12 Monkeysfeatures a relatively simplistic approach to the flow of time, but the method of the movie’s storytelling can sometimes make it difficult to follow. Many of the main characters experience the timeline in their own way due to the intervention of temporal technology and personal perceptions. As one ofBruce Willis' best sci-fi movies, the 90s classic helped match and further the standard for onscreen time travel stories. It’s one of those movies that can be watched several times and a new wrinkle can be spotted on each occasion.
The ending of12 Monkeyscould arguably be described as the beginning, with the time loop teased throughout the movie revealed in all its glory.Willis' performance as convict James Cole brilliantly helps sell the illusionof being displaced in time. Cole isn’t one ofWillis' traditional action heroesbut instead, he offers something different. The film always keeps its audience guessing in very creative ways. The finer points of the movie’s timeline could be (and have been) debated for decades, but certain facets are much more absolute.
12 Monkeys' Timeline From Cole’s Perspective
This is how the events of 12 Monkeys are shown (for the most part)
As12 Monkeys' main character, James Cole’s perspective is acknowledged most prominently throughout the movie. His journey through the timeline may seem linear to him, but he quickly becomes disorientated regarding what counts as the past, present, and future. Beginning in 2035,Cole is sent back to the 90s to gather intel on the virus that will almost destroy the human race, forcing those who remain to retreat underground in order to survive. Cole’s arc is very back-and-forth, which makes him something of an enigma in the eras he visits.
The reveal of Cole’s “dream” actually being his past is a brilliant and mind-bending twist when it all comes together.
As well as visiting two separate years in the 1990s,Cole’s temporal mission takes him to an unspecified year in World War I, but each excursion is separated by a return to the movie’s dystopian future to catch his superiors up on the situation. Cole’s existence is so complex, and one could say massively coincidental, that he even finds himself in the same location, at the same moment in time, while being two drastically different ages. The reveal of Cole’s “dream” actually being his past is a brilliant and mind-bending twist when it all comes together.
2035
1996
Bruce Willis'12 Monkeyscharacter is spoken to throughout by a disembodied voice who addresses Cole as “Bob.” The voice is shown to belong to a homeless man in 1996, but the movie never really explains the voice’s true origin, nor its purpose or motivations. However, the voice seems to travel with Cole through time, and always be up to speed with what Wills' character has just done, is doing, and is about to do.
12 Monkeys' Timeline Explained In Chronological Order
James Coles' perspective isn’t the only way to view the 12 Monkeys timeline
As with some of the otherbest time travel movies,12 Monkeys' events can be perceived in multiple ways. While the most logical way to follow the story is through the eyes of the protagonist, it can be an interesting exercise to lay out the events in the order they happened in the timeline at large. This way, the experiences of other characters can be accounted for, which adds an extra flavor to the narrative.
Cole’s story is the only one that intersects with itself, so how he experiences the events of12 Monkeysis relatively circular.
Cole’s story is the only one that intersects with itself, so how he experiences the events of12 Monkeysis relatively circular. By stepping outside Willis' character and taking in the timeline in an unbiased and logical way, that particular obstacle is all but removed. Everything becomes far more objective, even if there are some cerebral puzzles to solve as a result.
12 Monkeys' ending never reveals whether those in the future gathered the sufficient amount of intel required to develop a cure for Dr. Peters' virus. Such a revelation would lie in the movie’s future beyond that of events shown in 2035. The future scientist taking her seat alongside Dr. Peters on the flight to San Francisco brings with it a hopeful implication of success, but this is never confirmed.
12 Monkeys' Time Travel Rules Explained
James Cole can’t change the past, nor can any other 12 Monkeys character
Not all time travel movies abide by the same rules, and12 Monkeyscontinues the trend of establishing specific laws regarding how events can unfold within the film’s canon. Put simply,there is exactly one timeline in12 Monkeys. Unlike other time travel stories, like theBack to the Futuretrilogy, alterations can’t be made to time in12 Monkeys. Things always happen how they happened, and that’s that. This is proven by humanity’s acknowledgment that trying to prevent the coming apocalypse would be fruitless, suggesting attempts have indeed already been made.
“I can’t do anything about what you’re going to do. I can’t change anything. I won’t stop you, I can’t stop you. I just want the information.” - Cole to Jeffrey in 1996.
12 Monkeys' time-travel logic means there is some hope after the movie is over, regardless of how unchanging the timeline might be. The fact that the past is fixed means the present and future must also be. It suggests a strong level of fate and predetermination. So, in theory,humanity has already either failed or succeeded in thwarting Dr. Peter’s virus-based endgame. However,12 Monkeys' implied lack of ability to travel to the future and check means those in 2035 will have to wait and see if their hard work pays off.
12 Monkeys
Cast
In 12 Monkeys, convict James Cole (Bruce Willis) travels back in time to learn the origin of a man-made virus that has unleashed worldwide chaos in the future. Terry Gilliam’s 1995 sci-fi movie, which boasts a cast that includes Brad Pitt, Christopher Plummer, Madeleine Stowe, and David Morse, is based on Chris Marker’s 1962 short film La Jetée and originated a 2013 TV series adaptation.
