MovieChat Forums > The Time Machine (1960) Discussion > Since the machine moves through time...

Since the machine moves through time...

posted 10 years ago by richo-rosai
6 replies | jump to latest

Since the machine moves through time rather than warps through time, wouldn't people have seen him since he would have been there at any given time? Like, wouldn't his friend or maid have come to check on him in that room? And over all those thousands of years wouldn't someone have come along and messed with him?

And why would people so far in the future speak 20th century English?

[–] RIP_IMDb 10 years ago

No, because when you're traveling through time you yourself are out-of-time and no one can see you or know that you're there. It's like you're in your own personal dimension, alone and by yourself (unless someone else is with you before you started time-traveling). Once you start you appear to simply vanish into thin air to anyone outside of the time-machine.

"Luthor, you POISONOUS snake!!!". < Although it really is "venomous".

[–] memayse1701 10 years ago

I don't understand how the volcano didn't burn him up even though he was traveling in time

[–] RIP_IMDb 10 years ago

Because it was outside of his time-machine (thus outside of his personal dimension). It would have to be inside with him to burn him.

I don't know what's a sig. line? Can't think of one! Can you tell me what one is?

[–] TheButlerDidItYes 10 years ago

Because it was outside of his time-machine (thus outside of his personal dimension). It would have to be inside with him to burn him.

That's what I reasoned but then why does George feel cold and tighten his clothes against his body when he's inside of the mountain? Shouldn't the temperature inside the time machine be unaffected by the temperature outside of it?

[–] RIP_IMDb 10 years ago

Plot hole (writer's error, probably the scriptwriter and not HG Wells himself). You're right it wouldn't and shouldn't effect him.

I don't know what's a sig. line? Can't think of one! Can you tell me what one is?

[–] TheButlerDidItYes 10 years ago

Plot hole (writer's error, probably the scriptwriter and not HG Wells himself). You're right it wouldn't and shouldn't effect him.

I read the book in 1999 when I was a junior in high school. My memory might be flawed but I don't believe there was a nuclear war in the book and of course nuclear weapons did not exist when it was written. I don't believe The Operator was in a mountain in the book either.

Continuing, the time machine shouldn't have been rocked by the bombing of London during World War II. Also, George shouldn't have heard the air raid siren during World War III immediately before London was destroyed by an atomic bomb in the mid-1960's and other noises from the outside while he was time traveling. And further, even if he could hear the air raid siren while time travelling it would've only lasted for a fraction of a second from George's point of view. In the amount of time the movie shows George hearing that sound he should've traveled through months or years of time.