DVD review
Directed by John R Leonetti
Starring Eric Lively, Erica Durance, Dustin Milligan, Gina Holden
Release date Out now

Nick Larson discovers he can travel in time, after he loses his loved ones in a tragic accident. All he has to do is look at old photographs…

The original Butterfly Effect movie was that rare thing: an intelligent Hollywood time travel movie. Its sequel is a somewhat unnecessary addition to the story, with none of the original cast returning, and a storyline that (irony of ironies, given the déjà vu theme) is little more than a Xerox of the original.

It’s not often that you can say this, but the presence of Aston Kutcher is sorely missed. As the replacement protagonist, Eric Lively isn’t helped by a script that paints him as less-than-sympathetic, and delivers a weak performance that never convinces.

Smallville's Erica Durance is more effective, despite a role that is, at best, underwritten. But everyone else appears painfully aware that they are involved a cheap, straight-to-DVD quickie, and acts accordingly. Jonathan Wilkins

VERDICT: 4/10
A poor man’s version of the vastly superior original, which deserves to be erased from history.