DVD Review: The End Of Time

Like everyone I know, I’ve been fighting bouts of depression and anger every day since the election. It’s still staggering to learn that this country has so many horrible people, and it’s nearly impossible to come to terms with it. Anyway, it seemed a movie titled The End Of Time was appropriate, so I popped it in my DVD player. This is an unusual documentary, full of incredible images that at times have an almost hypnotic effect on the viewer.

It opens with footage of a man getting prepared to go up into space in a helium balloon. This was in 1960, and a title card tells us he was lifted 102,800 feet. The footage of him going up (and coming down) is great, and is presented without narration. There is not much narration in the film (and no other title cards), but early on we are told: “In the beginning, there were no names. Things don’t have names. We made them up.” And then: “You don’t always need to know the name of what you see.” That really stuck with me. The film then takes us into a giant underground facility, the camera moving quickly through the corridors as we try to figure out just what we’re seeing. But, relax, for as the narrator said, it doesn’t matter if we don’t know the names for what we’re seeing. But do we understand it without words? Is that possible for us anymore? Can I relax, let go, and just experience the images? Is that what the movie is asking me to do? There are images of all sorts of machinery that I don’t understand at all. We learn that the machinery there works to accelerate particles as close to the speed of light as possible.

The film asks questions about the perception of time, how it passes, whether animals perceive its passing, and so on. One guy explains what time means for him: “Time is a part of space. We cannot take away the time from the space.” Those speaking on camera are not identified. And again, I imagine that goes back to the idea of not needing to know the names of what we see – here, quite literally withholding names. And in fact, while we hear several voices expressing various thoughts related to time, we see images of nature. The people doing the talking don’t matter; that is, it doesn’t matter who specifically is voicing any given thought. It could be those of us watching for that matter. It probably is us.

The film includes some gorgeous shots of nature in winter, and some stunning shots of trees, as the camera moves among them. There are shots of embers looking like a school of fish, jumping and diving together. But perhaps the most incredible shots are those of the lava moving. This footage is astounding and eerie and unreal, the lava flow seeming like a giant creature with a mind, a plan, a goal, a direction. Ultimately, the film feels to be more about the images then offering any fresh insights on the question of time. The film is like an engaging meditation. It’s about the problem of being present in time, living in the moment, and perhaps this film itself helps us do just that, for there isn’t really a narrative to think back on, or to guess where it’s leading. Just watch and experience it.

Special Features

The DVD includes a commentary track by director Peter Mettler and story editor Alexandra Rockingham Gill, who often acts as a moderator, asking Mettler questions about the film. They talk about how the opening footage came from the U.S. Air Force, and Peter Mettler says he always wanted to start a film with a shot of someone falling from the sky. And yes, he does talk about the machinery and that facility at the beginning, giving more information. By the way, he mentions that the title refers to the end of the idea of time, not the end of the world.

There is also a written biography of filmmaker Peter Mettler, as well as a photo gallery.

The End Of Time was directed by Peter Mettler, and was released on DVD on April 15, 2014 through First Run Features. Peter Mettler also directed Picture Of Light, which is also available on DVD through First Run Features.