Review of The 5th Wave (2016) by Matthew O — 05 Feb 2016

There was a lot of potential for this movie. It is based off a very successful YA novel about a young woman trying to survive an alien invasion while also trying to save her younger brother. This invasion goes through a series of "waves" as they call it with each one getting increasingly more deadly. When you think about it, that sounds like a pretty cool thing to see which was probably why the novel was so successful. So it was pretty inevitable that there was going to be a film adaptation of the novel. This adaptation could either be a very suspenseful and exciting thriller that takes advantage of its concept, or a dull and clichéd borefest we've seen a million times. We get a dull and clichéd borefest we've seen a million times. Yeah, I was really disappointed with THE 5TH WAVE. The biggest problem with the film is that it is unbelievably predictable. It takes the exact same route that every generic dystopian science fiction film takes. Because of that, you can see every twist and turn coming a mile way. It is so obvious that they're trying to make you feel surprised, but you're just not. Another big problem is the romance. Look, I wouldn't know if there was a romance involved in the novel, I haven't read it. But if you're going to put in a romantic subplot, you could at least try and execute it well or at least do something interesting. Boy, do they not! The dialogue is so stilted, the acting is very wooden, and there is absolutely no charisma. I think TWILIGHT tried harder than this! I was literally bored to tears, I was yawning so much. It was so insufferable to sit through. Is there anything good in this movie at all? Sure, there are some redeeming qualities. I actually thought the family aspect of the film was handled pretty well. I felt some sympathy between the brother and sister being separated and I wanted to see them get back together again. I also thought the first 15 or 20 minutes of the film were kind of exciting. There was a point where a character gets shot in the leg, and you could really feel the pain. But as soon as that lame romance kicked in, I completely lost interest with the rest of the movie. In the end, THE 5TH WAVE was a major disappointment for me. There was a great amount potential for this film, it was based on a critically acclaimed novel that had a really interesting concept. At times it shows with the family aspect, but for the most part they just decided to take the easy route and it makes the film very generic and boring. That romance really killed the movie for me. Those who are fans of the novel I bet would be vastly disappointed. I say that if you really get into this kind of stuff, then this film would be a good way to just pass the time. But if you're not into it, then don't even bother.

Grade: C-.