THE GRAND TOUR - Disaster in Time (1992) - Andy's Blu-Ray Review

[AndyDursin]

6/10

David Twohy has been involved in a handful of memorable sci-fi/fantasy films, from the likes of “Warlock” and “Pitch Black” to the terrific, underrated Charlie Sheen thriller “The Arrival” and his later action-adventure flick “Terminal Velocity.” After beginning his career as a screenwriter, Twohy’s directorial debut came with this independently-produced, overly ambitious 1992 time travel drama which is awash in good intentions but tries to do too much from a story angle.

Coming off his lead role in “Arachnophobia,” Jeff Daniels plays an innkeeper haunted by the death of his wife and raising teen daughter Ariana Richards (pre-”Jurassic Park”). His latest guests are an odd assortment of time travelers who’ve tripped back in time in order to watch a disaster play out in real time – one which threatens Daniels, his daughter, and all of their fellow small-town Ohio residents.

Twohy adapted C.L. Moore’s novella “Vintage Season” for this uneven film which carries an intriguing premise but never finds a successful balance between its supporting elements. The time travel component shares time with Daniels’ melancholy sense of loss for his wife and struggle to raise his daughter in spite of his father-in-law’s attempts to wrestle her custody away from him – meanwhile, the time travelers themselves are such a strange bunch you never know how seriously you’re supposed to take the casts’ (very) broadly performed performances. Twohy stages a disaster movie sequence at the film’s center then throws in a pair of Jeff Daniels running around at the end – it’s all too much, making you think Twohy a few years later, as a more seasoned filmmaker, would’ve had a better handle on the material at that time.

Unearthed’s Blu-Ray debuts “The Grand Tour” – originally known as “Timescape” – on Blu-Ray (1.85, 2.0 PCM stereo) this month. The movie essentially went straight to Showtime as memory serves, bypassing a theatrical run, and this is a serviceable, older looking HD master with stereo sound. Extras include the “Timescape” opening credits, an interview with an editor about the “lost” Cannes promo reel (and it is lost – it’s not here!), production stills, artwork galleries, and the trailer.