Blog #75 Jupiter Ascending Movie Review

Jupiter Ascending 2015

Sci-Fi Epic, Space Epic

Directed by The Wachowskis

Written by The Wachowskis

Produced by Grant Hill, The Wachowskis

Starring

Channing Tatum plays Caine Wise. Mr. Tatum also played Duke in G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009).

Mila Kunis plays Jupiter Jones. Ms. Kunis also played Jill in Honey We Shrunk Ourselves (1997)

Sean Bean plays Stinger Apini. Mr. Bean also played Joseph Wilford in Snowpiercer TV series (2020-2024), John Marlot in The Frankenstein Chronicles TV series (2015-2017) (oddly not listed as SciFi), Mitch Henderson in The Martian (2015), Corporal Hill (SAS officer) (2015) (again not listed as SciFi), Amal in The Lost Future (2010), Zeus in Percy Jackson in The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) (also not listed as Sci-Fi but very close in tone of Jupiter Ascending), Dr. Bernard Merrick in The Island (2005).

Eddie Redmayne plays Balem Abrasax.

Douglas Booth plays Titus Abrasax.

Cinematography John Toll

Edited by Alexander Berner

Music by Michael Giacchino

Production companies Village Roadshow Pictures, RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Anachos Productions

Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures (International, Roadshow Entertainment (Australia and New Zealand

Release dates January 27, 2015 Sundance Film Festival), February 6, 2015, February 19, 2015 (Australia)

Running time 127 minutes

Countries United States, Australia

Language English

Budget $176 -210 million

Box office $184 million

Synopsis

A young woman, Jupiter Jones, is dissatisfied with her life. She lives with her mother, aunt, uncle, and cousin and works as a domestic cleaner. We learn her mother is from Russia and escaped to the United States with her sister to start a new life (I assume). Unfortunately, Jupiter was born on a ship crossing to the US. That messes up citizenship.

So Jupiter makes a bold, somewhat illegal decision to use a client’s name to donate her eggs. She wants money to buy a telescope, which is tied to her deceased father’s profession. This causes all sorts of problems and almost gets Jupiter killed by aliens who learn she’s of great genetic interest and want to kill her.

I will warn you this is a soap opera, dynasty, SciFi, adventure. It was directed and written by the people behind The Matrix (1999), and it didn’t do so well. Critics praised the special effects, but thought the story was confusing. The gross was $184 million but cost $176-210 million to make.

Critique

I do think it could be confusing, but the general storyline is pretty straightforward. All of the characters were great, and the leads especially. Perhaps the galactic bureaucracy scene was very close to the book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1979), in the running around and the humor of the ridiculous rules, but making fun of government is an old pastime. It is a visual feast. Beautiful views of Jupiter, and running around the solar system. The ships and housing of the elite, with their elaborate ways, were a delight.

I could see fault with the development of the romantic storyline, but on paper it does make sense. If I ever get into scriptwriting, I might be able to figure out how to fix it, but Jupiter’s reluctance to trust Caine felt a bit rough. Since I liked the two of them, I wanted them to get together, which is, of course, how these things are usually staged. I think the actors helped with what was likely poor writing, and it didn’t interfere too much with my enjoyment.

Caine is a character that skates through the air. It is well done in terms of effect but describing it, it seems silly. However, I would love to give it a try.

One thing that writing advice brings home is to be as clear as possible. It was clear what the problems were, but the dialogue in one part was rough. The rest was clear- life or death of characters and of the Earth.

Image 8 The Don’t Worry About It, It’s “Just a Formality” Wedding

This seems to be part of the Wachowskis’ fall. A lot of supposition about that has fallen into the woke backlash (I didn’t see any of that here, just revolving around their personal lives). I think there is an understanding of the story structure that gives us heroes and villains and good resolutions. Maybe that is frowned upon these days, at least in the movie industry, but beyond that, I don’t know why this movie suffered from low attendance.

I never went to the theater to see this movie. I missed it; maybe they didn’t do a very good promo for it. I used to go often (before the pandemic), so the promotion didn’t reach me; I was constantly searching for good flicks. Unfortunately, the movie came out into steep competition. A cult following has emerged, and you could say it is a hit on the second time around.

Image 9 The Decadence of the Ruling Families Notice the living Barge

I saw a review by an editor who thought too many ideas were crammed into the story. My daughter says I am so immersed in scifi and fantasy ideas that I can follow it, but many can’t and get confused. That may be true.

So, it is not perfect. Many of the movies and books I review are closer to perfection, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t go to the theater, check it out, or buy the book. There is mention of violent acts, possible violent acts that get close, and discussion of a vile product, but beyond that I would say nothing is promoted as being ‘okay’.

I recommend it.

I would say this film is fine for children through adults. The soapy, dynastic nature might not be to everyone’s taste; in fact, you could call it a ‘chick flick’. As I have said before, I like corny literature and movies, and this qualifies.

Where to Watch

Amazon Prime Video $4.99

YouTube $5.99

Fandango at Home $5.99

Google Play Movies $5.99

The End

Sources

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter_Ascending

2. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1475594/?ref_=tt_cst_t_1

3. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005109/?ref_=tt_cst_t_2

4. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000293/?ref_=tt_cst_t_4

5. https://decider.com/2019/08/21/the-slow-ascent-of-jupiter-ascending/