In the Blink of an Eye (2026)

This is an ambitious project by Andrew Stanton, who steps away from his usual animation roles - having penned Finding Nemo, A Bug’s Life, Finding Dory and the like. Here, he attempts to tell a story spanning over 45,000 years of history across three distinct timelines - the end of the Neanderthal era 45,000 years ago, the present day (2025, in fact) and a leap 400 years into the future.

The narrative certainly sprawls and we jump between these three eras regularly. We join the prehistoric struggle of a Neanderthal family as it moves from mere survival toward the building blocks of community, tools and settlements. In the present, our anchor is Claire (Rashida Jones), an anthropologist dealing with the death of her mother, whose work provides thematic hooks into that first era. Finally, we meet Coakley (Kate McKinnon) aboard a generation-bridging spacecraft. Accompanied by an AI companion, she's on a 350-year voyage to plant new life on a distant planet in the Kepler system.

There is a clear focus here on loss, grieving, and regrowth - new beginnings and a narrative relating to immortality, whether that be viewed as good or bad, desired or avoided. Refreshingly, there are no dinosaur battles in the past or Star Wars-style shoot-em-ups in the future. Instead, the film focuses on the placid and passive moments of existence - the simple painting of hands on cave walls to mark a death, the shared silence of a modern couple unsure of their relationship or their place in the world and the difficult, clinical decisions required to keep oxygen-providing plants alive in deep space.

Each segment is shot beautifully, portraying characters within their surroundings and highlighting their deep emotional attachment to the world and the process of life. Rashida Jones provides a remarkable footing for the film, acting as the stable centre while the other timescales flow around her. There is a genuine chemistry between her and her boyfriend, Greg (played by Daveed Diggs), as they both search for meaning and intellectually explore the nature of transformation.

Kate McKinnon plays the immortal Coakley with surprising control and substance. She is entirely convincing as a person carrying the weight of mankind’s future on her shoulders, often struggling to make sense of the heavy decisions she must make. I am not entirely sure about the physics or the science involved - I’ll leave that to those more learned and clever to comment on - but as a thoughtful 90-minutes of entertainment, it works incredibly well.

The atmosphere is created beautifully throughout, offering a rolling set of emotional extremes as we sit alongside the characters. The visuals are excellent - even where CGI is used, it feels grounded. This is especially true of the scenery in the prehistoric segments and the subtle nods to technology in the present and future sets. They don’t feel anything like a 1970s BBC Dr Who studio, rather they are well-realised and thought-out environments.

One could argue that the film is perhaps a bit too ambitious in trying to cover such a vast timescale, tackling life, death, evolution and interstellar travel all at once - but I am all for it. I think it succeeds overall. While it might be easy for some to pick holes in the logic, those who do will miss out on an enjoyable, thought-provoking ride. It encourages you to reflect on your own place in the universe and how your life, most likely, will be over In the Blink of an Eye.

Recommended. Now streaming on Disney+ in the UK.