"The Wandering Earth"

[Mudd]

I didn't see a topic for this nor could I find one with a search so I opened this one.

I'm surprised that the movie hasn't gotten much attention, given that it's the fourth biggest box office hit internationally of 2019 - behind Endgame, Captain Marvel and Aladdin.

It's playing on Netflix in the U.S., apparently with no promotion for it whatever. Which is a shame. It's a real science fiction movie-as-blockbuster, rather than a comic book or mythic fantasy or whatever, and they went big. The science is dicey but a great deal less ridiculous than, oh, Star Trek - at least they're not flying around in FTL ships with rayguns.

It's got something of that blockbuster predictability, but not nearly so much as American product does; you can't call out every story beat before it happens, as you can with most Marvel movies.

The production design is gorgeous, and different, and the effects are as good as anything coming out of Hollywood (so, there are a few lame ones). And all of this was done in China for a reported budget of 50 million dollars.

Here's the trailer and some footage:

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[The Nth Doctor]

I've been meaning to check it out ever since the news broke about it's critical affair and release on Netflix.

 

[Gaith]

The science is dicey but a great deal less ridiculous than, oh, Star Trek - at least they're not flying around in FTL ships with rayguns.

Seeing as the movie is about using Earth's own resources to power a flight to the Alpha Centauri system, that seems a bit like saying that Lord of the Rings is less ridiculous than Harry Potter, because at least Gandalf isn't spouting grade-school Latin as he casts spells.

Also, anyone who says that this movie is any less ridiculous than The Core can piss right off.

 

[Morpheus 02]

2 quick questions...is this a movie i can watch with my kids?

2. Is this available on Redbox?

 

[JD]

Not sure about 1, but it's a Netflix streaming exclusive, so 2 is gonna be a no.
I think it's also worth mention that it's based on a novella by Liu Cixin, the author of the Rememberance of Earth's Past trilogy (The Three-Body Problem, The Dark Forest, Death's End).
I've been hearing good things about this, so I definitely play on checking it out, I just haven't gotten around to at. I've stopped on it a couple times while looking for a movie to watch, but I just kept thinking of other stuff I wanted to watch more.

 

[gblews]

I started watching it a few weeks ago. I found having to read the technobabble a bit of a slog, but my intention is to pick it up again soon. Great production values.

 

[Mudd]

There are a couple of "fucks" in the dialogue, I think. No gratuitous gore that I remember, though there are deaths and the whole thing, as they say, "may be too intense for young children." So...hard to say.

There's a great deal more thought, and screen time, given to the scientific explanations for what's going on...but the science is sometimes woefully naive or outright wrong.

OTOH, they give a nice description of the time it will take to accelerate Earth to "cruising speed" and the time to decelerate, so they've at least opened a physics book at some point. Star Trek, now, is nearly bereft of any science at all.

The movie is not even in the same universe of ridiculous as crap like The Core.

 

[Kira OneThree]

I saw the movie when my friends made a big deal about it being on Netflix. I didn't personally find the movie that enjoyable. I didn't care for too many of the characters. I think the dad and the Russian guy on the space station were honestly the best part. They made it clear that they had that professional relationship friendship going on, but the rest of the characters just didn't do it for me.

For me, the only thing that really saved this movie is the FX. That's about it. The movie LOOKS great. Unfortunately, that's only enough to give it a C- in my book. Worth a watch, but I'll never revisit it.

 

[Mudd]

I enjoyed all the characters. Including Insane Machine Gun Guy.

One of the things that makes movies like this and the live-action Space Battleship Yamato interesting to me is that the characters are not conceived and portrayed to appeal to the American or necessarily, in this case, the Western audience. That's doubly true for the comic relief elements.

 

[Kira OneThree]

You're proooobably not wrong, but I have to ask if they were conceived and portrayed to appeal to....any audience?

 

[Burning Hearts of Qo'nos]

I loved how over the top this movie was. It was down right absurd in (many) places, and the characters are pretty much all annoying in their own unique and predictable ways. Seen it happen in some sort of sci-fi disaster movie? THIS MOVIE HAS IT, AND THEN IT EXPLODES. I loved it (once I got past hating all the characters besides the Dad and his friend in the space station) and plan to watch it at least one more time.

 

[Mudd]

You're proooobably not wrong, but I have to ask if they were conceived and portrayed to appeal to....any audience?

Yeah, they most certainly were...and they did.

The movie is in no danger of being overtaken by Endgame in China, that's for sure.

The guys on the space station were certainly the most conventional "heroes" of the cast. The sister is, of course, the moral center of the story.

 

[Kira OneThree]

I may be beyond help when it comes to being Western, true. But tell me the appeal of any of these characters. Like Burning Hearts of Qo'nos said, the fact that it was over the top is really what it had going for it. I just can't see how anybody can like the characters, and I think the movie succeeded in spite of the characters, not because of them. I'd like, legitimately, someone to point out what Chinese audiences liked about the characters. I'm legitimately curious.

Truth be told, the characters other than the Dad and the Russian guy I can't even remember. If the sister was the moral center of the story, I can't remember what it was all about. Maybe I'm being too hard on the movie, but what really got me was just how good all of the CGI looked. I basically think of this movie as the Avatar of China, it's an eye catching spectacle, but that's really about it.

 

[John Clark]

I watched it back in May. I thought it was a fun flick to pass the time with and it does look good too.

 

[Burning Hearts of Qo'nos]

I may be beyond help when it comes to being Western, true. But tell me the appeal of any of these characters. Like Burning Hearts of Qo'nos said, the fact that it was over the top is really what it had going for it. I just can't see how anybody can like the characters, and I think the movie succeeded in spite of the characters, not because of them. I'd like, legitimately, someone to point out what Chinese audiences liked about the characters. I'm legitimately curious.

Truth be told, the characters other than the Dad and the Russian guy I can't even remember. If the sister was the moral center of the story, I can't remember what it was all about. Maybe I'm being too hard on the movie, but what really got me was just how good all of the CGI looked. I basically think of this movie as the Avatar of China, it's an eye catching spectacle, but that's really about it.

I don't know, I grew up in a Chinese household and watched a lot of Chinese movies as a kid. A lot of the characters in campy movies are like this but even so, the ones in this movie seemed extra ridiculous. I'd believe it if I was told that it was meant to be satirical.

 

[Brolan]

I was only able to get through the first hour of this. My eyes hurt from all the eye-rolling.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

OMG this movie was just what I needed, it was totally bonkers, fuck physics and logic more dakka.

It was fun. I had fun I enjoyed it. 7/10.

Reminded me of the movie Gorath where they also stick engines on the South Pole.

I love how a Chinese movie is able to pull off the world coming together as one a bit better then a Western movie that tries to pull the same thing off. So many different languages being spoken together in scenes. Loved it.

FUCK PHYSICS it was fun

 

[theenglish]

I will have to watch this movie, but so often state approved Chinese films are hampered for me because they tend to have heavy handed Communist messages.

 

[Mudd]

I didn't notice.

 

[BillJ]

Fun, enjoyable movie.

I will have to watch this movie, but so often state approved Chinese films are hampered for me because they tend to have heavy handed Communist messages.

Who fucking cares? Can’t you put aside your fear of anything different and enjoy something.