There are so many reasons why one might get stuck in a time loop. Or that a benevolent (or evil) being might place you in one! Are you a cynical corporate lady and/or materialistic teen? Oh, Santa’s gonna put you in a time loop ’til you learn your lesson. Were you a bad boy on Earth and/or made a deal with a demon at a crossroads for a single breakfast burrito in exchange for your soul (in hindsight, NEVER make crossroads deals while drunk—you’re very hungry for burritos then)? The Devil’s gonna put you in a time loop of your worst moments as punishment. Did you…go into a cave once? Time loop. LOOK. I don’t make the time loop rules. Don’t go into caves. They’re CREEPY. AND THERE ALSO COULD BE CAVE PEOPLE DOWN THERE. OKAY? Anyway, regardless of the reason you’ve been forced into a time loop, I’m here to say thank you. I love every second of your endless torture. I love how you jump off cliffs and are rude because it “doesn’t matter,” and, by golly, I love when you learn how to play the piano, and everyone is like, Woah! How’d you learn to play the piano?” Nothing gives ME more joy, than your time loop. Here are the best time loop movies, ranked.
There are so many reasons why one might get stuck in a time loop. Or that a benevolent or evil being might place you in one! Are you a cynical corporate lady and/or materialistic teen? Oh, Santa’s gonna put you in a time loop ’til you learn your lesson. Were you a bad boy on Earth and/or made a deal with a man at a crossroads for a single breakfast burrito in exchange for your soul (in hindsight, NEVER make crossroads deals while drunk)? The Devil’s gonna put you in a time loop of your worst moments as punishment. Did you…go into a cave once? Time loop. LOOK. I don’t make the time loop rules. Don’t go into caves. They’re CREEPY. AND THERE ALSO COULD BE CAVE PEOPLE DOWN THERE. OKAY? Anyway, regardless of the reason you’ve been forced into a time loop, I’m here to say thank you. I love every second of your endless torture. I love how you jump off cliffs and are rude because it “doesn’t matter,” and, by golly, I love when you learn how to play the piano, and everyone is like, Woah! How’d you learn to play the piano? Nothing gives ME more joy, than your time loop. Here are the best time loop movies, ranked.
There are so many reasons why one might get stuck in a time loop. OH NO. I’VE DONE THIS BEFORE, HAVEN’T I? Or that a benevolent or evil being might place you in one! Are you a cynical corporate lady and/or materialistic teen? DON’T MAKE ME DO THIS AGAIN. Oh, Santa’s gonna put you in a time loop ’til you learn your lesson. Were you a bad boy on Earth and/or made a deal with a man on a crossroads for a single breakfast burrito in exchange for your soul (in hindsight, NEVER make crossroads deals while drunk)? I WAS WRONG THIS ISN’T FUN. SANTA? IS THAT YOU? I GET IT! CHRISTMAS IS ABOUT LOVE, PLEASSSSSE The Devil’s gonna put you in a time loop of your worst moments as punishment. I REPENT. OH GOD, THE CAVE THING AGAIN, DON’T MAKE ME WRITE THE CAVE THING AGAIN. Did you…go into a cave once? Time loop. LOOK. I don’t make the time loop rules. Don’t go into caves. They’re CREEPY. AND THERE ALSO COULD BE CAVE PEOPLE DOWN THERE. OKAY? Anyway, regardless of the reason you’ve been forced into a time loop, I’m here to say thank you. ARE YOU SANTA? OR THE DEVIL? OR ARE YOU THE SAME PERSON? THINK ABOUT IT. I’VE NEVER SEEN YOU IN THE SAME ROOM AT THE SAME TIME. I WAS WRONG. THIS ISN’T FUN. (SOBBING) I JUST…I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE SILLY. BUT I WOKE UP WITH MY PERIOD. EVERY DAY I HAVE MY PERIOD AND IT’S BEEN HUNDREDS OF YEARS. I love every second of your endless torture. I love how you jump off cliffs and are rude because it “doesn’t matter,” and, by golly, I love when you learn how to play the piano, and everyone is like, Woah! How’d you learn to play the piano? Nothing gives ME more joy, than your time loop. I’M SORRY. I’m SORRY. I…(Grabs a Groundhog) Here are the best time loop movies, ranked. (Drives off cliff……..)
There are so many reasons why one might get stuck in a time loop. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
9. Before I Fall
I love Zoey Deutch. LOVE. I think she’s the most charming actress on this ball of rock spinning through the universe, that we call home. I think Set it Up is the best RomCom of the past 20 years. Don’t agree? I DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT, IT’S TRUE. In Before I Fall, Deutch plays a popular, teen girl who dies in a terrible car crash and then wakes up to relive that day again and again. Classic.
So, why is this last? It’s a perfectly lovely movie, very watchable and sweet. But not as memorable as some of the others, and not enough time loop antics for my taste. But hey, my taste is sick, murderous garbage, so…grain of salt.
8. The Final Girls
Now, this movie has all the sick murder a sicko like me could want! A teen, whose deceased mother used to be a scream queen in slasher movies, goes to a screening of one of her mom’s old movies with friends, and then is sucked into the screen and forced to live it! What a premise!
