The Time Machine

Retaining the period setting but stripping away the attack on the British class system, George Pal (who made a much better job of War of the Worlds) reduces HG Wells' sci-fi novel to its bare bones. Taylor is the scientist flung forward in time to the year 802,701, where he encourages the peace-loving Elois to rise up against their subterranean enemies, the Morlocks. The quaint time machine and Oscar-winning special effects hold one's interest initially, but the overall effect is one of glossy emptiness.