The
Reconstruction of Time Machine III
- the sequel to the Pal movie and book
Part II: The synopsis of Time Machine III
This synopsis will answer these questions:
David Filby is sitting in the cockpit and crying for help. A plane crashes on the coast of France; George Wells is violently waking up from his nightmare of his friend's fate. Weena is soothing him and David, his 15-year old son, is coming in from a hut outside (yes, they live among the Eloi – a world now without Morlocks) "I almost forgot: I must rescue Mr. Filby before it's too late!" says George and sits in the Time Machine. George feels the obstacle in the March 19:th 1941 as violent bumps, but he passes through/along it.
He arrives in his laboratory where Mr. Filby is (and which is dramatized in the documentary film) and when he can't get Mr. Filby with him, he takes his son David from the future and travels back to May 14:th 1916. When Filby sees the son of George he is finally convinced and comes with him in the Machine. (It's tight but they fit in.)
But when they arrive in the year 802710 the world is totally changed and Weena is nowhere! George realizes that there was no nuclear World War III in 1966. And he sadly realizes that he has saved his best friend for the price of his beloved wife Weena, who is stuck in the parallel world!
To get Weena back, George must either go back to 1916 with Filby, crash the plane himself or start a nuclear war in 1966. Sacrifice his wife, his friend or a million innocent lives? George curses the Time Machine as abominable and Filby smirks: "I told you years ago to destroy it before it destroys you!"
So far the reconstruction was easy to do with pure logic within the stories of George Pal and David Duncan. Now comes the hard part: how will this intriguing story end? The following part below will look more like a rough draft than a synopsis, because the details are important for the story.
Mr. Filby says in a low voice: "Take me back; I'll be more cautious under my flight to France. I'll not crash..."
George replies: "If you fly that machine, you fly into a certain death! I that timeline you are destined to crash on the coast of France!"
"It's my duty to do that", says Mr. Filby, "for the country and for your wife!"
Then George starts to think aloud: "Why isn't a World War III in 1966, in this timeline? It is perhaps because of the guy who flew the flying machine instead of Mr. Filby, was the same guy who launched the first atomic satellites and started World War III! And it was the World War III which created the world of Morlock and Eloi! But it was the World War III which almost destroyed Earth and killed millions of innocent people! And if I start the World War III, I will condemn both the son of Mr. Filby and my own son to live the rest of their lives in a shelter without sun, trees and fresh air! No, I will not condemn the Earth to a total war! I want to live in a peaceful present without wars!"
Mr. Filby smiles. "So you want to live in the now after all?"
George nods. "Because of my son here. I will not throw him into any danger."
"I want my mother back!" shouts David. "I'll go back and destroy that flying machine so that the guy who started World War III will never crash on the coast of France!" And then he pulls the lever into reverse and they all three travels back in time to the point of last departure early in the morning of May 14. "Now Mr. Filby come with me and show me which flying machine is yours!"
David and Mr. Filby runs to the military headquarter and George runs after them. From the outside of the fence Mr. Filby points out his plane. Then David puts Mr. Filby's uniform on, and goes to the guard. The guard look at David "You look very young, Mr. Filby!" but he lets him in. David goes to Mr. Filby's plane and he ignites a fire in it. But a man sees him and runs towards him but it is too late, the plane is on fire. David fights the man and then the plane explodes. David is slightly injured, because he was partly protected by the unknown fighter. The Guards run towards David who says that the fighter did the sabotage. The guards believe him and one of them says: "The technician is dead, but I knew him. He was a sort of a madman, talking about atomic satellites and such things; he had read too much science-fiction novels ..."
Mr. Filby's plane is destroyed and David asks for permission. But no, the guards want him to fly another plane! He runs towards Mr. Filby and George at the fence. "Help me, I can't fly!" George and Mr. Filby rushes to the entrance but the guard will not let them in. "No civilians allowed!" "But look at him, he is terrified! He will crash before the lift-off!" says George. "He will do his duty, terrified or not!" replies the guard.
"We can always travel back in time and rescue him..." whispers Mr. Filby calmly but George is terrified. "Dear friend, listen to me: the time's up."
"How?"
"Why was I five minutes late to the eight o'clock dinner in 5:th January? Because I was five days, one hour and 35 minutes in the future world and I started my journey through time half past six in the evening December 31. The time machine has some sort of duration: it had existed in five days, one hour and 35 minutes and therefore I didn't manage to come to the dinner in time. I do not have all the time in the world as I thought before; I have only the time where the time machine is nonexistent. And when I came to rescue you the time was almost up for me. I can't rescue my son because I can't travel back in time further than this morning!"
"You rescued me for the price of your wife Weena and now for the price of your son! If you hadn't travelled back in time you would have both wife and son!"
"But why didn't you come with me when I came alone to you in the evening of May 13?"
"Then you would have lost both son and wife in the parallel world. But your son is not yet lost, he is right there, we can still rescue him! I know a secret passage in to the aerodrome, but hurry, we must run through tunnels!" George and Mr. Filby sneaks in and after an adventure, they successfully gets David out of the military area. "The plane is destroyed, now we can travel back home to the future!" says David and they all three sits in the time machine and travels to the year 802710. But the world is still totally changed and Weena is still nowhere!
David is in despair: "I - I do not understand ... Mr. Filby's flying machine is destroyed! Why ...??" And then he understands. "The technician who fought with me! The flying machine exploded but he protected me with his body and he-"
"... He was the same guy who started World War III." George nods. "Yes, he was killed by accident but in the same way he saved you and the world."
"No... No! I must travel back in time to rescue him!"
"You can't. The time's up", says George calmly. David realizes that he will never see his mother Weena again, unless… "Then I will rebuild this Time Machine that it can go through those obstacles! But first I will go back to an era with modern technology..."
They all three travel back to April 28 1966 and arrives in the park besides the sun dial. David leaps out of the machine and shouts: "I will start World War III and then I will travel back to my mother!"
"Is it that what you want? Sacrifice a millions of lives?" George and Mr. Filby steps out of the machine, but George pulls the lever. The empty machine vanishes. "I want to live in the present with you and my best friend. Weena is still living, but in a parallel future. Believe me; we will have a nice time in this era, without World War III. And besides, you are old enough to find yourself a nice wife here and have your own children, and I sincerely hope they will grow up and live in a world without any World War."
Mr. Filby happily nods. "George my dear friend, at last you will live in the now! And your machine is destroyed at last!"
"It is not destroyed, David; it is still here and travelling into the far future..."
Mr. Filby smiles curiously. "But I had to know: Which three books did you take to the world of Eloi?"
"It's a long story about them, but I can tell you that it was neither the Bible nor Darwin's The Origin of Species..." They all three walk away in the park.
THE END
This I have made here is only some sort of a synopsis and I don't know yet if I later will do a movie script. But if some film company will do a movie of this, it is very important that they read both the synopsis and the blueprint! The last two sentences are the most important ones, because they are based on the end of the original Pal movie and David Duncan's own words. Click here and read the interview about the three books.
A movie with a lot of logic errors is a movie of disappointment...
This synopsis was made in the memory of George
Pal and David Duncan.
If you want to ask me things about this synopsis or if you find errors in it,
here is my e-mail.
Sandra Petojevic, Master of Arts, September
17, 2006
(updated with the link below, December 14, 2013)
To The Legend of the world Terra Geopal-Wells