Warning: Mild Spoilers
Jupiter Ascending is an interesting movie, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The Wachowski's haven't given us anything as deep or meaningful as Cloud Atlus, nor something as all around fun as Speed Racer, but instead we are given a very hackneyed science fiction universe. It seems to be composed of some twist on the gods of Olympus, with some Star Wars, Flash Gordon, Dune, and a dash of Soylent Green thrown in to make it an amalgam of awkward tastes.
The story is that of lowly toilet cleaning Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), a genetic reincarnation of intergalactic royalty, being found by her absurdly rich "family" that wants to harvest the Earth's people for an elixir of life. Thwarting the elites and helping Jupiter find her new path is Caine Wise (Channing Tatum), a part wolf super soldier bred for battle. Along the way there's a lot of explosions, robots, some dragon people, and even a Terry Gilliam cameo.
They didn't even try to mask the mythological elements. The elixer (bath juice) is called "nectar" and there are numerous statues of the Greek gods seen around the space stations.
After considering this film for the last four days- it isn't quite fair to say it's a terrible movie. It has plenty of merits such as decent acting, wonderful visual effects, and plenty of humor. The entire film's design work is downright stunning. Unfortunately it is highly predictable and cliched. In trying to keep this review as short as possible I'll go as far to say that this film is something that will fully entertain people if they go in looking for uncomplicated entertainment. In that sense, it's a great popcorn film.
Simply put, the Wachowski's have given us a sci-fi space opera spectacle without the timeless story that should've been at its core. They have, however, laid the groundwork for a potentially huge future. The universe they've created here is mentioned by many characters as being far vaster than anything they've shown in the movie. Perhaps we might someday get to see something much more worthwhile in the future of this new universe. Something new and groundbreaking to set it apart from the typical sci-fi fair we've been inundated with for years. Something worthy of the ideas floating around Jupiter Ascending. As it is, it's a couple of hours of cinematic adventure, and I might even go see it again just for the gorgeous visuals.
On a side note, maybe they should've called it Jupiter Descending instead, seeing as she spends roughly a quarter of the film in a state of falling from things.
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