You Gotta Finish Strong

Rating: 6/10 (23 September 2009)

I'm afraid I have to side with those who found this really disappointing. As I watched the first two-thirds of this film I was really engaged. The premise is really fun. Cage is at his quirky best as he tries to juggle his obsession with his life, one that requires an equal share of attention. A brilliant man, he breaks through the puzzle left behind in the time capsule by the little girl. Unfortunately, the script fails us. Once again there are children who can hear voices and mysterious figures lurking in the woods. Once again, we have a religious kind of resolution. When this happens, what was a scientific movie with Cage breaking through becomes another one of those "We are so small, we can't understand movies. There are also red herrings all over the place. What's the deal with those rocks other than to make us ask, "What's the deal with those rocks?" After I saw "2001: A Space Odyssey" and read "Childhood's End" by Arthur C. Clarke, I've gotten the message. These are outstanding works of art. This new movie begins wonderfully and then becomes another rip-off of the same old same old.