Movie Review Repost - After Earth (2013)

Hey guys. Sorry it's been so long since my last current movie review. I've just started another semester of school AND I'm moving to a new place in a few days and have been packing everything up. So yeah, I've been pretty busy lately. Hopefully it won;t be too long until my next review. For now let's take a look at my thoughts on a film that's been on my mind a bit for the past while (for some reason): After Earth. Easily the worst movie I saw in 2013 (even worse than Lone Ranger), this thing has a very haphazard feel to it (especially the writing). It's also downright laughable at times. So let's look back and have a good laugh, shall we?

   After Earth: if you've ever wanted a movie to fall asleep to, then this is it. It's one of the more dull movies that I've seen in a while.

   Need proof? Just look at Will Smith's acting (or sleep-acting rather). He plays Cypher, a man without fear. Apparently having no fear turns you into an emotionless, monotone person who almost never changes his facial expression and is a heartless, terrible father. Will Smith is usually one of those actors who just gives it his all in whatever role he plays, but After Earth's script has forced him to become a stone-faced automaton of a man (the very thing he tried to destroy in I, Robot. You've let me down, Will.). He spends the majority of the movie sitting in a chair, sometimes looking/speaking directly to the camera. Wow.

   But our main character is actually Cypher's son Kitai, played by Will Smith's son Jaden Smith. Like the Karate Kid remake a few years ago, After Earth is supposed to be a showcase for Jaden's acting, which isn't terrible. But there is a limit as to how well one can portray a somewhat-whiny kid who makes dumb decisions, disobeys orders, and spontaneously quotes Moby Dick for no reason. He also falls asleep no less than five times throughout the film. But this actually makes sense, seeing as how the viewer will feel like falling asleep by the end of the movie.

   Oh yeah, I guess I should talk about the plot. This movie takes place in the far distant future in which mankind has been forced to leave Earth and settle on other hostile planets. Humanity is protected by the fearless Rangers who are led by General Cypher. Cypher takes his cadet son Kitai on a routine mission which runs into trouble. They crash land on a long-since abandoned Earth and must now find a way to survive and escape whilst developing their father-son relationship.

   This particular adventure, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, is one involving lots of awkward transitions, non sequitur flashbacks, boring monologues, nonchalant narrations, and cheap-looking sets. As one might expect, this film relies heavily on CGI, but a lot of it isn't done very well (especially the animals). This film could have been more intriguing if the viewer got to learn more about the universe it takes place in. Instead the viewer is left wondering why soldiers in the future use spears instead of guns. What kind of accent is everyone speaking in? And what was up with the whole “Earth's gravity is stronger than home” thing? It's mentioned once in the film's beginning, never brought up again, and seems to have no effect on Kitai's movement or stamina.

   So who would like this movie? If you're a Will Smith fan and you don't want to have your heart broken, then don't bother with this. If you're a sci-fi action movie fan with low standards then you could probably meet this movie halfway. Just remind someone to wake you up when it's over.

Rating: one and a half stars out of five.