Still Time (2023)
Story overview
Still Time is a 2023 Italian romantic comedy-drama about Dante, a man who accidentally kisses Alice and gets engaged to her. After his 40th birthday party, he wakes up a year later with no memory of the intervening time, discovering Alice is pregnant. As he struggles to piece together lost memories, he grapples with the feeling that time is passing too quickly and he's forgetting important life moments. The film explores themes of love, memory, aging, and the passage of time with humor and emotional depth.
Parent Guide
Still Time is a thoughtful romantic comedy-drama that explores mature themes of relationships, memory, and aging through a magical realism lens. While not explicitly graphic, it deals with adult situations and emotional complexity that may be better suited for teenagers with parental guidance. The TV-MA rating reflects thematic elements rather than explicit content.
Content breakdown
No physical violence, fighting, or perilous situations. The film focuses on emotional and relational challenges rather than physical danger.
Some viewers might find the concept of rapidly losing memories and time passing uncontrollably to be unsettling or existential. The film explores anxiety about aging and forgetting important life moments, which could be emotionally intense for sensitive viewers.
Occasional mild profanity in Italian (with English subtitles). No strong or frequent offensive language. Typical of romantic comedy dialogue.
Romantic situations including kissing and implied intimacy between committed partners. Discussion of pregnancy and relationships. No explicit nudity or graphic sexual content. The film handles adult relationships tastefully.
Social drinking at parties and celebrations typical of adult social settings. No excessive drinking, drunkenness, or drug use depicted.
Significant emotional themes including anxiety about aging, fear of forgetting important memories, relationship stress, and the challenges of unexpected pregnancy. The film balances these with comedic moments but maintains thoughtful emotional depth throughout.
Parent tips
This film deals with mature themes of relationships, pregnancy, and midlife anxiety in a comedic but thoughtful way. The TV-MA rating suggests content may be unsuitable for children under 17 without parental guidance. Parents should be aware of romantic situations, mild adult humor, and emotional themes about aging and memory loss that might require explanation for younger viewers. The film's exploration of time passing quickly and forgetting important moments could prompt meaningful family discussions about cherishing present moments.
Parent chat guide
Parent follow-up questions
- What was your favorite part of the movie?
- How did the characters show they cared about each other?
- What does it mean to remember something important?
- Why do you think Dante was worried about forgetting things?
- How did Alice feel when Dante couldn't remember their time together?
- What does it mean when people say 'time flies'?
- What challenges did Dante face in his relationship with Alice?
- How did the film show that relationships require work and communication?
- What message do you think the film was trying to share about appreciating the present?
- How does the film explore themes of midlife crisis and personal identity?
- What commentary does the film make about modern relationships and commitment?
- How does the magical realism element enhance the film's exploration of memory and time perception?
🎭 Story Kernel
Still Time is a poignant exploration of the modern obsession with productivity at the expense of presence. Through Dante’s involuntary time-leaps, the film critiques the 'hustle culture' that treats life as a series of milestones to be checked off rather than moments to be inhabited. It isn't just a fantasy about time travel; it’s a psychological autopsy of a man who is physically present but emotionally absent. The narrative suggests that by constantly preparing for the future, Dante effectively erases his own existence. The tragedy lies in his realization that while he was busy 'building a life,' he missed the actual living of it. It’s a cautionary tale about the irreversible nature of time and the high cost of a distracted mind, framed within the relatable domesticity of a crumbling marriage and a daughter who grows up in the blink of an eye.
🎬 Visual Aesthetics
Aronadio employs a visual palette that shifts subtly to reflect Dante’s disorientation. The cinematography uses tight framing and shallow depth of field to emphasize Dante’s isolation even when surrounded by family. As the years skip, the lighting transitions from the warm, hopeful glow of his fortieth birthday to a more sterile, cold aesthetic that mirrors his emotional detachment and the clinical efficiency of his work life. Symbolism is heavy in the recurring use of clocks and the physical transformation of the apartment, which becomes a character in itself—changing decor and clutter signaling the passage of time that Dante cannot grasp. The editing is particularly sharp, using jump cuts not just for pacing, but as a narrative tool to mimic the jarring, fragmented nature of Dante’s lived experience, making the audience feel his vertigo.
🔍 Details & Easter Eggs
💡 Behind the Scenes
Still Time (Era ora) is an Italian remake of the 2021 Australian film Long Story Short, written and directed by Josh Lawson. Director Alessandro Aronadio adapted the script to fit a Roman setting, infusing it with a specific Italian cultural sensibility regarding family and work-life balance. The film stars Edoardo Leo, a staple of modern Italian cinema known for blending comedy with pathos. It premiered at the Rome Film Festival in 2022 before its global release on Netflix in 2023, where it became a surprise international hit, resonating with audiences facing 'time-poverty' in the digital age.
Where to watch
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