Close encounter of the dull kind

THIS movie has been unkindly referred to elsewhere as “more like number twos”.
In fairness, it’s just not that bad. Sadly, it’s not that good either.
All the beautiful people have come out for this one, in a whitebread, picture-perfect postcard of small-town America.
By far the prettiest is model-quality lead, Alexander Pettyfer, who plays an alien hiding out on Earth and being pursued by some other, uglier aliens called Mogadorians.
And that’s about it.
Fortunately, apart from being ridiculously good-looking, Alexander looks pretty much like a human being, which must have saved a fortune in costuming.
The bright spark is Timothy Olyphant, who steals the show in every film he’s in. As Alexander’s warrior guardian, he gives real depth to a role that, in less skilled hands, would have been little more than a bit part.
Really, this film is pitched more at teens – and probably young teens, at that. OK, maybe younger than teens. I reckon nine-year-olds would love it.
It explicitly channels a lot of other films, especially Twilight, Superman and The X-Files.
By modern standards, the effects are quite standard and, indeed, almost rationed.
With a reputed $60 million spent, it’s hard to see where the money went – it can’t all have been spent on those pretty young things.
“District 9” by contrast, spent half as much to achieve five times the film.
The final battle is suitably apocalyptic, but contains no surprises. There’s no escaping the sense we’ve done it all before.
The worst part is coping with the nagging feeling that you should have gone to see “Burlesque” instead.
It’s a fairly routine ride, and you’ll have forgotten the flick five minutes after you’ve left the cinema.
– Jason Beck