In The Time Machine (1895), H.G. Wells gave the sci-fi world a storyline that future sci-fi cinema could endlessly play in scenarios of choice. The time paradox has been the juice of countless productions since and Don Taylor put it to some good use in The Final Countdown.
Written by David Ambrose, Gerry Davis, and Thomas Hunter, Taylor’s The Final Countdown follows the journey of an American aircraft carrier that has just left the Pearl Harbor naval station. After getting caught in a mysterious vortex of EM radiation, the ship is thrown back in time to December 1941, when the Japanese were about to attack Pearl Harbor. Captain Yelland (Kirk Douglas), Commander Owens (James Farentino), and Defense Department analyst Warren Lasky (Martin Sheen) find themselves in a quandary bordering on war and the right choices to make.
The plot is interesting and the cinematographic side is well executed in sound, visual, and editing departments to create a sci-fi war drama that has just the right amounts of adventure and action. While the story is low on character conflict for the main roles, Farentino stands out in delivering the spirit of sacrifice and patriotism. The fictitious character of Senator Chapman (played by Charles Durning) is pivotal to the alternate history thread featured in the movie.
Time travel stories more often than not leave their audience with unanswered questions, and The Final Countdown doesn’t violate this tradition. The investigation into the ship’s disappearance begins as the movie ends. In the minds of the viewers, the story thus continues in abstraction. It’s not necessarily sloppy storytelling but cultivation of curiosity.
The Final Countdown is good entertainment in the trove of time travel movies. History buffs, particularly WWII history fans, are likely to enjoy it some more and are better eligible to assess its historical accuracy.
