3. Time After Time (1979)
Director: Nicholas Meyer Cast: Malcolm McDowell, Mary Steenburgen, David Warner Before Nicholas Meyer became known as the writer/director who rejuvenated the Star Trek movie franchise, he crafted a clever little tale about time travel in Time After Time. Malcolm McDowell is author H.G. Wells. In a scene ripped from the opening of the book The Time Machine, Wells invites his friends to a dinner where he reveals that he has created a time machine. His friends as skeptical save onea doctor who steals the Time Machine and takes it into the future. The police arrive thereafter and Wells realizes that the good doctor is wanted as the infamous murderer Jack the Ripper. Wells follows the killer into the future, to 1979 San Francisco, where he must hunt down the fiend before he can kill again. There he marvels at technological advancements, is puzzled by sociological ones, and falls in love with Mary Steenburgen. When the bodies of murdered women start turning up, Wells realizes that Jack the Ripper is back in business. While there is nothing great or groundbreaking about Time After Time, it remains a smart, fun little film that benefits from a clever script, capable direction and solid performances by McDowell, Steenburgen, and David Warner as Jack the Ripper.