Whenever you hear the name The Time Traveler's Wife, do you automatically think it must be a sci-fi movie? Although the title would suggest it is, director Robert Schwentke wants you to know one thing: it isn't. Talking to Sci Fi Wire, he said:
"At the heart of every time-travel narrative there is a paradox, and at some point you just have to roll with it. Since Henry doesn't really change anything in the past that significantly affects anything but personal choices and personal outcome, we kind of tried to run the other way [from the sci-fi] as fast as we could."
On the subject of the sci-fi heavy effects, he explained how his team didn't let them get in the way of their story:
"We didn't have the luxury of having finished visual effects to put in, so we did these really primitive wipes. That's really what they were. We watched the movie with those effects and realized how very little hinged on these effects being fantastically, wonderfully done. Not that they're not wonderfully done, but we became very aware that we needed to downplay them, that they shouldn't get in the way of anything, so it didn't feel at any turn like you're watching a different movie.
It sounds like epic romance is the order of the day for Time Traveler's Wife promotion, with no mention of sci-fi anywhere to be seen. We have to agree. The book isn't about Henry's ability to magically disappear, it's about his relationships and how it affects those around him — and the movie should be, too.