Jupiter Ascending - Review

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

That's pretty much the funniest line in the movie. Besides the "I love dogs," line.

The Plot

In the Universal Business of Time and Youth, the three sibling heirs (Eddie Redmayne, Tuppence Middleton, and Douglas Booth) of the Abrasax Family compete to possess the Earth. The problem is, standing in their way is the sole heir to the planet Earth. Her name is Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), who is the genetic reincarnation of the Abrasax siblings' mother, The Queen of the Universe. With bounty hunters hired by each sibling to capture her, Jupiter is thrusted into a world that goes beyond the planet Earth and into the large universe of industry. Her only protector is an albino werewolf soldier named Caine (Channing Tatum) whose allegiance may lie with one of the three siblings who desire her capture... or her death.

Review

If that plot synopsis confused you, then chances are this movie will. Well, it actually won't. The Wachowski Siblings are probably best known as the directors who gave the world The Matrix. It is arguably one of the greatest science fiction films of all time, as well as being one of the most influential action films for the post-modern age. Unfortunately, after that movie, the siblings have not created something that would be deemed successful, both critically and financially. I'm in the camp though that does love Cloud Atlas, an ambitious film that was also co-directed with Tom Tykwer. So one can say I was hoping that this film can at least recapture the magic of The Matrix by taking a much more lighter in tone route. And for the first hour, they succeed tremendously. But then after the first hour, that's when things become episodic. And not in the good way.

If The Matrix was about a character entering a universe within a computer, then Jupiter Ascending is pretty much the opposite by actually launching out into space. The film starts with the simplistic chosen one hero plot line, which works really well in the first hour of the film. Kunis's Jupiter is definitely someone down on their luck and has a tragic backstory that make you feel for her. Which is how it should be. We're ready to root for whatever curveball in life she gets thrown into. Unfortunately we only feel that way in the first hour. Kunis's Jupiter actually doesn't have a very well developed character arc. She does start the movie with one mood and ends the movie with another, but it didn't really feel like she's grown as a character. Her change didn't seem all that life changing, despite the fact she just discovered she's the Queen of Earth, which should've been a hell of a lot more life changing than what was given in this story. But it was fine.

Playing her protector on this journey and forced love interest is Channing Tatum as the albino defected werewolf, Caine Wise. Tatum has definitely grown into a solid actor, and this movie continues to prove it as he was easily the best part of the movie. Which is saying a lot given that there  is a potential Oscar winner in this movie playing a villain. But that potential Oscar winner is not being nominated for his performance in this movie. But on the subject of Tatum, his character is the one that has a more thought out and developed story compared to Jupiter's. And that is mostly attributed to the relationship between him and his mentor Stinger, played by Sean Bean. Unfortunately, their plot is the Z-Plot of the movie. And by Z-Plot, I mean that Kunis's Jupiter is involved with the A, B, C, and D plot.

The second hour of the film diverges into three different plots that don't really connect other than the fact that the three antagonistic forces in each plot are siblings. The first "pit stop" after the fantastic hour involves Kalique Abrasax, played by Tuppence Middleton. Although there is something untrustworthy about her, she doesn't delve too far into the villainous route that her brothers do. Her main purpose is to provide exposition. A lot of exposition. It's a wonder why she's even in the movie at all if she's only going to show up to give exposition and have no effect to the larger story. The second pit stop after Ms. Exposition is a wedding with Titus Abrasax, played by Douglas Booth. He gives a variation of the exposition that Kalique gives during the first pit stop, except he actually tries to do something. He wants to marry Jupiter, so that he can inherit the Earth. Which is sort of creepy given that Jupiter is the exact genetic replica of his mother. But just like Kalique's pit stop, if this part was removed from the movie, it would not make a difference. Then there's the final pit stop in the movie involving the eldest Abrasax sibling, Balem, played by Oscar Nominee Eddie Redmayne.

Redmayne is promoted as the central villain of the movie. And while his character Balem is definitely sprinkled throughout the movie, he doesn't appear to really do anything until after the first two unnecessary pit stops in Jupiter's journey across the universe. While he doesn't give exposition, he could've easily been given the exposition of his siblings AND be a more MENACING VILLAIN. But instead we have a crybaby who talks like an old man about to die. So he comes off as not being a genuine threat. His henchmen of Dragon Men do appear to be a genuine threat. But like Balem, they don't really do anything in the first hour and half of the movie to prove they are a threat. I strongly believe that Balem's story is far more important than the ones involving his brother and sister. In fact, his brother and sister could've been removed from the movie entirely, which would allow more time to develop him and his alien Dragon Men. But no, his initial menace that was hinted at in the fantastic first hour, does not carry over to the second.

That's not to say the movie is boring. It is a fun and entertaining film with incredible breathtaking visuals. The action is astounding and just keeps getting better as the movie progress. The problem is, there are so few action scenes because in between are long periods of talking about business and harvesting and politics. Which is why if the movie just focused on Balem as the central antagonist, this movie would've been so much better. It saddens me to say that, because Tuppence Middleton and Douglas Booth gave far better performances as antagonists than Eddie Redmayne. 

Final Thoughts

This is a genuinely entertaining movie. I was not bored while watching it. Like I said, the first hour, which takes place predominantly on Earth, is a fantastic way to begin a movie then send us off on a journey to space. Unfortunately, no matter how beautiful space is, the second hour just doesn't live up to the adventure promised in the first hour. When we're suppose to be feeling something for Kunis's Jupiter, we instead feel more for Tatum's Caine and Bean's Stinger. All in all, despite all that, I'd say it is a fun watch. It is after all an original film, so it is always good to see something new. Even though it falls apart in the final hour. At least it's not a complete disaster.

SCORE: 6.5/10 - An extraordinary first hr, but a disappointing yet still entertaining second hr