If love is in the form of a circle, what lines would you cross to be with your soulmate? In this gripping, near-future love story directed by Oscar® winner John Ridley, Nick and Janine (Oscar® nominees Leslie Odom, Jr. and Cynthia Erivo) live in marital bliss, until Janine's ex-husband (Orlando Bloom) warps time to try to tear them apart using Nick's college girlfriend (Frieda Pinto). As Nick's memories and reality disappear, he must decide what he's willing to sacrifice in... (Full plot summary below)
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If love is in the form of a circle, what lines would you cross to be with your soulmate? In this gripping, near-future love story directed by Oscar® winner John Ridley, Nick and Janine (Oscar® nominees Leslie Odom, Jr. and Cynthia Erivo) live in marital bliss, until Janine's ex-husband (Orlando Bloom) warps time to try to tear them apart using Nick's college girlfriend (Frieda Pinto). As Nick's memories and reality disappear, he must decide what he's willing to sacrifice in order to hold onto - or let go of - everything he loves. Can love endure in a future where time is fluid, and all of life may be just an illusion?
Leave your thoughts about Needle in a Timestack.
| PolygonRoxana HadadiNeedle in a Timestack lacks the interior worldbuilding necessary to pull off its heartstring-tugging intentions, and the result is a movie that unintentionally confirms how no good ever comes from men who obsessively refuse to leave women alone. |
| The Film StageJared MobarakI don’t think John Ridley’s Needle in a Timestack (adapted from the short story by Robert Silverberg) quite reaches the full potential of its conceit, but it comes close while overcoming any early preconceptions. |
| IGNTara BennettDespite a great cast, Needle in a Timestack lets the fuzzy logic time travel tropes trample the characters and our care for them and their plights. |
| Screen RantMae AbdulbakiWhile Needle in a Timestack aims to be profound, it loses itself within the sci-fi premise rather than exploring the central romance in any detail. |
| The Hollywood ReporterAngie HanThe premise is rich with potential for aching romance and meaningful contemplation of the ways that time and technology can shape how we see our relationships. So it’s too bad that this version of it falls apart under closer examination, with a script that seems enamored of love more as a theoretical concept than a lived experience. |
| Austin ChronicleJosh KupeckiIt’s the lack of tension, overlong running time, and ultimately mawkish message that makes Needle a nonstarter. |
| San Francisco ChronicleBob StraussThe movie is almost all conversations, most of which are intriguing and sensitively structured, with little action. It’s enough, but not worth changing the world for. |
| Los Angeles TimesMichael OrdonaOdom, surely one of the busiest actors working today, gives a committed performance but lacks chemistry with either of his onscreen wives. A sense of lightness, of fun, of the alchemy between two people is missing, though it would seem crucial to drive the story. |
| RogerEbert.comPeter SobczynskiAs it turns out, this literary curiosity proves to be far more interesting than the finished film, which takes an undeniably interesting premise and then fails to make good use of it. |
| IndieWireJude DryThough the movie is clearly enamored with its own creativity, it’s not fun for anyone else. The title alone has already inspired titters online, and the movie is just as clunky and overwrought. |
