+ Best Remake of the Year + Best Science Fiction Movie of the Year
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| Keanu Reeves plays the emotionally vacant Klaatu in Scott Derrickson's The Day the Earth Stood Still |
QUICK REVIEW:
Something strange lands on Manhattan, which turns out to be the exterminator of an alien civilization. Our harmful exploitation of Earth, it turns out, has put us on an erase list.
SPOILER Jennifer Connelly (Phenomena (1985)) and Jaden Smith (The Karate Kid (2010)) manage, with their charm and inherent humanity, to convince Keanu Reeve's (Knock Knock (2015)) version of the alien exterminator Klaatu that we can change and that we're worth saving, in spite of everything.
The Day the Earth Stood Still is a remake of the 1951 movie of the same name, both based on the sci-fi short story Farewell to the Master (1940) by Harry Bates (The Slave Ship from Space (1931)). The basic idea is terrifically exciting, and here in the second adaptation of the story great stars like John Cleese (A Fish Called Wanda (1988)) and Kathy Bates (Misery (1990)) help the exciting core sustain itself into a good film, - despite the fact that the beginning and the end of the film are weaker than its middle.
Scott Derrickson (Sinister (2012)) directed, and David Scarpa (The Last Castle (2001)) wrote the screenplay.
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Cost: 80 mil. $
Box office: 233.1 mil. $
= Box office success
[The idea for a Reeves-led remake of the film originated way back in 1994. Global changes since the first film made the change to a more environmentally focused premise happen. Scarpa reportedly wrote 40 drafts of the script before shooting. The film was shot in December 2007 - March 2008 in Vancouver, mostly on sets. Its release was moved from May to December for post production and scheduling reasons. It opened to a 30.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America, with 12 % coming from IMAX screens, the reportedly highest IMAX share for a two-dimensional title at the time. The film only stayed in the top 10 domestically for 4 weeks, grossing 79.3 mil. $ (34 % of the total gross) there. The international markets were crucial for the success of the film: The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 26.2 mil. $ (11.2 %) and the UK with 10.9 mil. $ (4.7 %). The film got nominated for the Razzie award for Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel, but 'lost' to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The Day the Earth Stood Still is rotten at 21 % with a 4.1 critical average on Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of The Day the Earth Stood Still?
Compare it to the original, if you've seen it
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