Bound by a shared destiny, a teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.
‘Effortful’, in the most positive sense of the word. Bird and Lindelof have thrown everything they have at this film and, aside from a pause for breath at the end, they’ve made something funny, surprising and packed full of wonder.
Jet packs, giant robots and George Clooney – what more could you want from your blockbuster? Brad Bird does old-fashioned sci-fi the new-fangled way and makes the future fun again.
Brad Bird’s new Disney film may not kickstart a whole new franchise, but it’s enormous fun as it hurtles through space, time, and other dimensions.
They are characters to inspire and, in their very existence, it feels like commercial cinema may finally be entering the 21st century.
Earnest it may be, but consider that Tomorrowland is largely aimed at children and it’s difficult to be too critical. It encourages us, like Frank, to remember past optimism and build a world beyond expectation, instead of beyond hope.
You need to keep up the fun while laying on the overly convoluted glum; fewer lectures, more adventures.
A future so bright, it needs some shade.
Verdict: Preachy Disney blockbuster.
Like a classic Pixar film, Tomorrowland starts demonstrating utter confidence in its own ideas, letting Bird (no stranger to the animation studio’s risk-taking culture) pull off a nifty bait-and-switch: promising the simple thrills and spills of a ride, but understanding the deeper satisfaction that can be had by engaging the mind.
Ironically for a story about the rediscovery of hope, it begins with great promise but ends in disappointment.
Disney’s future-retro adventure has grand ideas and is amazing to look at, but the storytelling is not so sleek.
Tomorrowland: how Walt Disney's strange utopia shaped the world of tomorrow
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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