A Glean movie guide
Mind-Bending Time Travel Paradoxes
Whatever you do, don't meet yourself.
Master the logic of loops, leaps, and causal knots with these essential sci-fi films.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Primer
The gold standard for realistic, ultra-complex temporal mechanics and recursive loops.
A group of fledgling inventors discover a complex method to manipulate reality. At first, they successfully game the stock market with it, but the consequences of the invention start to catch up with them.
- 02
Predestination
A shocking exploration of identity and the ultimate self-sustaining causal loop.
Predestination chronicles the life of a Temporal Agent sent on an intricate series of time-travel journeys designed to prevent future killers from committing their crimes. Now, on his final assignment, the Agent must stop the one criminal that has eluded him throughout time and prevent a devastating attack in which thousands of lives will be lost.
- 03
12 Monkeys
A gritty, atmospheric look at the futility of trying to change a fixed past.
In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivors into underground communities. But when Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990 instead of 1996, he's arrested and locked up in a mental hospital. There he meets psychiatrist Dr. Kathryn Railly and the son of a famous virus expert who may hold the key to the Army of the 12 Monkeys; thought to be responsible for unleashing the killer disease.
- 04
Timecrimes
A masterclass in tight storytelling where every desperate action only serves to fulfill the loop.
A man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.
- 05
Looper
A stylish thriller that visualizes the visceral physical consequences of altering one's own history.
In the year 2044, time travel has not yet been invented but in 30 years it will have been. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they will send their target into the past where a looper, a hired gun, like Joe is waiting to mop up. Joe is getting rich and life is good until the day the mob decides to close the loop, sending back Joe's future self for assassination.
- 06
Tenet
A massive, high-stakes puzzle built around the concept of objects moving backward through time.
Armed with only one word - Tenet - and fighting for the survival of the entire world, the Protagonist journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in something beyond real time.
- 07
Triangle
A haunting, recursive nightmare that traps its protagonist in an infinite temporal trap.
When Jess sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong.
- 08
The Terminator
The definitive cinematic example of a bootstrap paradox that defines an entire franchise.
In the post-apocalyptic future, reigning tyrannical supercomputers teleport a cyborg assassin known as the "Terminator" back to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son is destined to lead insurgents against 21st century mechanical hegemony. Meanwhile, the human-resistance movement dispatches a lone warrior to safeguard Sarah. Can he stop the virtually indestructible killing machine?
- 09
Donnie Darko
A surreal cult classic that blends teenage angst with the philosophy of tangent universes.
After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
- 10
Back to the Future
The quintessential introduction to the grandfather paradox and the dangers of rewriting history.
Eighties teenager Marty McFly is accidentally sent back in time to 1955, inadvertently disrupting his parents' first meeting and attracting his mother's romantic interest. Marty must repair the damage to history by rekindling his parents' romance and - with the help of his eccentric inventor friend Doc Brown - return to 1985.
- 11
Interstellar
A grand space epic that uses gravity and time dilation to create a moving temporal circle.
The adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.
- 12
Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel
A clever, meta-comedy that deconstructs the very tropes and rules of the time travel genre.
Follows three social outcasts -- two geeks and a cynic -- as they attempt to navigate a time-travel conundrum in the middle of a British pub.