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Timeline
Directed by	Richard Donner
Produced by	Richard Donner
Written by	Michael Crichton (novel), Jeff Maguire, George Nolfi
Starring	Paul Walker, Frances O'Connor, Gerard Butler, Neal McDonough
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	26 November 2003 (USA)
Running time	116 min
Language	English
Budget	~ US$80,000,000
IMDb profile

Timeline is a 2003 film directed by Richard Donner. It stars Paul Walker, Frances O'Connor, Billy Connolly, David Thewlis, Gerard Butler and Anna Friel. Brian Tyler composed the score used in the film.

The 1999 Michael Crichton novel Timeline is the basis for this movie.

Despite its budget of US$80,000,000, Timeline was panned by most critics, and grossed only US$19,480,739 during its American box office run.

In present-day France archaeologist/professor Edward Johnston (Billy Connolly) and his students are excavating a site near the ruins of Castlegard. The village had been burned in 1357 when a massive battle occurred at nearby La Roque Castle, during The Hundred Years War. Even though the English were strong, the French were able to defeat them. Lady Claire (Anna Friel), the sister of Arnaut de Cervole was hanged by the English at the castle in full view of the French. This enraged the French so much that they won the battle against the English.

Johnston and his students Kate Erickson (Frances O'Connor) and André Marek (Gerard Butler) live for the past. Johnston's son Chris (Paul Walker) does not share this passion but he visits his father from time to time mainly to be with Kate, on whom he has a crush. At one point while showing him a sarcophagus of a man and woman who have their hands folded into each other, Marek tries to explain to Chris that our future lies in the past.

When the professor is away reporting to his U.S. sponsors, ITC, Marek and Kate discover an old parchment along with a present-day biffocal lens. Examination shows the writing on the document pleading for help is from the professor, but it was written on April 4, 1357. Confused, Chris calls his father, but he's told his father is no longer there. ITC does, however, invite Chris and the students to its base in New Mexico.

There, they learn time travel is possible and Johnston is now trapped in 1357 near Castlegard -- exactly the spot of the excavations. Since the students are the closest thing to experts on the locations and the time period, they are asked to go back in time and rescue Johnston. With the exception of team physicist, Josh Stern (Ethan Embry), they agree and are joined by security man Frank Gordon (Neal McDonough) and military personnel Jimmy Gomez and Bill Baretto. They are given several markers that, at the push of the button, bring them back home, and are told if they aren't back in six hours, they might not be able to return at all.

They arrive in the middle of the battle between the English and the French, and Gomez is quickly beheaded and Baretto -- just as he is about to throw a grenade -- is struck with arrows and uses his marker to return to the present. André is caught up in the battle and saves the Lady Claire (Anna Friel) by slaying a knight who was attacking her. She brings Andre to the safety of her village, but they're overheard talking to her brother Arnaut by a English spy and captured by the English. They're seen as spies and are brought before the English Lord Oliver de Vannes (Michael Sheen), who tricks and kills one of the students, Frenchman François Dontelle (Rossif Sutherland).

The group is reunited in prison with the Johnston and devises an escape plan based on their knowledge of the day's events. Unfortunately, they don't take into account that their presence has already changed the timeline.

Meanwhile in the present day, Baretto returns to the laboratory and dies, the grenade in his hand exploding and severely damaging the machines. Stern, ITC president Robert Doniger (David Thewlis), and vice-president Steven Kramer (Matt Craven) work as hard as they can to fix them, but Doniger prepares to write the students off as "lost."

The time travellers are forced to remain involved in the battle and are able to change history by saving Lady Claire’s life. At the same time, they learn of the presence of former ITC employee William Decker (Marton Csokas), who has stayed in the past because damage to his internal organs indicates another jump will kill him. This flaw -- that it damages internal organs -- in time travel was witheld from them by Doniger.

Decker kills Gordon and steals all but one of the markers, forcing the students to stay and fight with the French against him and Oliver's English forces. In the nick of time, the machine is fixed and the surviving travellers -- Chris, Johnston, and Kate can return home. André chooses to remain behind with his newfound love, Lady Claire.

Back in present-day France Kate finishes the dig on a sarcophagus by the old La Roque Castle. The inscription is of Marek and Lady Claire, whose three children are named Christopho, Katherine, and François. Marek tells his friends he chose a wonderful life, although he lived only 25 years in the harsh medieval world.

• Paul Walker - Chris Johnston
• Frances O'Connor - Kate Ericson
• Gerard Butler - Andre Marek
• Billy Connolly - Professor Edward A. Johnston
• David Thewlis - Robert Doniger
• Anna Friel - Lady Claire
• Neal McDonough - Frank Gordon
• Matt Craven - Steven Kramer
• Ethan Embry - Josh Stern
• Michael Sheen - Lord Oliver de Vannes
• Lambert Wilson - Lord Arnaut de Cervole
• Marton Csokas - Sir William De Kere/William Decker
• Rossif Sutherland - François Dontelle

• The battle sequences used medieval reenactors.
• The battle of Castlegard never took place. But the movie's crew visited various European castles from around that period (the late 1300s) to make the castles and towns look realistic. However, there are similarities between besieger's strategy in the film and the actual historical event of the siege of Château-Gaillard in France in 1204.
• Tagline: "One man's future lies in the past" and "This fall you're history".
• Greek fire is a forgotten secret weapon, and no one knows the original formula used by the Greeks and the Byzantine Empire.
• Composer Jerry Goldsmith had his score replaced by Brian Tyler's score, because of the changes in the final cut of the film. However both Goldsmith and Tyler's scores were available alongside the movie.
• The character Robert Doniger was named after a teacher of Crichton's daughter, Harriet Jacobs Doniger.

• Trebuchet

• Official site
• Timeline at the Internet Movie Database
• Movie stills