After Earth is a 2013 post-apocalyptic science fiction action film directed by M. Night Shyamalan (Signs), starring Jaden Smith (The Pursuit of Happyness), Will Smith (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), Isabella Fuhrman (Orphan), Zoe Kravitz (X-Men: First Class), Kristofer Hivju (Game of Thrones), Sophie Okonedo (Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls), and Lincoln Lewis (Tomorrow, When the War Began).  The story follows a high ranking general in the Ranger Corps, and his son, who, after an incident during a spacefight, find themselves fighting for survival on a hostile planet (which is Earth itself).

Plot: The film has a pretty interesting premise as we follow the journey of this young man through treacherous territory in an effort to save himself and his wounded father.  As far as stories go, it’s a pretty interesting story although the execution is horrible.  The story is boring but its not to say there aren’t any great moments.  The main story is followed by several subplots, one being him coming to terms with the death of his sister, and the other him trying to bond with his father.  It can be entertaining and even has its moments of emotional depth, however it comes off as hollow.  The film does allow for character development for Kitai Raige however, many of the subplots to support it just don’t feel strong enough.  Even when it comes to the climax, it feels very anti-climatic.  I’m all for the story but even the subplot of the Ursa doesn’t feel important.  This is something that could’ve been leagues better than what it was.  (2 out of 5)

Characters:  The characters are alright but definitely nothing to run home about.  The main characters are Kitai Raige and Cypher Raige, a son and his father who are stuck on a more harsh Earth.  Kitai is a young member of the Ranger Corps who wants to be as badass as his father Cypher Raige.  Cypher is this badass soldier who’s distant from his son as he sees him as a disappointment.  The two have absolutely no chemistry together and even at the film’s conclusion you don’t believe their relationship has progressed in the slightest.  Kitai does come off as this whiny brat with no likable traits and it’s easy to see why.  Because his father’s a jackass with no personality nor depth.  Really, the only character worth mentioning is the Kitai’s dead sister, Senshi, and she’s only there for him to grow as a character.  Everyone else is pretty forgettable.  (2 out of 5)

Cast:  Not the best in terms of performances.  Will Smith is a fantastic actor who’s done some fantastic work but his performance in this film is lacking.  In fact, it’s like watching a piece of wood drifting along a beach.  Jaden Smith is the star of this film and he’s anything but.  There’s literally no scene where I bought his performance.  When he wasn’t lacking emotional depth he was over the top.  To say he sucked is an understatement.  There are other supporting cast but they don’t get enough screentime to be mentioned.  The supporting cast includes Sophie Okonedo, Billy Campbell, Zoe Kravitz, Tessa Allen, Glenn Morshower, Kristofer Hivju, Sacha Dhawan, Chris Geere, Diego Klattenhoff, David Denman, Lincoln Lewis, Shiva Prabhukumar, and Isabelle Fuhrman. (2 out of 5)

Visuals:  The film is a bit of a mess.  There are some really good wideshots of the forest which looks great.  Some of the action sequences are shot well enough.  There’s definitely an overuse of cgi when it comes to the animals and different creatures.  Some of the creatures don’t even need to be cgi but they are and the movie suffers for it.  The Ursa creature looked cool but its lack of screentime didn’t give us time to properly appreciate it. There are some scenes that the cgi is fucking terrible.  There’s no excuse.  I will say that the technology used was really cool.  The tech suits they wore were brilliant, the weapons they used were really cool.   Just everything else about the way the movie looked was beneath sub-par. (3 out of 5)

Score:  The music is fine and serves its purpose.  I’m not very familiar with James Newton Howard’s style of music but for what we got in the film I could definitely appreciate it. (3 out of 5)

Writing: There’s so much wrong with the writing that it seems like a chore to detail it in this review, but I’ll try.  First, M. Night Shyamalan has been known to direct some of the worst fucking movies, despite his initial good films.  This movie leaves as bad a taste in my mouth as The Last Airbender did. It was an interesting premise but the writing is choppy, pacing all over the place, there is no direction. Even with some of the science behind the Earth’s climate and some of the creatures, doesn’t hold up and is poorly written.  Nearly every aspect of the script is trash. There’s the scene where the ship is crashing and it’s tearing up and Cypher fastens Kitai in his seat, then Cypher gets sucked off into the back from a hull breach.  Kitai comes out safe (though for some reason none of the other crew think it’s a good idea to strap themselves down also) and even though Cypher was snatched off he somehow survives with only broken legs.  There’s literally no way he should’ve survived.  Especially when none of the crew seemingly survived.  Also, why in the hell did Kitai throw a rock at the baboon?  Why did the bird rescue Kitai?  (1 out of 5)

The Verdict: In the end, After Earth is a poorly constructed movie on nearly every level with next to no redeemable qualities.  Yes, it’s an interesting concept.  Yes, there’s some entertainment.  However, the film is riddled with tons of problems.  The performances are lacking, the visuals are spotty, the characters flat, direction is amateurish, and the script is garbage.  After Earth gets 2 out of 5.