the 2002 version of the time machine be just the late in a string of terribly disappoint hollywood remake that fall flat on their face despite extravagant special effect . what a lousy and uninspired bland story and with no imagination . why so totally rewrite such a wonderful sci fi classic . be today movie audience too hip for the h. g. well write largely a be . the 1960 george pal version tell a much more endearing story and even with clunky low budget effect and beach party look eloi and and morlocks that look like smurfs on steroid . the 2002 version must have h. g well turn in his grave represent1 . the idea that the time traveler be motivate by the desire to change the past and trap in a time paradox be an old sci fi cliché . this totally distract from the love affair with mara ( what happen to weena . ) that make the 1960 version so endear . this set an unfortunate and distractive tone early on that make the whole movie dour . if guy pearce character be so brilliant either he or his buddy einstein would have realize the time paradox dilemma not have it dawn on him 800 and 000 yr in the future from a morlock no less and doh . what wrong with time travel just for fun and adventure and curiosity a embody in the 1960 version . 2. only if you saw the first movie would you realize at all what pearce be do with the time machine when you first see it . the george pal film carefully explain the whole weird idea of travel though a 4th dimension . 3. the director go out of his way to make pearce character look geeky and a wear out old stereotype of scientist . in the 1960 version rod taylor be a little nerdy too ( at least around weena ) but manage to be swashbuckling and playful and charm . 4. among the key theme of the 60 version abandon in the remake be the idea that endless war lead to the bifurcation of humanity . blow up the moon to destroy humanity be pointless and doesn not do much for science literacy . for over 4 billion year the moon have suffer vastly more powerful asteroid impact and which would make any nuclear device look like a firecracker . yes and science fiction need artistic license and but this be just plain dumb and meaningless . 5. destroy the time machine be stupid too . apparently our time traveler invent the neutron bomb to power this thing . blow up the machine to kill morlocks be sort of a cop out amachina ex machina disappointingly and pearce never come back to the 1800s to tell his tale to his incredulous friend and a key part of the well story with the irony that in a week the time travel go into the far future and back . 6. have morlocks run around in the daytime totally ruin h. g. well wonderfully spooky and ghoulish portrayal of them a shadowy creature of the night . a true cinematic opportunity lose . also and well depict the eloi a frail and childlike . these guy in the movie look like they could take on morlocks and if they weren not such big baby wuss . 7. the one smart morlock kind of a bleach out star war evil emperor have potential and but be so lame and aloof he tell pearce to take his machine and go home . boy and what a dramatic high point . in the book the morlocks steal the machine because they be so fascinate by it and and fight to keep it . 8. the goof ball hologram at the n. y. public library be too much . it make light of the idea of human cannibalism . the 1960 version simply have the talk ring that deliver a chillingly somber eulogy for humankind . derail evolution be serious stuff . it sad the wonderful effect in this movie can never make up for a weary contrived clunker of a script . save the cost of a ticket and popcorn and go rent the dvd when it come out ( soon no doubt ) and at least you can fast forward think the dull part and just like our time traveler .