the wife and i finally rented it and, while Laura enjoyed it, i was completely disappointed. and the more i think about it, the more i hate it. i was expecting something much more profound and a lot less heavy-handed. there were a couple of well-done scenes (the escape from Luke & co at the compound and the final scene where Clive Owens just walks into the hospital to get Kee). the cinematography was great -- easily the best part of the film. but the acting stank and the script was a hack-job -- both things ensured that there was no characterization whatsoever.

the girl who played Kee SUCKED. she sucked so much that i hated her within 3 minutes of her appearing. (and seriously, why does her character have to be a hooker? that's such a fucking cop-out of characterization. "who was the father?" "i didn't remember any of their names." please.)

Owens has no emotion and his character is absolutely boring. He sacrifices nothing and has no real motivation to help. there's talk about him needing the money, but they never show him needing the money. and he is pretty much on board (because, what does he have in his life? oh, i don't know. because they show nothing of his life.) but he says no just so the movie can be 10 minutes longer.

i find it shockingly dull and silly that Julianne Moore's character contacts him after 20 years. HE's the only one she can trust to get transit papers? sure, as it turns out, she was double-crossed (and that bullshit was broadcast from a mile away BY THE VERY FACT THAT SHE ONLY TRUSTED CLIVE OWENS'S CHARACTER. clearly she knew something was afoot). but come on -- their history is summed up in one outburst on a bus with the horrid line: "you don't have a monopoly on sorrow" or was it "grief"? well, there's a SUICIDAL TENDENCIES song called "monopoly on sorrow" so maybe that's why i'm confused.

the ending might have been a bit better if the boat didn't show up. (just like if AI had ended with the boy underwater). of course, the fact that the dumbassidly named HUMAN PROJECT is never explained suggests that maybe the girl and her child are ground up and sold as Lil Lisa's Magic Slurry once they are rescued. i was half-expecting "What the world needs now is love sweet love" to play while the credits rolled. that's how empty this movie felt. retarded teenagers can write dystopian stories. it takes something more than that to make a story interesting. (apparently there were 5 credited writers on this, so i guess 5 retarded teenagers can write a dystopian film).

maybe i was just looking for something ballsy to come from the film instead of a scattered, predictable movie with flat characters. ok, killing julianne moore was kinda ballsy. but the rate at which characters conveniently get out of the way through the movie ruins the impact of her death. and that abu grahb shot was dumb.

anyway. that movie sucked.

oh. and spoiler alert. as if a shitty movie can be spoiled.