★★★☆☆
“Jupiter Ascending,” despite having a cast full of famous names and some incredible cinematography, seemed more like an awkward cross between “Twilight” and “Star Wars” than the smart, thrilling science fictions that its creators are famous for producing. The film includes all the epic battle scenes and screeching aliens that will draw in the science fiction-loving community, while also falling prey to a “Twilight”-esque level of humorously bad acting and cheesiness.
The story follows Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), a cleaning woman from Chicago who is thrown suddenly into an intergalactic battle for the rights to planet Earth. Millions of years ago, Earth was discovered by humans from outer space that killed the dinosaurs and planted humans on the planet to grow and develop. Three siblings, played by Eddie Redmayne, Douglas Booth and Tuppence Middleton, believe Jupiter to be the reincarnation of their late mother, who owns the rights to Earth. The siblings drag Jupiter to all corners of the universe in an attempt to coerce her into giving up the rights to her planet, all while an ex-military hunter named Caine (Channing Tatum) is in pursuit. Caine, who is part wolf, soon obtains a large space craft with a number of other half-animal military operatives who follow Jupiter across the universe as she slowly begins to realize what she is truly mixed up in.
The strongest aspects of this film are the stellar special effects and cinematography that transport the viewer into an interstellar fantasy land. The intricacies of the various space crafts throughout the film as well as the bizarre aliens and planets exhibited are nothing short of extraordinary and make the film truly exciting to watch. The many battle scenes that take place in the film both in outer space and over the Chicago skyline, though prolonged, are exciting without being messy.
The film’s musical score, composed by Michael Giacchino, is both bold and exciting, adding to the suspense and energy of the film’s strong action scenes. Despite this, at times, the musical score seemed like it did not match with the action on screen, leaving awkward moments of silence tearing through the middle of intense battle sequences.
The film was created by Andy and Lana Wachowski, who are responsible for great works of science fiction like The Matrix trilogy and Cloud Atlas. The siblings take no liberties in exercising their experience in science fiction and create an intergalactic world that is nothing short of incredible. The film employs the dreamy cinematic beauty of Cloud Atlas while also including some breathtaking fight sequences that are reminiscent of The Matrix trilogy, truly showcasing the expertise of the Wachowski siblings.
Despite the film’s promising cast and acclaimed creators, “Jupiter Ascending” had a lot of potential that was not met in the delivery. The plot of the film is as intricate and complicated as if three movies were being squeezed into 127 minutes, making it very hard to follow. The film seems to be attempting to take many different directions at one time, creating awkward plot jumps, holes and a lot of unanswered questions. At certain points, the film seemed rushed and somewhat clichéd and included a number of exaggerated screams and overly-surprised facial expressions that made some viewers in the theater laugh out loud.
The film also presented far too many characters that were important to the plot. The sheer number of them made it difficult to provide any backstory or character development, thus making them all flat and forgettable. Even the two main characters of the film, played by Kunis and Tatum, appear stiff and uninterested throughout the entire film, making them just as forgettable as their counterparts. Their obvious boredom made their budding romance extremely uncomfortable, and the fact that Tatum was half-wolf for the entire film, and thus donned ridiculous eyeliner and pointed prosthetic ears, make it even more irksome.
Many science fiction films use fantastical adventure and other-worldly plot tactics to leave the audience with a larger meaning. “Jupiter Ascending” was no exception, using unique fantasy and a fast-paced plot to convey a deeper meaning that was not lost in the film’s shortcomings. In the end, the film was really about appreciating the life you have and realizing that even if you are not destined for greatness, leading a normal life is a gift in itself. While it has its slip-ups, the film is worth seeing at least to see what kind of work this movie’s all-star team created.
