In this episode, Cade and Kit continue Season 3 with a brand-new theme: Time Travel. Kit brings The Adjustment Bureau, a sci-fi romance starring Matt Damon and Emily Blunt that blends secret organizations, alternate paths, and the tension between fate and free will. The two break down why this movie stands out in the time-travel genre, how it uses space instead of timeline jumps, and why the love story works in a way most sci-fi films don’t attempt.
The episode begins with Cade and Kit explaining why they chose to explore themes in Season 3 — specifically how their personal lens shapes the way they review films. When Kit introduces The Adjustment Bureau, she explains that it’s her first instinct when thinking about time-travel movies, not because of traditional past/future jumps, but because the film explores three different layers of “time”: the real world, the Bureau’s invisible grid, and the alternate paths a person could take depending on their choices.
They discuss Matt Damon’s character, David Norris, and how his life is carefully managed — first by political consultants, then by the Bureau itself, who manipulate events to ensure he stays on a predetermined path. After losing an election, David meets Elise in a bathroom in a chaotic, unfiltered moment that changes the direction of his life. The second accidental meeting triggers the Bureau’s intervention, forcing David into a confrontation with the group responsible for adjusting reality.
Cade and Kit break down the world-building, including the hats that allow agents to travel through a hidden network of doors across New York, and the rules that keep David and Elise apart. They discuss the idea that both characters have “intended” destinies: he is meant to become President, she is meant to become a world-renowned choreographer — and how the Bureau believes their relationship would prevent both outcomes.
The hosts explore the tension between fate and autonomy, and why the love story succeeds: Elise sees David as he truly is, not the polished political version of himself, and he doesn’t try to refine or reshape her. Cade notes that many of their scenes were improvised, which contributes to the authenticity of their chemistry. Kit appreciates that the sci-fi elements are grounded: no machines, no creature designs, just the manipulation of time and space through doorways.
They also critique the film. Kit would have preferred a darker, more ominous tone for the Bureau and a deeper depiction of David’s confusion, fear, and uncertainty after discovering their existence. She notes that certain emotional beats — such as his three-year search for Elise on the bus — could have used more on-screen weight.
Cade adds that he’d like to see a companion film told from the perspective of the sympathetic Bureau agent who helps David, since the character clearly carries his own emotional history and doubts about the system.
A grounded, stylish sci-fi romance that plays with “time travel” in a different way: not through decades, but through doorways, detours, and the small adjustments that can alter a life. A strong pick for a theme centered on how cinema reshapes our understanding of time.
This episode was brought to you by...
LocalLaundry.ca
🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kaH2BpUcEouX5LWCUQ7ed?si=ff1e2b355c5944e1
🍏 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cade-and-kit/id1771553610
📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/cadeandkit
info@CadeandKit.com