'Tomorrowland' Movie Review: A Disappointing Mess that Boggles the Mind
Over the last few years, Disney has had an obsession with saving the world.
In all the company's Marvel films, the superheroes are constantly asked to save the world, whether as a team or in solo movies. In "Pirates of the Caribbean," the pirates are also saving their world from terrible villains. So what sets "Tomorrowland" apart from these Disney Franchises? Nothing really, except for the fact that this film is highly incomprehensible. Starring George Clooney and Britt Robertson, "Tomorrowland" is a film disguised with big ideas that ultimately has nothing to say about the world.
The film, directed by Brad Bird, tells the story of a teen bursting with scientific curiosity, Casey (Robertson), and a former boy-genius inventor, Frank Walker (Clooney), bound by a shared destiny, who embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.
From the logline, it seems like this will be a smooth ride. However, when the movie gets started it quickly becomes evident that this will be somewhat of a mess. Frank begins telling his story and constantly says that the world is doomed. After Casey persuades him to tell his childhood story, Frank jumps to the past. The film goes to Frank's childhood when he went to an inventor's convention. For whatever reason he is given a pin by a mysterious girl, Athena (Raffey Cassidy), that gets him into Tomorrowland. However, what sticks from this sequence is the fact that Frank had to travel all the way to Disneyland to get this pin. Tomorrowland itself looks like another one of Disney's rides that will likely attract more visitors to its ever growing parks.
The story concludes with yet another sad story of Frank being banished for a reason that is never explained and which ultimately means nothing as the script doesn't seem to explain anything that is happening in the first place.
Then it is Casey's turn to explain her story and how she got to Tomorrowland and met Frank. All that is necessary to know is that she is a positive girl who gets arrested for trying to stop NASA from taking down a launch pad. This whole thing is a representation of the destruction of the world. However, why the world is ending is never explained.
But, because she is positive, Athena believes she is the chosen one, and that leads her to being attacked by "Star Wars"-loving aliens and meeting Frank. Disney has no shame in promoting their franchises and it is evident as this whole scene showcases action figures from "Star Wars. It also makes sure to remind the viewer of the music from the franchise.
By the time Frank and Casey actually get to Tomorrowland, the film feels extremely tired as the writers clearly had too much money on their hands and decided to go to Paris to show the Eiffel tower so they could get to the fantastical world. The time it takes them to get to Tomorrowland takes at least 15 minutes and one wonders why Frank was able to get to this place so easily when he was just a young kid.
But the questions continue to come up. Why is Casey the chosen one? Why were Frank and Athena banished? Why is Nix (Hugh Laurie), the ruler of Tomorrowland, so intent in letting humans die? More importantly, why is Tomorrowland so important? These are the many questions that are never answered which make this endeavor so frustrating and chaotic to watch.
What makes the film salvageable is Claudio Miranda's impeccable cinematography. The shots are beautifully composed and move the story ahead. One of the best sequences in the film is the first time Casey sees Tomorrowland. The camera flows through the space following Casey but also allowing the viewer to explore with her. The shot, which lasts at least two minutes, goes uninterrupted and it is truly a spectacle that brings out the best qualities in this film. Michael Giacchino also brings his usual melodic flair to the proceedings while Scott Chambliss' Production designs are spectacular.
To say Clooney isn't good would be a crime but there is nothing new to his work that hasn't been seen before. Britt Robertson is solid in her role despite the character becoming irritating at times. Then again, that is partly due to the script and the character that was written.
All in all, this film is a disappointment. To come from the genius mind of Bird who has made "The Incredibles," "Ratatouille" and "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol," this film feels flat. Perhaps audiences will enjoy the sheer spectacle and the action sequences but after a few seconds that will dry up and the only thing left the mind will be confusion.