The Butterfly Effect

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2:25

The Butterfly Effect

R

2004

1h 53m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

34%

Tomatometer

169 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

College student Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher) is afflicted with headaches so painful that he frequently blacks out. While unconscious, Evan is able to travel back in time to difficult moments in his childhood. He can also alter the past for friends, like Kayleigh (Amy Smart), who was molested by her father (Eric Stoltz). But changing the past can drastically alter the present, and Evan finds himself in nightmarish alternate realities, including one where he's locked away in prison.

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Critics Consensus

The premise is intriguing, but it's placed in the service of an overwrought and tasteless thriller.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/28/2010

1/5

Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. So very bad.

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Jonathan Crocker

BBC.com

04/13/2004

2/5

Lobotomised entertainment that's dark, violent, and hilariously dumb.

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Peter Travers

Rolling Stone

01/29/2004

1/4

Nothing can save this repetitive bore. Dude, where's your memory?

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Luke Buckmaster

Flicks (AU, NZ, UK)

05/21/2024

This film is so gut-wrenchingly dark and twisted I’d also call it a horror movie, with virtually no respite once its core premise swings into gear.

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James Croot

The Post NZ

01/12/2022

3/5

Wildly uneven and not exactly high-quality entertainment, The Butterfly Effect has, nonetheless, weirdly turned out to be strangely memorable, especially for certain generation of moviegoers.

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C.H. Newell

Father Son Holy Gore

05/05/2019

3.5/5

The Butterfly Effect looks at the power of memory, the repercussions of events from our past that bleed into the present.

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Pedro E

@PeterMovieMagic 6d

What do movie critics know about movies, really? they praise terrible movies when they get asked for and destroy others when it doesn't matter to them. They just saw the budget of the film and gave negative reviews to it. The reality is that this film keeps you glued to the screen, from begining to the end, it has a very original script and concept and an ending that makes you remember the movie for many days and even years. Great movie!

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Ashlyn A

@ashlynalana Jul 18

Disturbing, dark, depressing. This film made me deeply reexamine the world around me. Centered around a young man who realizes that he can change his past and “fix” what he regrets. However, each choice has a devastating outcome. This film has its problems (ex: predictable) but it really manages to wiggle its way into the audiences psyche. Even years after watching it I still find myself thinking about this film and the lessons I learned from it. I still find myself disturbed and disgruntled by certain scenes. In the emotional impact sense this films feels like a punch to the gut. And in my heart it will always be a cult classic.

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Mathew V.

@theonlymtv Jun 21

The Butterfly Effect has strong acting and tense, unsettling scenes. It keeps you on edge the whole time with constant twists and heavy emotional moments.

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Pedro C

@RT92172610 May 20

Watching this movie 15 years later made me realize the poor acting and the isolated scenes with a lack proper connection [tease/suspense, intro, idea, closing] for each mini "back in time" memory. Maybe back in the days when I was younger I was thrilled by the idea of time travel based on decisions how they affect the future. But now in 2026 it's a movie with very low quality on the script and acting. I I have a 10 movie list of my all-time favorite movies, and this one was top five, but now it's out of the list.

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Reuben T

@ReubenReviews May 14

This is possibly one of the worst movies I've ever watched, so I'm flabbergasted by the high audience score. Yes, the premise is good, but everything else is awful. It feels like a parody of a better movie that had better execution. No hate to Ashton Kutcher, but truly awful acting.

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Steven F.

@SteveGotScored Feb 19

My favorite Ashton Kutcher movie ever made!

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Eric Bress

Director

J. Mackye Gruber

Director

Ashton Kutcher

Evan Treborn

Amy Smart

Kayleigh Miller

Eric Stoltz

George Miller

William Lee Scott

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The Butterfly Effect: Trailer 1

2:25

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Synopsis

College student Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher) is afflicted with headaches so painful that he frequently blacks out. While unconscious, Evan is able to travel back in time to difficult moments in his childhood. He can also alter the past for friends, like Kayleigh (Amy Smart), who was molested by her father (Eric Stoltz). But changing the past can drastically alter the present, and Evan finds himself in nightmarish alternate realities, including one where he's locked away in prison.

Director: Eric Bress, J. Mackye Gruber
Producer: Chris Bender, A.J. Dix, J.C. Spink, Anthony Rhulen
Screenwriter: Eric Bress, J. Mackye Gruber
Distributor: New Line Cinema
Production Co: Blackout Entertainment, Benderspink, Katalyst Films, Film Engine
Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Use|Sexual Content|Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 23, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $57.7M
Runtime: 1h 53m
Sound Mix: Surround, DTS, Dolby SRD, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)