Theres no way for me to really discuss Tomorrowland without first disclosing my absolute geek-love for Brad Bird.
From my perspective, The Incredibles is a perfect movie when it comes to pacing and character development. Ratatouille is visually stunning and challenging, and The Iron Giant captures the innocent wonderment of the1950s in a way that made me, a child of the 90s, feel nostalgic for black-and-white television and melodramatic monster movies.
Without further diving into Birds Mission Impossible chapter or Amazing Stories, let me just say, I admire the guy. I expect to like his work. And every time Ive raised an eyebrow or expressed concerns about the direction hes taking on one of his projects, Ive been happy to later admit my misguided ways after seeing the finished product.
This is why, when less-than-stellar trailers started hitting for Tomorrowland, I didnt pay much attention. I simply assumed marketing was having trouble selling something genius. Great movies fall victim to terrible marketing all the time, and Birds perspective was a likely candidate for such a mishap.
So I walked into this movie as a fan-boy waiting to be amazed only to walk out asking fellow critic John Clyde, Was that brilliant or terrible? I texted him the same question 24 hours later and now two days after the screening, Im staring at my laptop still unsure of how Ill approach this review.
I absolutely loved pieces of Tomorrowland. But its impossible to make that statement without including the caveat that other parts of Tomorrowland feel like a really bad made-for-television movie.
Hopefully after breaking this down a bit, Ill find some clarity in my scattered and conflicting opinions.
Its unique
Major kudos to Bird for having the guts to tell this story. Im not exactly sure how he got Disneys buy-off on the project, or maybe some of the storys quirks are the direct result of studio interference, but to everyone who laments about Hollywood having nothing original to say, this is a movie you need to see.
Told from the perspective of Frank Walker (George Clooney) and Casey Newton (Britt Robertson), the story isnt bashful about its proselytizing ways. We the movie audience dont exactly know who Walker and Newton are giving their account to, but its obvious theyre trying to convince their unseen recipients of something.
As they tell their story, the details unfold like any water cooler conversation. Everything plays out in an and-this-happened-next fashion, which is clever, but ultimately removes necessary tension. Since we know Walker and Newton are alive and well at the end of the story, otherwise visually stunning action sequences feel long and even unnecessary. At a real water cooler conversation, people would be interjecting a lot, asking the two to get back to their point.
The message
Tomorrowland breaks the basic show-not-tell rule of storytelling with a spectacular spinning roundhouse kick to the teeth. If by some insane happenstance youve made it to the climax of the movie still unsure of the films message, dont worry, theres a monologue that explains everything.
Were not talking Heres my evil plan, monologue either. This is a monologue that will leave you wondering if ushers are waiting at the exits with donation plates. Had the movies villain turned to the camera and said, Remember kids, always eat your vegetables, it still might have seemed less preachy than the sermon that awaits you in the third act.
That said, its not a bad message. If you consider this a movie for kids, well, maybe theres room to excuse the otherwise condescending discourse on hope. Or, and sadly this is more likely, maybe Im a Bird apologist whos really desperate to explain away the terribleness that is the last 20 minutes of this movie.
The players
There is some painfully hokey dialogue in this movie, but the cast embraces the corny exchanges with sincerity. In fact, the performances are so genuine, it made me wonder if the actors were in on some joke I just wasnt getting. Were there winks to the audience, or was Bird celebrating serial science-fiction in a way I just didnt connect with? I dont know. I hope so. But Tomorrowland is a movie where characters say all their thoughts out loud and drift off mid-sentence for dramatic effect. In any other movie, Id have to roll my eyes. But because the cast is so at home in this bizarre world, it feels like the unnatural conversations are by design.
Robertson deserves most the credit for selling the setting. Sure, Hugh Laurie and Clooney are their usual charismatic and charming selves, but its up to Robertson to make us care about the fantastic events dominion around her character. No matter how the film is received this weekend, Tomorrowland at least proves her abilities as a leading lady.
The trouble with Newton
I can explain away most of what I dislike about Tomorrowland by choosing to believe Bird intentionally hammed up the production. However, throughout the movie youre going to hear over and over again how special and important Newton is. Thats fine, a protagonist should always stand out for some reason. However, Newton herself has little impact on the story. Shes in almost every scene, but as the story comes to a close, you realize any random citizen of Earth couldve replaced her and everything wouldve wrapped up with the same optimistic bow.
Conclusion
Im still not sure Im ready to take sides on Tomorrowland. Theres definitely an audience ready to love this movie, but even they will concede many of the films problems.
The movie is pretty, fun and passionately optimistic. Unfortunately, its also preachy, melodramatic and full of plot-holes. If you can write the latter off as par for summer entertainment, then youre really going to enjoy the crazy sci-fi that is Tomorrowland. If, however, youre a little more demanding from your techie-message offerings, youll probably find the entire experience a bit frustrating.
No matter your camp, I still suggest running out and seeing it opening weekend. We who want Hollywood to continue supporting original ideas need to vote with ticket sales, and right now, the disappointing Avengers sequel has made enough cash to eradicate world hunger. A subject, if I remember correctly, that comes up in that closing monologue as well.
