THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (2008): Better go and watch Matrix re-runs on TV
January 4th 2009 12:59
Category: No Category
For those familiar with the original - and beloved amongst science-fiction fans - 1951 Robert Wise version of The Day the Earth Stood Still, the plot will hold no surprises: one day the planet wakes up to what looks like an alien invasion and reacts with unevolved violence. Reeves, predictably wooden but nonetheless a pleasure to look at, despite being in his mid 40s and still wearing his suit from The Matrix, portrays the alien Klaatu who has the power to decide the fate of the human race. I shall venture a guess that the big black robot Gort was modeled after him, especially in its capacity to display the full range of emotions: on and off. Kathy Bates looks tired as the president’s secretary (in this film she is doing all the government’s work it seems), but Jennifer Connelly lights up the screen a little as the scientist Helen Benson, entrusted with a mission to embody humanity’s better side and thus worthy of being saved – hey, at least we are represented by a good looking profile...
Jennifer Connelly and Keanu Reeves looking pretty in The Day the Earth Stood Still
John Cleese makes a welcome, if uncharacteristically unfunny cameo as a professor who shares his Bach and some wisdom about the vagaries of human evolution and its motivations with our visiting alien. Jaden Smith (named as if anyone could possibly forget he is the son of Jada and Will Smith) is admittedly cuter on screen than both his famous parents put together, but he plays an annoying brat called Jacob, whose scenes with Connelly predictably descend into formulaic pathos reserved by Hollywood for its wannabe blockbusters. Considering Klaatu’s swift departure and the general thinness of plot, the film might have undergone some heavy editing – watching it on DVD looks like a better option from all angles.
Review by Patricia Bieszk
© Copyright P. Bieszk 2009
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