In 2033, Dr. Alistair Craig (Robert Cornthwaite), along with his daughter R.J. Craig (Kathleen Beller), and colleagues, Dr. Karl Zandor (Lee Bergere), Max Barker (Jan Merlin) and Charles Arsenal (Will Shriner), have created a time machine, or time pod. Craig demands that tests be done every step of the way to ensure that the machine is working correctly. Zandor shows his impatience by wanting to go further back in time, but Craig is adamant that the testing be done slowly.
Zandor steals the technology and goes back through time using the prototype pod that is kept in a locked basement room. Zandor takes the pod to Los Angeles in 1991. Zandor sends back a communication telling Craig, and the others, that he intends on going back in time to make sure that the team was never born. R.J. insists on going after Zandor to try to stop him. She takes Charles with her as back-up. Craig insists that they take an expert with them, so the government sends historian Madeleine Hart (Bridget Hoffman) along to guide them through 1991.
In 1991 they attempt to prevent Zandor from killing a younger Max Barker (Stephen Hastings). Zandor manages to shoot Max but doesn’t kill him. Zandor then goes further back in time to twelfth century England to kill one of Craig’s and R.J.’s ancestors. When the others go after him, they end up bringing a 1991 American policeman, Harry Orth (Ned Beatty), with them.
In 1146 the team ends up splitting up. R.J. and Harry find a monk, Lucius (Parley Baer) who ends up helping them. R.J. then finds a knight, Edgar of Mansfield (Alex Hyde-White) who used to live in the castle with his father and sister. He is now a hunted man due to Zandor who, now calling himself Lord Alfred, killed his father and is now looking for Eleanor, to force her to marry him. He then plans on killing her and taking over the countryside as the legitimate new Lord. Charles and Madeleine are captured and brought to the castle where Madeleine is mistaken for Eleanor and is being prepared to marry Zandor while Charles is tossed into prison. It is up to the others to find a way to stop Zandor and to prevent him from changing the future.
“Time Trackers” was released in 1989 and was written and directed by Howard R. Cohen. It is an American science fiction comedy adventure. The film was produced by Roger Corman.
The movie is the standard low budget romp that you would normally see from Roger in the eighties. Anyone who thinks this is a serious science fiction movie should really think twice. There are far too many tongue-in-cheek moments. It’s not a really good movie and the time travel aspects are a little off, but the movie is enough of a distraction to pass the time.
It is supposedly an example of the “Grandfather Paradox”, although a very bad one. In the paradox someone goes back in time and kills their grandfather before they were born. In that situation, the paradox is that if the grandfather was killed prior to having children, the traveler could never have existed to travel back in time and kill their own grandfather.
I believe the movie is closer to the “Let’s Kill Hitler” paradox. In this instance Zandor is going back in time to kill the ancestors of anyone who he has a grudge against, thereby preventing the offender’s birth. In that case, he would not only have no reason to go back in time, he would not be able to since, without Dr. Craig, the time machine would never have been created.