They said it was a love/hate movie...

Rating: 7/10 (3 April 2009)

Everything I read before seeing this film pegged it as either a movie you end up loving...or one you end up hating. I agree, and am glad to announce I fit in the former category - especially because I really wanted to like this movie.
Granted, it was nothing like I thought it would be. I didn't know it had such a strong "sci-fi" lean. But that ended up being okay.
I also wasn't sure about Nicolas Cage. I'll be the first to admit that I've seen him in roles I liked and roles I disliked. He isn't one of my favorite actors, but his movies intrigue me. Yet even though his performance in this film is one of his better from recent years, he wasn't the standout in the cast. I personally believe the claps on the back go to Chandler Canterbury, Rose Byrne, and Lara Robinson.
Chandler Canterbury's performance as Caleb, Nic Cage's son, is reminiscent to me of the kid who played Danny Torrance in "The Shining." Rose Byrne as Diana was probably the best in the cast--unlike Cage, whose reactions were not always believable (though I have to admit that he was admirable during the spaceship scene near the end), I easily recognized the terror she was trying to exhibit, especially in the few scenes just before her death. And Lara Robinson as both Lucinda and Lucinda's granddaughter (Diana's daughter) was terrifying as the former and impressive as the latter.
Not to mention the CGI in the movie. The plane crash scene was--to abandon proper terms momentarily--really, really COOL. And also really, really SCARY. The subway and burning forest/animals scenes also terrified me in an almost irrational way. It was almost too real, if that makes any sense. And the end--the destruction of Earth--was the same.
I could have done without the aliens at the end. Still, I think, somehow, that leaving the movie with everyone dead might have detracted from its overall effect. And the final cut, the children running toward the white tree, was surreal. In a good way.
I left the theater completely shaken and wowed. With a desire to see it again, and take all the friends who expressed doubt at its worth.
I can't say if you'll like it or not, because as I said, it's either love or hate. But "Knowing" is better than having no idea. :)