In a bright and colorful future, a young destitute caretaker gets targeted by a ruthless son of a powerful family that live on a planet in need of a new heir, so she travels with a genetically engineered warrior to the planet in order to stop his tyrant reign.
Imagine the loopiest fan-fiction you can, as written by devotees of the aforementioned Gilliam, and you’ll be on the right track.
The Wachowskis borrow from Under The Skin (notably the idea of “harvesting” humans) and other offbeat recent sci-fi movies as well as from Star Wars. They’re caught, though, in some purgatorial world between kids’ action-adventure and cerebral adult thriller.
It’s all very chaotic and entertaining, like a bizarre cult sci-fi TV show that somehow survived a threat of mid-season cancellation.
Derivative in the extreme.
Boring action, tedious characters and, everybody’s favourite, space bureaucracy! You know, just in case you were starting to have fun.
Wachowski's kitsch sci-fi thriller isn't worth the candles.
In space, no one can hear you scream…with laughter. Which is helpful when watching the Wachowskis’ latest effort.
The film does look spectacular but Andy and Lana Wachoswki still can’t match the impact they made with The Matrix a generation ago.
It’s a film that seems to be unintentionally channelling the spirit of Flash Gordon. And is all the better for it.
There’s a lot of gene-chopping in Jupiter Ascending: outer space looks like a thousand heavy metal covers diced together, and the heroine is a blend of a bored Mila Kunis, Cinderella, and Neo from the Wachowskis’ most successful film, The Matrix.
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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