Clockstoppers was released in 2002. (same year The Bourne Identity came out) It received negative reviews from critics and flopped at the box office.
With Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated spy film “Tenet” will officially come out in theaters this September, I’d like to share my thoughts on Clockstoppers. What do these two movies both have in common? They involve time manipulation and spy elements.
Today’s review doesn’t contain no SPOILERS. Feel free to read my non-spoiler article.
Fast & Slow Qualities
Fast: Jesse Bradford, (who hasn’t been in anything since then) French Stewart & Michael Biehn all did a good job for their respective performances. French’s role as Dopler made me laugh my rump off. He deserves an Extra Point.
Jonathan Frakes (Riker from Star Trek: The Next Generation) did an ok job directing the film.
“Star Trek” is briefly mentioned. Commander Riker obviously directed Clockstoppers. Plus “Star Trek: Nemesis” came out in 2002. It took seven years for Paramount Pictures to finally make a decent Star Trek movie.
At one point, Britney Spears is mentioned. Her movie called, “Crossroads” was a critical & financial flop. Coincidentally, it was distributed by Paramount Pictures.
Chemistry between Zak & Francesca felt normal. There’s no forced romance between them. Thank goodness. I dislike early romantic tensions between two people.
Cinematography never had any camera issues throughout.
Some of the jokes were funny. Especially Dopler’s scenes.
Whenever Zak stops the flow of speed, everything goes in “Bullet Time.” Looks like Jonathan & Nickelodeon watched “The Matrix.” Keep in mind, The Matrix was either constantly referenced or spoofed back in the early 2000’s.
Gates, who is the main villain yells, “YOU IDIOT!” Perhaps a shout-out to “Ren & Stimpy?”
Zak paraphrases Uncle Ben’s “With great power comes great responsibility.” Sony’s biggest movie of 2002, “Spider-Man” was released.
One of Zak’s outfits is a red vest and blue shirt. A nod to Marty McFly’s iconic outfit from “Back To The Future.”
Zak wears a freeze gun that resembles a proton pack from “Ghostbusters.” At least nobody is saying terrible ice puns.
Is it me or does a bully with spiky blonde hair remind me of the manager of Mondo Burger? You know the villain from “Good Burger?”
Smash Mouth’s “Holiday In My Head” is heard twice. It’s played in one scene as well as the end credits. Another Smash Mouth song “Ain’t No Mystery” was also used in a spy comedy known as “Austin Powers In Goldmember.”
Speaking of Austin Powers, 2002 had a lot of spy movies that came out the following year including “The Sum Of All Fears,” “Collateral Damage,” “Lilo & Stitch,” “Die Another Day,” “Men In Black II,” “Bad Company,” “The Tuxedo,” “Hey Arnold: The Movie,” “The Master Of Disguise,” “Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course,” “I Spy,” “Undercover Brother,” “Spy Kids 2: The Island Of Lost Dreams,” “The Bourne Identity,” “Triple XXX” and “Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind.” Clockstoppers counts as a spy film too.
Slow: The opening scene at an airport has no TSA security, indicates the film is a tad dated. Back then, Clockstoppers alongside several movies were filmed back in 2001 before 9/11 tragically happened.
Somebody does karate moves in front of a animal. Oh wait, this is a Nickelodeon produced movie. If somebody acts like a buffoon knowing karate or kung-fu Jackie Chan will roll his eyes feeling embarrassed.
Some of the special effects didn’t seem to age pretty well for a movie that came out in 2002.
Product Placement featuring brands such as American Airlines, Pepsi, BMW, eBay, Apple & Nikon. I’ll give this flaw a pass, because I couldn’t find any other brand to shove down my throat.
The Final Verdict: B-
Clockstoppers isn’t that a clunker nor a masterpiece. Just a typical average family film kids who grew in the early 2000’s like me. When I was a kid, I thought it was good. Now that I’m older, it’s neither a stinker or an instant classic. If you want to introduce your kids to a nostalgic movie back when Snick (former Nickelodeon block) was around, go ahead and give this one a try.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 