Directed by:
Scott DerricksonCinematography:
David TattersallComposer:
Tyler BatesCast:
Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Kathy Bates, John Cleese, Jaden Smith, Robert Knepper, James Hong, Kyle Chandler, Brandon T. Jackson, John Rothman (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
A remake of the 1951 sci-fi classic of the same name, The Day the Earth Stood Still follows astrobiologist Helen Benson (Jennifer Connelly) as she is unceremoniously plucked from her everyday life with her stepson (Jaden Smith), and whisked away to consult the government on a top-secret matter. That matter happens to be the arrival of a massive glowing sphere in Central Park, accompanied by a towering robot-like protector dubbed Gort and an alien ambassador named Klaatu (Keanu Reeves), who takes up human form to communicate with the people of Earth. When Klaatu finds himself faced with hawkish, uncompromising officials, he goes on the run with Benson and her son as the fate of the world gradually becomes clear. (20th Century Fox)
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Reviews (9)
This really was a failure. Visually weak, retarded ideas, it flashes here and there is a decent atmosphere, but otherwise the sky is gray and no rain falls from it. The frowning Reeves and his Golem bring a message from the stars, but they find themselves in the middle of a flood of clichés from traditional disaster films, including the stupid family crisis of a beautiful astrobiologist. The result is a confused ride from place to place and boring chatter about humanity to the sound of Bach and the machine gun cannonade of the US ARMY. And when there's nothing to show, we get an unraveling as if from a goofy hippie trip. This is not about simplicity of thought, but rather simplicity of presentation. Derrickson tripped up nicely with this, and his version of the sci-fi classic is neither a sexy spectacle nor a film with a solid idea. It is worth considering that in terms of balance and the presentation of a simple agitating idea, the new version cannot compete with the original whatsoever.
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A surprisingly respectful remake of the original that goes a little off the path promised by the trailers. With its surprisingly intimate atmosphere, it plays the family card, which in some moments unnecessarily pulls the otherwise very good spectacle into pathos. The film is carried by excellent actors, great special effects, and by the skilled craftsman Derrickson, who can evoke both moments of absolute tension and thrilling popcorn rides where a giant black cloud takes out trucks and football stadiums. I might have expected something a little different in terms of a Christmas blockbuster, but the result is certainly not a bad one. I give it a weaker four stars.
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After the almost hateful reviews that absolutely trashed the second half of the film, I expected almost anything except a pretty normal ending, which is actually considerably better than Independence Day, for instance. Last year’s genre relative I Am Legend also was much weaker. In short, The Day The Earth Stood Still is unlikely to become a new classic, but if I had to pick between it and any destruction orgy from Emmerich, I would choose Klaatua hands down. The director did his work with panache, delivering many scenes with a perfect atmosphere, and if I had to complain about something, it would be the script, or rather, the family storyline, but even that was bearable.
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The Day the Earth Stood Still neither offends nor enraptures, and it definitely doesn’t satisfy, be it in terms of plot or the technical aspect. Derrickson alternates nice thought-provoking and emotional moments with purely visual ones, but the first type is scarce and the second one is clichéd and unoriginal. And the rest is just filler held afloat only by the performances of Jennifer Connelly and Keanu Reeves. Even though these two have little to do here, you’ll root for Jennifer from the start and as for Keanu, you’d believe him even as an alien, in spite of the fact that his facial expressions are the same as in all his other movies. The young Jaden Smith is terrible, just like the young Dakota Fanning a few years earlier. As an intimate director, Scott Derrickson was not the best choice (the character of an army general, who acts more like a redneck carpenter posturing in a garage, is a failed attempt at irony). The film has a pleasant “sci-fi charm”, but it is overly cautious and bland. It comes up short in the inevitable comparison with Spielberg’s War of the Worlds, which was a far more exciting experience despite all its faults.
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An average sci-fi film with an idea and a message, but not everyone is necessarily going to be in the mood for it. Keanu Reeves impressed me the most in the film - he plays the alien in such a way that he really looks perfectly "out of it" most of the time - and I was also looking forward to John Cleese. Even though I knew his role wouldn't be the biggest... I wasn't expecting such a bark :-/ The good thing about this film is the quality visual effects, the bad thing is definitely the annoying stepson and after him the sometimes boring plot. Basically, three stars.
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