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Grand Tour: Disaster In Time
01/08/2006 . Source: Geoff Willmetts 
Region 1 :DVD. Anchor Bay Entertainment DV12055. 99 minute film with no extras. Price: $ 9.98 (US) although I got mine for $ 6.99). Stars: Jeff Daniels, Ariana Richards, Emilia Crow, Jim Hayne, Marilyn Lightstone and George Murdock. Buy Grand Tour Disaster In Time in the USA - or Buy Grand Tour Disaster In Time in the UK  check out website: www.anchorbayentertainment.com
There are many reasons you'd want to pick up the DVD of 'Grand Tour: Disaster In Time'. As 'Timescape' this 1991 film had a UK video release but nothing since. It's one of the earliest films by director David 'Pitch Black' Twohy'. It's the only film so far that has been based on the work of SF author C.L. Moore, in this case, the short story 'Vintage Season'. It might have a more upbeat ending but its done so subtly that it's a film that you really have to pay attention to what is going on.
Widower Ben Wilson (actor Jeff Daniels) is an occasional drunk and boarding house owner, looking after his daughter and trying to forget how he ran from the car after it had ran into a horse that smashed into the windscreen, killing his wife. Into this mix, enters a guide and her bunch of tourists who want to hire rooms of his house, still in total disrepair, to watch a grand spectacle. What it is, Wilson is curious to discover.
When one of the tourists in the town gets knocked down when not paying attention to the road, the local doctor points out his guest has something flat lodged behind his eyes. A lost passport also indicates tourist destinations that match points in American history when critical disasters happen. The recovered tourist also warns Wilson not to stay in the area. A bit difficult when his dead wife's father decides to take custody of his daughter and the tourists are not keen on him passing knowledge of what he knows by drugging him.
In many respects, watching this film again and there is a slight feeling that its only a couple stages up from a TV movie but most of that can be attributed to how low-key its played than budget. Speaking of which, this is very much in nascent CGI days and any camera tricks are still literally that. The story is very much rooted in a mid-west town, Greenglen, and using the plot device in a logical manner.
It's also a rather nice touch to feature actor Robert Colbert, who was in the 60s TV series 'The Time Tunnel', in a couple scenes. A nice gentle but cleverly thought out movie to while away the time, if you have a multi-regional DVD player, if you find this weather too warm but watch out for meteorite strikes. Simply grand.
GF Willmetts
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