Badmovies.org Forum

So I watched After Earth to see whether it was really as bad as they say. And yes, it is.

For one thing, it is often seen as a Will Smith vehicle, but that is not the case. Will Smith is actually a bait and switch operation. The real protagonist is Jaden Smith. Most of the movie consists of Smith junior looking freaked out and running from stuff. Secondly, someone thought it would be a good idea to cast Will Smith against type. So, instead of the charming rogueish persona he usually does, we get a strict disciplinarian straight from the Captain Von Trapp school of education. And while captain Von Trapp eventually finds love and picks up his guitar, General Raige remains pretty dire throughout. When Will Smith does get some screen time, he is usually quite unlikeable. Not the thing to draw in fans.

Then there is the movie itself, which is slow, laborious and, above all, utterly predictable. Sure, it looks pretty, but after about the first fifteen minutes, you know exactly what is going to happen. Everything is made very explicit and every point is rammed home with a sledgehammer. I’d put  in a spoiler warning for the next paragraph, but that is completely pointless for such a predictable movie.

Finally, there is the main plot device: the creature that senses fear. Now, I appreciate it when the world design underpins the basic theme of the story. But this one is plain stupid. These creatures don’t make any sense at all. They must have some awareness of their surroundings, or they’d be constantly bumping into obstacles or falling into holes. So the idea that they can’t find a human once they lose the scent, is a serious design flaw for something that was supposed to eradicate mankind. They must be going ‚there was a human here a second ago, and now he just vanished. Sure, there is a human-sized thing moving around, but that can’t possibly be a target.’


Also, the humans have some seriously nifty tech in this universe, with impressive surveillance capabilities, yet for unfathomable reasons these creatures have to be fought in single combat with edged weapons (which admittedly look cool). I mean, these people have mastered interplanetary travel, yet all knowledge of ranged weapons seems to have been lost. Even more incomprehensible, they can actually track the creatures, but haven’t devised a way to make a drone to shoot them up, or even stick a sharp object into them, if that is what it takes.

All in all, a complete waste of time.

Yeah I saw YourMovieSucks review it a while back. At least the film flopped.

I YAM NOUGHT A COWERD!

I enjoyed the film, but you do bring up some valid points.

Don’t mind that Will Smith tried a different role. Sad he was on the sidelines for most of the movie.

Not sure how a creature can get around w/o some sense of its surroundings. Not sure why they need to fight them with swords. Liked the overcoming your fears bit.

Perhaps I’ll file this in the brainless adventure folder with 10,000 BC.