Yeah, it's obviously not a film for everyone. I loved how it could create such a haunting depiction of a post-apocalyptic future and be so spellbindingly beautiful just by using still photos. It's more of a work of art than a movie, a fascinating yet simple take on the exploration of the human memory.
It's a really unique movie that was way ahead of it's time when it was released 47 years ago. It's still as fresh now as it was back then.
I guess they send him back to the past first because he was so glued to a image from his past. The future was harder to get to as well. He was meant to get supplies or find a solution to their problems, but gets caught in some of his happier memories involving that woman instead.