One of Netflix's most-watched movies this week is an old sci-fi film that everybody hated

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By Nasima Khatun

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Whatever genre you're into, Netflix has a wide variety of TV series and movies that are available to watch suited for everyone. While a lot of them are actually pretty good, there are a handful that are... a little less than impressive.

In Time, a movie that was directed by Andrew Niccol and originally released in 2011, tells the story of an alternate universe where people stop aging at 25, but are engineered to live only one more year. That means having the means to buy your way out of the situation is a shot at immortal youth.

Will Salas, played by Justin Timberlake, finds himself accused of murder and on the run with a hostage - a connection that becomes an important part of the way against the system.

At the time, critics branded the movie as unsatisfying with NME slamming its "shoddy dialogue, appalling acting and muddling of tone". The Atlantic said "it feels like it's been stolen from a forgotten Star Trek script" and the East Bay Express said that "nobody should waste a minute of their life on this baloney."

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Amanda Seyfried and Justin Timberlake starred in In Time in 2011. Credit: Juan Naharro Gimenez/FilmMagic/Getty

The Guardian gave it a slightly more positive review - I use that term lightly - writing: "Niccol's anti-capitalist allegory is clunky, his premise dense, but this is still a playful caper that ticks along on the strength of its cast. As such, it's just about worth spending time on."

While initially, the movie didn't really seem to get the recognition the creators were hoping for, also earning itself a pretty abysmal overall score of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems as though it is now gaining some traction after it was uploaded to Netflix.

However, I don't think anyone thought it would do so well that it's now become the third most-watched movie on the streaming service, despite a whole bunch of new movies also being added to the platform this month.

As per Tech Radar, the answer lies in social media users.

After clips of the movie were posted to TikTok, it seems as though people were left intrigued by the storyline and headed straight to Netflix to give it a watch.

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The movie is doing better over a decade after its release than it did at the time. Credit: Dave M. Benett/Getty

And according to the outlet, this isn't even the first time this has happened. Last year the movie also saw another influx of fans after a bunch of YouTubers claimed that it was "underrated."

I mean, I've watched the film and while I wouldn't put it into my top 10, it's worth the watch if you're looking to wind down with something easily digestible, or if you need a bit of a passive watch while you get on with some household tasks - either way, give it a watch and see what you think.

Featured Image Credit: Dave M. Benett/Getty

One of Netflix's most-watched movies this week is an old sci-fi film that everybody hated

vt-author-image

By Nasima Khatun

Article saved!Article saved!

Whatever genre you're into, Netflix has a wide variety of TV series and movies that are available to watch suited for everyone. While a lot of them are actually pretty good, there are a handful that are... a little less than impressive.

In Time, a movie that was directed by Andrew Niccol and originally released in 2011, tells the story of an alternate universe where people stop aging at 25, but are engineered to live only one more year. That means having the means to buy your way out of the situation is a shot at immortal youth.

Will Salas, played by Justin Timberlake, finds himself accused of murder and on the run with a hostage - a connection that becomes an important part of the way against the system.

At the time, critics branded the movie as unsatisfying with NME slamming its "shoddy dialogue, appalling acting and muddling of tone". The Atlantic said "it feels like it's been stolen from a forgotten Star Trek script" and the East Bay Express said that "nobody should waste a minute of their life on this baloney."

wp-image-1263230470 size-full
Amanda Seyfried and Justin Timberlake starred in In Time in 2011. Credit: Juan Naharro Gimenez/FilmMagic/Getty

The Guardian gave it a slightly more positive review - I use that term lightly - writing: "Niccol's anti-capitalist allegory is clunky, his premise dense, but this is still a playful caper that ticks along on the strength of its cast. As such, it's just about worth spending time on."

While initially, the movie didn't really seem to get the recognition the creators were hoping for, also earning itself a pretty abysmal overall score of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems as though it is now gaining some traction after it was uploaded to Netflix.

However, I don't think anyone thought it would do so well that it's now become the third most-watched movie on the streaming service, despite a whole bunch of new movies also being added to the platform this month.

As per Tech Radar, the answer lies in social media users.

After clips of the movie were posted to TikTok, it seems as though people were left intrigued by the storyline and headed straight to Netflix to give it a watch.

wp-image-1263230475 size-full
The movie is doing better over a decade after its release than it did at the time. Credit: Dave M. Benett/Getty

And according to the outlet, this isn't even the first time this has happened. Last year the movie also saw another influx of fans after a bunch of YouTubers claimed that it was "underrated."

I mean, I've watched the film and while I wouldn't put it into my top 10, it's worth the watch if you're looking to wind down with something easily digestible, or if you need a bit of a passive watch while you get on with some household tasks - either way, give it a watch and see what you think.

Featured Image Credit: Dave M. Benett/Getty