About Time is a 2013 romantic science fiction comedy-drama film written and directed by Richard Curtis,[6] and starring Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, and Bill Nighy.

Tim Lake grows up on the coast in Cornwall, with his father James, mother Mary, absent-minded uncle Desmond, and free-spirited younger sister Katherine ("Kit Kat").

The morning after a less-than-great New Year’s Eve party, James tells Tim that the men of their family can travel back in time to moments they have lived before.

When he returns, James discourages him from using his gift to acquire money or fame, and Tim decides to use it to improve his love life.

Tim moves to London to work as a lawyer, living with his father's acquaintance Harry, an angry misanthropic playwright.

Tim learns James has terminal lung cancer and that time travel cannot change it, as going back to remove his habitual smoking would undo his and Kit Kat's conception.

He tells Tim to live each day twice to be truly happy: first, with all the everyday tensions and worries, but the second time noticing how sweet the world can be.

[8] It premiered on 8 August 2013 as part of the Film4 Summer Screen outdoor cinema series at the historic Somerset House in London.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Beautifully filmed and unabashedly sincere, About Time finds director Richard Curtis at his most sentimental.

[19] Catherine Shoard of The Guardian compared the film to Groundhog Day noting it "is about as close to home as a homage can get without calling in the copyright team" and describes Domhnall Gleeson as a "ginger Hugh Grant", which "at first, is unnerving; as About Time marches on, Gleeson's innate charm gleams through and this weird disconnection becomes quite compelling."

[20] Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph praised the comic timing of McAdams and Gleeson, but criticised the film, comparing it to a quilt, calling it "soft, frayed at the edges, and oh so comfortable" and gives it three stars out of five.

[21] Leslie Felperin of Variety called the film "reassuringly bland" and says there is a sense of déjà vu, especially for anyone who has seen The Time Traveler's Wife, also co-starring McAdams.

Felperin praised the chemistry of the leading couple "that keeps the film aloft" and the supporting cast, while also criticising the stock characters as being too familiar.

Dr. Caroline West said the following for Active*Consent:[22]Oftentimes, pop culture endorses stalking behaviour in the most covert of ways – such as in the "You love me, you just don't know it yet" subset of romantic comedies.

This is all in the pursuit of "true love" because in his mind, they are perfect for each other – she just doesn't know it yet...Little or no focus is given to the women who are being followed and watched without their knowledge...The romantic heroines have the entire trajectory of their lives altered by the hero without their knowledge, consent or input.Critics have pointed to the film's plot holes relating to time travel; how big or how many plot holes varied with the reviewer.

[23] Megan Gibson, writing in Time magazine, said that science fiction fans would be put off by "gaping time-travel plot-holes", again suggesting that Tim's father's rules are repeatedly broken.

[24] Mark Kermode agreed that Curtis "sets up his rules of temporal engagement, only to break them willy-nilly whenever the prospect of an extra hug rears its head".