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Retroactive

Play trailer Poster for Retroactive R 1997 1h 27m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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57% Tomatometer 7 Reviews 48% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Stranded on the road, psychiatrist Karen (Kylie Travis) is offered a ride by Frank (James Belushi), a disturbingly jealous man traveling across Texas with his wife, Rayanne (Shannon Whirry). At a gas station, Frank learns from a crony that Rayanne is cheating on him, so he kills her. Karen escapes to a research facility run by scientist Brian (Frank Whaley) and uses his time-travel technology to try to stop the murder -- but only manages to increase the carnage with every trip back.

Critics Reviews

View All (7) Critics Reviews
Geoff Andrew Time Out With its explosive action, black comedy and far-fetched sci-fi imposed on an otherwise vaguely plausible crime thriller, this modest indie film is reminiscent of such low budget '80s exploiters as Tremors and the work of Charles Band. Feb 9, 2006 Full Review Chuck O'Leary FulvueDrive-in.com A high-energy road thriller with a time-travel twist. A fast, fun 90 minutes. Rated: 7/10 Mar 2, 2006 Full Review Caffeinated Clint Moviehole Belushi's career just got flushed down the toilet Rated: 1/5 Sep 17, 2002 Full Review Scott Weinberg eFilmCritic.com Rated: 1/5 Jul 26, 2002 Full Review Diane Selkirk Apollo Guide If a repulsive main character and lots of bloodshed appeal to you, Retroactive might be your movie. But that's about all it has going for it. Rated: 52/100 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Christopher Null Filmcritic.com There's nary a talented bone up there. But surprise, this isn't such a bad movie. Rated: 3/5 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (49) audience reviews
gary d Interesting plot idea gone wrong. Disappointing, because it could of been much better. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member This time-travel roadmovie needs a while to get interesting, but every jump back just makes a bigger mess. Belushi really has a good time playing the badguy! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Nice premise, but over the top Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member "Groundhog's Day" meets "The Hitcher." Kylie Travis makes the unfortunate mistake of hitching a ride with mutton-chopped killer Jim Belushi and his wife. Travis ends up witnessing Belushi killing a cop, his wife and assorted others. Belushi then chases her into a secret government facility where she is accidentally sent back in time, finding herself back in Belushi's car. The story then has Travis trying to play out the scenario differently several different ways. I always find these types of stories interesting, seeing how characters might try to rewrite their own history, but these stories can easily become tedious and annoying. This film manages to stay interesting, with the characters making smart choices and also does it with some decent action sequences. Although the film is strictly Roger Corman/Charles Band quality, taken on that level, it's a pretty entertaining film. And it never hurts to cast M. Emmet Walsh in your film. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Great time manipulation experience--Great concept, fun thriller!! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member I saw this little gem of a movie 10 years ago or so and had almost forgot about it, but while looking through IMDB to help me add to my James Belushi dvd collection I clicked on the link it and it all came back to me of how good this movie was, so right away I had to see if it was on dvd and then I had to get it (amazon uk £3.95) The movie is Groundhog Day meets 12:01 meets The Hitcher. I don't want to give any of the plot away as it's best not knowing much about it and just letting it play out. James Belushi is great in this and Kylie Travis is also very good (she gave up acting in 2001 though) and it's almost like a 2 actor play although there are other actors in it (not many) like Frank Whaley (swimming with Sharks). The movie is well shot and the fx are good for it's low budget. Well worth an hour and a half of your time. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Retroactive

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Stranded on the road, psychiatrist Karen (Kylie Travis) is offered a ride by Frank (James Belushi), a disturbingly jealous man traveling across Texas with his wife, Rayanne (Shannon Whirry). At a gas station, Frank learns from a crony that Rayanne is cheating on him, so he kills her. Karen escapes to a research facility run by scientist Brian (Frank Whaley) and uses his time-travel technology to try to stop the murder -- but only manages to increase the carnage with every trip back.
Director
Louis Morneau
Producer
Brad Krevoy, Steven Stabler, David Bixler, Michael Nadeau
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (DVD)
Mar 6, 2007
Runtime
1h 27m