Review of The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008) by Brett E — 04 Apr 2016

The Day the Earth Stood Still is a mysterious, and even chilling, sci-fi mystery film... for the first act. Unfortunately, the film descends into a story that is not only overly familiar and formulaic, but also quite boring.

The screenplay hits every plot point expected from films of this type, leaving a film that feels unnecessary, especially considering its a remake of a (much campier) film. It's a shame that the film is so narrative flawed, because director Scott Derrickson certainly has an eye for visual flair.

Acting-wise, the film is hit-or-miss: Keanu Reeves gives a chilling, albeit stoic, performance as the mysterious otherworldly visitor, and Jennifer Connelly is great as always, but the supporting cast is either bland, or has their talent wasted.

Jaden Smith in particular is pretty poor: it's easy to put his performance off due to him being a child actor, but he's simply not good enough to carry his material. It's definitely not a good sign when a desire to have a child character killed off is a recurring feeling.

The Day the Earth Stood Still is a pretty big disappointment that's too slow and too formulaic to be worth watching. Stick to the original.