid fare like Clockstoppers. I mean, it kind of fits. Star Trek Insurrection had a (difficult to accept) subplot about people so relaxed they could slow down time, so he had experience with this particular effect. And yes, a whole movie could be built around this idea, I just wish this one had a better understanding - at the script level - of what that meant. I guess the scene at the rave is the most problematic one, since it shows us both real time and "hypertime", and it just looks like it makes people invisible rather than super-fast. Hey maybe it's both. Whatever. But to tell you the truth, Clockstoppers is still goofy fun. I like the sweet teenage romance between the leads more than the plot with Michael Biehn as a cartoon villain, and it was fun revisiting the music of the era (the pop alternative of the late 90s, early 2000s) thanks to the soundtrack (felt like the clock had indeed stopped) - better than the score which I found ugly and one-note. I don't lay it all on Frakes, but maybe the magic of his Star Trek oeuvre is contingent on working with an expert team both behind and in front of the camera, which probably isn't the case here.