In Time

Directed by Andrew Niccol. Starring Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Murphy, Alex Pettyfer, Collins Pennie 12A cert, gen release, 109 min

IN RECENT years it's become easier to list the films that haven't been subjected to a frivolous it-was-my-idea lawsuit than the ones that have. It thus comes as no shock to learn that the great and famously cantankerous Harlan Ellison is suing the producers behind In Time.

There are admittedly several key similarities between Gattacadirector Andrew Niccol's latest sci-fi confection and Ellison's seminal short story " Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman.But the real problem, from the punter's perspective at least, is that there aren't nearly enough.

This silly, mostly entertaining adventure casts Justin Timberlake as a workaday factory drone in a future where no one ages after they turn 25 and no one dies while they can afford the time, now the major unit of currency. The film begins with a fumbling backstory and an unexpected 100-year windfall from an enigmatic millionaire. It’s enough to transform the minute-to-minute lives of Timberlake and his mom Olivia Wilde – or it would be if she didn’t die during the opening scenes.

Enraged, our hero heads for New Greenwich, where the wealthy, ruling elite mingle and conspire to keep the masses down. Here, Timberlake plans to take down The Man by, erm, shopping and hooking up with a pampered society princess (Seyfried). Car chases and bank robberies ensue.

There's some nice capering on offer and a genuinely lovely two-step between Cillian Murphy's Timecop and his sidekick (Pennie), but major plot holes mar the picture's sneaky socialist premise. Why has nobody ever thought to rob the rich before now? What exactly is Alex Pettyfer's droog doing here? Why is the second act taken up with the runaways sitting around in ugly hotels? Who keeps hiring Amanda Seyfried? Don't expect Blade Runner.