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Hey, guys. It's me again, here once more to become feral over a man not only too old for me, but also fictional. However, this time, it's not an animated character.

No, instead, it's the beauty Christopher Reeve as Richard Collier in Somewhere in Time. A movie that so intensely altered my brain chemistry to the point where I truly may never be able to find a man to meet my always rising and already near-impossible standards. Melodramatic, I know, but if you read this post and then go watch the movie, you'll understand.

Now, I've been a Christopher Reeve girly since watching all four Superman movies back in middle school. That man is an absolute blessing on the eyes and if he were still alive today, he'd be one of the hottest older actors, on the same level as Harrison Ford, Sam Elliot, Kurt Russell, Eric Roberts, Mark Harmon, Micheal Keaton etc. A beloved household name, but definitely someone that younger people would still keep a close eye on.

But after this movie --

holy shit, this movie 😩😩😩

-- my feelings for this man completely skyrocketed, which may make my opinions on this character heavily biased.

But anyway, let's get a move on.

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

Somewhere in Time is a movie about a playwright named Richard Collier (Christopher Reeve) staying at the Grand Hotel after suffering from writer's block. During his stay he becomes taken by a picture of the actress Elise McKenna (Jane Seymour) from 1912 that hung in the hotel's historical room. Completely enraptured, he goes on to find any and every article he can on her life, feeling this innate need to know everything about her. Later, he finds out from an old college professor that he could time travel back to her through hypnosis and from there, their love story ensues.

And holy shit, does it ensue. I literally love everything about this movie. I love the actors. I love the characters. I love the romance. It is all just so good. But my absolute favorite thing about this movie is Richard Collier. (Most likely because it's Christopher Reeve and his performance was immaculate.)

But the way that this man yearns after Elise is just

That man knew that woman's worth and did not try to sell her short but instead kept raising his bid to win her over. He did not care about any obstacle that stood in their way. My man literally TRAVELED THROUGH TIME to be with her. (Looking at it from a science standpoint, the time travel, and overall timeline, is rather whack but we're not going to get into that.) He literally fell for her after seeing a SINGLE photo.

He loved her to the point of creation. The timeline is pretty fucky, but I fully believe that she was his muse even before he was conscious of her existence. This is solidified by the fact that he always kept the pocket watch he older self given him after the opening night of his play on his person. (Sorry, that was confusing to write out.) It was something he looked at everyday -- probably hourly or even more frequently depending -- almost as if he were looking at her everyday. I literally just can't --

However, one moment -- one moment -- within the movie is just so utterly, nauseatingly, overwhelmingly

that I cannot watch the scene just once. No, I have to rewind it at least twice -- if not more, depends on how I'm feeling -- because the way this man pleads for her to just give him the time of day is just

I literally cannot get enough of it. Neither can my best friend. If she's home and sees I'm watching this movie, she'll tell me to play this scene and/or rewind it because the yearning is just so good.

The scene for reference:

The way his face just changes from silly to serious to show her how much spending time with her would mean to him. And also the way he's just so soft with her. Too nervous to scare her off and lose his chance, he's just so aware and gentle with her, switching his tone and mood to match hers. Trying to emphasis his feelings in a way so curated to her. It's just so -- I literally can't.

Again, a lot of these feelings obviously come from the fact that it's Christopher Reeve and he was truly a phenomenal actor. He was professionally trained at Julliard after all. It's just the nuances in his performance. The way that every single movement or change in his tone are just so calculated to create this very specific experience. Because sure, they could've gotten someone else to play Richard, but it would not have even come close to Christopher's performance. I can say with my full chest that I don't think anyone else could have played this character as well as he did. The little details would just not be the same. Richard wouldn't be Richard.

Like, look at him -- LOOK AT HIM -- you can literally SEE the love and adoration that he holds for Elise, especially when he watches her perform. His eyes are glistening, he's slightly leaned forward to indicate his attention, his lips are pulled into the faintest smile as he tries to contain himself. This man looks like he might burst from the absolute fascination he holds for her. And again, I fully believe that Christopher is the only man who could give this to us in this particular film.

Though it had to be easy to act this out when you look at his costar, Jane Seymour. She was amazing as Elise. I loved her performance and her timeless beauty was perfect for this role. And her hair? Oh my god, it was so gorgeous. I wish my hair was that luxurious, but I digress. I feel that her effortless grace was perfect for this role and I couldn't imagine someone else as Elise. The chemistry between her and Christopher was perfect.

She was completely entranced by him but the restraint, the walls, she kept up to avoid getting hurt because of some vision was perfection. She was soft spoken yet strong, elegant yet messy, she was everything that Elise needed to be. And every time she and Richard were on screen together, you could literally see the sparks flying between them. There was no doubt about their characters being in love. The tension and pull were always there.

Sadly, this all comes to an end when he finds a penny from 1979 in his pocket, completely taking him out of the illusion the hypnosis put him in. Then this man literally DIES because he couldn't live without her by his side. And finally, they're reunited in death, which was not how I envisioned the movie ending but I can't say that I'm necessarily disappointed. I'm obviously sad that they didn't end up together back when Elise was at the height of her acting career as that would've been the BEST ending. Like, an actress wife with a playwright husband who is so inspired by her mere existence? Give me 20. However, I'm happy it wasn't just an ending where he then just went back to his everyday life. I don't know, I liked the ending in a weird way because the idea of two souls so intertwined that one can't live without the other is so tragically beautiful. It's very reminiscent of the "Broken Heart Syndrome" commonly seen in elderly couples. Again, I would've preferred them being together in life, but that was not in the cards 😔.

Anyway, I'll calm down now. I just really love this movie and wanted to write out my thoughts about it because it's been eating at me every time I've rewatched it. I highly recommend it if you like Christopher Reeve, it truly is one of, if not the, best performances of his career. (Something I wish we would've gotten more of 😭.) But it's also good if you just like romance movies in general.

Thanks for listening to me rant. Bye! 😚

Hell, here's some more Christopher Reeve as a parting gift.

One of my all time favorite films: Somewhere in Time. I wish I could convey in words how much I love this film. I recently found out that Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour actually fell in love while filming the movie. This makes it all the sweeter knowing this now.

#somewhere in time #somewhere in time day #June 27th #christopher reeve #jane seymour #romantic movies #romantic #1980 #dreamy #80's film #richard collier #elise mckenna