Arts & Entertainment
 

Kutcher transforms

Young actor proves to be more than 'Kelso' and 'Dude' with leading role in sci-fi thriller

By Ray Hafner
The Daily Cougar

Equal parts science fiction, esoteric thriller and pop-psychology lesson, Ashton Kutcher's The Butterfly Effect takes a simple premise and manages to crank out an enjoyable yarn that'll keep audiences guessing.

While mourning the death of a childhood friend, 20-year-old Evan Treborn (Kutcher) discovers that if he squints his eyes and contorts his face while reading his childhood journals he can travel back in time to fix some of the most traumatic moments in his life. But as the tag line "Change one thing. Change everything" suggests, these ripples in time have a way of becoming hurricanes down the line.

The film has a lot of ideas it's working with, and manages to walk the line between being entertaining and being too smart for its own good, but it sometimes boils things down so much it's almost laughable. Treborn, a college student studying psychology in hopes of understanding his memory, actually says, "If I can understand how a simple worm's memory works it should help me explain the complexities of the human brain." Yeah, that's all it'll take.

The actors get to have a lot of fun with the character changes, and that's also one of the best parts for the audience. There's a perverse appeal to watching a sorority princess, played by Amy Smart, become a seedy, drug-addicted prostitute. Smart delivers a solid performance in a pivotal role.

Ethan Suplee gives a nice turn as a suave goth who takes no crap but keeps the ladies happy.

January is typically a dumping ground for movies studios don't believe in, and one can see how a middle-aged exec might not have faith in The Butterfly Effect. But its young director and writer Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber, the same force behind Final Destination, have created a clever flick that's sure to entertain anyone who doesn't own their own home.

The Butterfly Effect

Rated: R

Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart

New Line Cinema

The verdict: Entertaining and clever, Kutcher surprises, and the movie delivers.
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