H.G. Wells and the Time Machine

 


By Bruce Shawkey

One of the scariest movies I saw as a youngster was "The "Time Machine," a 1960 movie starring Rod Taylor and a very sexy Yvette Mimieux, playing Weena, one of the Eloi, a peaceful race of people in the distant dystopian future (the year 802,701) where Rod Taylor travels to in his time machine. I was particularly frightened by the Morlocks, who feed on the Eloi. 

The movie is based on the 1895 novel by H. G. Wells. The Library of Congress has a 1922 edition of the novel, published by H. Holt & Co.


The Morlocks (right) received are only scant mention in Wells' novel, but are seen more frequently in the movie to add greater drama and horror. 

The movie received the Academy Award for Best Special Effects for its time-lapse photographic effects, which show the world changing rapidly as the time traveler (Rod Taylor) journeys into the future aboard his time machine.



 Yvette Mimieux (left) was only 18 years old (born 1942) when she appeared in the film. Here she is being carried off by a Morlock (right).

A reboot of the movie was made in 2002 and took even greater license with Wells's novel, adding more special effects and set in New York City rather than London.


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