From my perspective, The Incredibles is a perfect movie when it comes to pacing and character development. Ratatouille is visually stunning and challenging, and The Iron Giant captures the innocent wonderment of the1950s in a way that made me, a child of the 90s, feel nostalgic for black-and-white television and melodramatic monster movies.
Without further diving into Birds Mission Impossible chapter or Amazing Stories, let me just say, I admire the guy. I expect to like his work. And every time Ive raised an eyebrow or expressed concerns about the direction hes taking on one of his projects, Ive been happy to later admit my misguided ways after seeing the finished product.
This is why, when less-than-stellar trailers started hitting for Tomorrowland, I didnt pay much attention. I simply assumed marketing was having trouble selling something genius. Great movies fall victim to terrible marketing all the time, and Birds perspective was a likely candidate for such a mishap.
So I walked into this movie as a fan-boy waiting to be amazed only to walk out asking fellow critic John Clyde, Was that brilliant or terrible? I texted him the same question 24 hours later and now two days after the screening, Im staring at my laptop still unsure of how Ill approach this review.
I absolutely loved pieces of Tomorrowland. But its impossible to make that statement without including the caveat that other parts of Tomorrowland feel like a really bad made-for-television movie.
Hopefully after breaking this down a bit, Ill find some clarity in my scattered and conflicting opinions.
Its unique
Major kudos to Bird for having the guts to tell this story. Im not exactly sure how he got Disneys buy-off on the project, or maybe some of the storys quirks are the direct result of studio interference, but to everyone who laments about Hollywood having nothing original to say, this is a movie you need to see.
Told from the perspective of Frank Walker (George Clooney) and Casey Newton (Britt Robertson), the story isnt bashful about its proselytizing ways. We the movie audience dont exactly know who Walker and Newton are giving their account to, but its obvious theyre trying to convince their unseen recipients of something.
As they tell their story, the details unfold like any water cooler conversation. Everything plays out in an and-this-happened-next fashion, which is clever, but ultimately removes necessary tension. Since we know Walker and Newton are alive and well at the end of the story, otherwise visually stunning action sequences feel long and even unnecessary. At a real water cooler conversation, people would be interjecting a lot, asking the two to get back to their point.
The message
Tomorrowland breaks the basic show-not-tell rule of storytelling with a spectacular spinning roundhouse kick to the teeth. If by some insane happenstance youve made it to the climax of the movie still unsure of the films message, dont worry, theres a monologue that explains everything.
Were not talking Heres my evil plan, monologue either. This is a monologue that will leave you wondering if ushers are waiting at the exits with donation plates. Had the movies villain turned to the camera and said, Remember kids, always eat your vegetables, it still might have seemed less preachy than the sermon that awaits you in the third act.
That said, its not a bad message. If you consider this a movie for kids, well, maybe theres room to excuse the otherwise condescending discourse on hope. Or, and sadly this is more likely, maybe Im a Bird apologist whos really desperate to explain away the terribleness that is the last 20 minutes of this movie.
The players
There is some painfully hokey dialogue in this movie, but the cast embraces the corny exchanges with sincerity. In fact, the performances are so genuine, it made me wonder if the actors were in on some joke I just wasnt getting. Were there winks to the audience, or was Bird celebrating serial science-fiction in a way I just didnt connect with? I dont know. I hope so. But Tomorrowland is a movie where characters say all their thoughts out loud and drift off mid-sentence for dramatic effect. In any other movie, Id have to roll my eyes. But because the cast is so at home in this bizarre world, it feels like the unnatural conversations are by design.
Robertson deserves most the credit for selling the setting. Sure, Hugh Laurie and Clooney are their usual charismatic and charming selves, but its up to Robertson to make us care about the fantastic events dominion around her character. No matter how the film is received this weekend, Tomorrowland at least proves her abilities as a leading lady.
The trouble with Newton
I can explain away most of what I dislike about Tomorrowland by choosing to believe Bird intentionally hammed up the production. However, throughout the movie youre going to hear over and over again how special and important Newton is. Thats fine, a protagonist should always stand out for some reason. However, Newton herself has little impact on the story. Shes in almost every scene, but as the story comes to a close, you realize any random citizen of Earth couldve replaced her and everything wouldve wrapped up with the same optimistic bow.
Conclusion
Im still not sure Im ready to take sides on Tomorrowland. Theres definitely an audience ready to love this movie, but even they will concede many of the films problems.
The movie is pretty, fun and passionately optimistic. Unfortunately, its also preachy, melodramatic and full of plot-holes. If you can write the latter off as par for summer entertainment, then youre really going to enjoy the crazy sci-fi that is Tomorrowland. If, however, youre a little more demanding from your techie-message offerings, youll probably find the entire experience a bit frustrating.
No matter your camp, I still suggest running out and seeing it opening weekend. We who want Hollywood to continue supporting original ideas need to vote with ticket sales, and right now, the disappointing Avengers sequel has made enough cash to eradicate world hunger. A subject, if I remember correctly, that comes up in that closing monologue as well.