JUPITER ASCENDING is like a sci-fi action version of Cinderella mixed with Brazil politics, backstabbing, battles, and explosions.   Land and Andy Wachowskit directed this new space opera which has great visuals and music score, but the story and character development prevent it from being classic like THE MATRIX or CLOUD ATLAS.   JUPITER ASCENDING explores indulgence, greed, and consumerism with the best part revolving around the bureaucracy that Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis) has to go for to claim her inheritance and the movie just coasts after that as it becomes a combination of action and muddled attempts at character development like wondering if Jupiter and Caine Wise (Channing Tatum) will get hooked up and if Sean Bean will die (or live) in this movie.

 

The story begins with the story of an illegal Russian immigrant named Jupiter who works for the family cleaning business in Chicago when she discovers alien human royalty wants her dead since she is the genetic reincarnation of their mother.  Caine Wise works to protect her and rescue at various points in the movie as Balem (Eddie Redmayne)- one member of the royal family wants her dead because he doesn’t want to lose his claim to harvest the Earth, another member named Titus wants to marry her, and Kalique wants Jupiter to claim her inheritance after showing her how some blue goo makes humans in the galactic empire immortal by renewing their cells after taking a dip in it every once in a while.   Caine Wise gets help from disgraced soldier Stinger (Sean Bean) and a spaceship crew as they fight to make sure Jupiter claims her birthright and save Earth from being harvested to keep many humans immortal.

 

JUPITER ASCENDING has many things going for it, but the confusing marketing campaign and release delay (in addition to facing up to other movies with stronger buzz) is hurting it at the North American box office in addition to the Cinderella space opera plot with a message needing an additional rewrite or two.  Then I’m not 100 percent convinced by the casting of the movie as I feel Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis are miscast as the leads while everyone else is the right person for their part.  Another flaw with the script is the clichéd family drama going on with Jupiter’s family as her cousin conspires with her to seal her eggs and the uncle not wanting Jupiter to keep spending her money (while she just wants a telescope like the one the father (she never knew) had).  Then you have the lame romance subplot as Jupiter and Caine can’t hook up for most of the movie while Titus wants to marry her like a business deal for his own ends, but Mila and Channing have little chemistry.  It will probably net more money overseas and on blu-ray, DVD, and digital while other movies will steal the box office thunder from JUPITER ASCENDING.  Reshoots and additional time for special effects don’t help elevate JUPITER ASCENDING to classic status.  It is just a good flawed sci-fi movie that will entertain you for two hours, but it is sci-fi bomb closer to SPEED RACER than the cult classic status of CLOUD ATLAS. 

 

This review is ©2-10-2014 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission.  Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com

 

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