This isn’t a traditional time loop film, however, the movie restarts (with the same events happening again and again) every 92 minutes. So, it counts, I think. This is a stylish, super fun romp and nice send-up of 70s/80s slashers. Taissa Farmiga and Malin Ackerman really sell the daughter and mother relationship, even with one of them being a fictional version of themselves as a teen, and that resonates emotionally. Really, all of the fictional characters’ actor counterparts do a fabulous, hilarious job.
So, why isn’t it higher? I’m not crazy about the other “real” characters’ storylines and they ended up being fairly forgettable. If Taissa Farmiga had just dropped into the story by herself and interacted with the fictional teens, it probably would have worked just as well—which is a problem (I know this is blasphemy against the perfect Alia Shawkat, who I adore, but this film just doesn’t use her talents enough). Really, all the actors are great. There’s just SO much going on that it muddles it. This movie is fabulously fun though, and I have watched it multiple times, myself.
7. Free Guy
In another slightly untraditional time loop, Ryan Reynolds finds out he is an NPC character in a video game (a background character). His life resets every day, and he doesn’t know anything is wrong, until one day, he meets a woman who makes him yearn for more.
I did not think I’d love this movie as much as I did. Preview-wise, it seemed like a standard action film, and I don’t play video games, so I figured I wouldn’t get the references. But, oh my gosh, did this thing steal my heart. It’s imaginative, funny, thrilling, and sweet. I just genuinely didn’t want this movie to ever end, the world was so fun, and if it had just looped over and played a second time, I’d have cozied in and enjoyed the ride. Again.
6. Triangle
I felt like a “time loop movie” one day, and so I googled, looking for one that I’d never heard of, which brought me to Triangle. At the time, the only place you could find it was on YouTube, so I assumed it was going to be crappy. I could NOT have been more wrong (btw, this is finally on some streamers, you can watch it for real and not in six parts, like I did). I don’t want to spoil anything about the plot, but this is not only a fantastic and innovative time loop scenario, it is terrifying and a really good horror film. Plus, the ending! I could not get the horror out of my brain for weeks. It’s unsettling and sad and sticks with you.
5. Happy Death Day 1 & 2
Again, had low expectations (I’m starting to see a pattern, am I the worst?), but this movie, and its sequel, are excellent. A woman gets trapped in a time loop in which she’s murdered by a crazed killer every single day. It’s funny and gory, but also, surprisingly has a lot of heart. The murderer reveal twist is super fun and surprising, and there’s a good love story, but I think what really put this film over the top for me is that the sequel isn’t a rehashing of the same premise. It builds out the world and the mythology, bringing it all to a very satisfying conclusion. I’d let these movies murder me as many times as they wanted!
4. Palm Springs
This film, timing-wise, hit right in the heart of the pandemic, when all I wanted was laughs and joy—and boy, did Palm Springs deliver. This is classic, classic time loop stuff. Two people wake up every day at the same wedding. And they fall in love. It has all the hijinks, great characters, and good character growth (for all involved) that you could ask for. I think I’ve seen this four times, it’s just pure, lovely escapism with a nice happy ending. And sometimes, that’s exactly what you need.
3. Edge of Tomorrow
Again, low expectations. I’m sorry, in the words of Buster Bluth, what do you expect, Mother? I’m half machine! I’M A MONSTERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!
Okay, with that out of the way, this movie is so fantastic. A man ends up, sort of accidentally, in a unit of soldiers fighting off an alien invasion, and when he’s hit with some alien goo, he ends up reliving the same day again and again. Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are a blast in this movie and I love all the internal logic and the fast-paced way they show Cruise learning and getting better. It feels realistic, somehow, while not getting bogged down too much. It’s an action movie, but a really good one. And ultimately, I could watch this 8000 times in a row. Sorry, everyone, I didn’t get good at the piano while in my thousand-year time loop. I just watched one single movie for years on end. I’M A MONSTER.
2. 12 Dates of Christmas
I might be the only person who saw the list of the titles HBO MAX removed and went, OH NO, not the 12 Dates of Christmas, ANYTHING BUT THAT. What can I say? I love murder, but I also love two crazy kids, falling in love, while learning the meaning of Christmas by waking up on the same Christmas Eve every day. This is an ABC Family Christmas movie, it shouldn’t be the most charming movie of all time! It shouldn’t have such fantastic leads and supporting characters. It shouldn’t make me cry. But here we are! I watch this movie at least twice a year to melt my cold, cold heart. Plus! Look! It’s Zach Morris, ya’ll!
1. Groundhog Day
The O.G. The G.O.A.T. Groundhog Day is a true classic. It’s hilarious. Bill Murray is literal perfection in this.
Are there some tiny issues I have with consent and learning everything about a woman, without her knowledge, in order to make her fall in love with you? Sure. I don’t NOT think that’s problematic. But ultimately, I just can’t fault this movie for its brilliance. For its heart. For its groundhog. It’s nearly perfect. And as a garbage monster, whose taste is wild and strange but ALWAYS CORRECT, that’s good enough for ME.
Any time loop movies I missed? SCREAM them in the comments!
(featured image: Icon Film)
