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Evolution

Evolution

List Price: $9.99
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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: And WHO directed this?
Review: Ok. Let me get down to business. Darwin was wrong. Had evolution truly existed, this stinker would have gone the way of the dinosaur.

Ivan Reitman has lost his touch. "Evolution" is not another "Ghostbusters" as many people have said, but instead a sorry mess of "Men in black" "Mars attacks" and "Dude, where's my car?"-ish scenes.

David Duchovny plays Ira Kane, a failed biologist, who discovers a life form that crashed in the Arizona Desert on a meteor. (Keep in mind that we later find out that Kane's experimental anthrax vaccine gave a couple thousand soldiers erectile dysfunction, so we know it'll be immature) Along with a babe-chasing geologist, Dr. Block (Orlando Jones) and a country-club crackhead, Wayne (Sean William Scott) Kane tries to stop the alien life-form from evolving into cheesy creatures that take over the city. Eventually it evolves into worms, insects (of which one is removed from Dr. Block's rectum in a ridiculous "Matrix"-style sequence.) and dragon-like creatures that rampage shopping malls. Alison Reed (Julianne Moore) plays the film's sex object- a garter-belt-wearing dumb blonde scientist who falls over in nearly every scene in which she appears. She joins the trio in what has to be one of the worst scientific fallacies made. A useless student protest, a romance with the chemistry of a couple of boiled cabbages, Dan Ackroyd as an incompetant fascist governor who has the strange authority to call in the army to pump the meteor's cave full of napalm, Duchovny's childlike use of the periodic table and the way biologists are stereotyped as a bunch of woman-chasing boneheads had me ranting, not laughing. The movie is also full of canonical teenage jokes- The occasional boob crack or racial slur, and an absulutely stupid scene at the end in where our science geniuses, assisted by two fat flunkouts, give a giant mutated blob an enema with dandruff shampoo. Ivan Reitman, who directed some brilliant movies, is ready to direct low-budget sitcoms after this. And congratulations, Mr. Duchovny, you just shot your career in the gonads. A waste of time, a waste of money, and a waste of film constitutes what I'd call the quintessential "De-evolution" of filmmaking.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: forgettable sci-fi parody
Review: "Evolution" is Ivan Reitman's wan attempt to replicate the formula of his most successful film, 1984's "Ghostbusters." In this film, David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Seann William Scott and Julianne Moore portray the oddball foursome who uses its wit and "expertise" to help eradicate an otherworldly menace. Instead of ghosts, in "Evolution" we have a host of single-celled aliens who crash land in the Arizona desert aboard a flaming meteorite. The problem is that these organisms seem to have the ability to evolve to higher life forms in a radically sped-up time frame and, in no time at all, the Southwest desert - and soon the whole world - stand in deadly peril of being overrun by this invading force from another planet.

"Evolution" is a mediocre attempt to parody those cheesy sci-fi monster flicks of the 1950's, right down to the discovery of the one chemical that turns out to be the creatures' Achilles Heal. Of course, the special effects are far more impressive in this film than they ever were in any of those earlier works - which goes to prove that, when it came right down to it, even the makers of this multi-million dollar summer blockbuster didn't have the nerve to go all the way with the parody, possibly risking a loss on their investment (the film was a disappointment at the box office and lost money anyway). In fact, if anything, the special effects end up burying the humor of the film -which isn't all that rich to begin with. The jokes are often crude and juvenile and much of the film's running time is spent trying to up the "ick" factor through the disgusting nature of the creatures that develop. The film often succeeds in that respect. Of the performers, Jones and Scott are given the most material to work with in creating comic characters. Duchovny and Moore are basically relegated to thankless straight-man status. "Ghostbusters" veteran, Dan Akroyd, provides some genuine laughs as the bombastic and pompous governor of the state.

There really isn't much to say about "Evolution" - except to say that there isn't much to say. It's watchable but hardly memorable and fails to fulfill its potential of becoming a hip sci-fi comedy on the order of, say, "Men in Black." Reitman does better when his threats come from right down here on earth.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "fruit basket"
Review: ah, come on everybody, this movie isn't that bad. sure, it may not be a five-star event (don't look above) but, hey, in sure entertainment value, it is single-handedly funnier and more amusing than any big-budget action-sci-comedy in years.

(this review partially biased, since pretty much any time david duchovny or orlando jones open their mouths i laugh and everytime the foxy julianne moore appears i swoon)

contains fantastic dvd extras, also (five deleted scenes, making of, storyboards, commentary).

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Makes a better rental
Review: I am not one to buy dvds of movies I haven't seen, but my husband decided to "one", and bought "Evolution"..It was a decent comedy about some scientists, played by David Duchovny and Orlando Jones, who discover an alien life form and while the aliens try to take over Arizona by mutating into giant dinosaur like creatures, the scientist guys try to kick some alien.... it's sort of an MIB ripoff, but it had some pretty funny momments with both stars. Even that guy, with the three names, who was in American Pie and Road Trip, was very funny in this as well. I totally think it's worth a rental fee, but it isn't a movie I personally would have bought or recommend you buy unless you have seen it already and really loved it. I really have to love a movie enough to want to see it many multiple times before deciding to buy it. My husband just bought it like he was buying a loaf of bread. I'm not knocking this movie, it's a decent comedy. I just wish he didn't spend more than...(rental fee)
I guess if you are a huge DD fan, and would like to see [him]... every once in a while, than this is a choice dvd for your collection.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: what's lower than low?
Review: I was looking for a fun sci-fi movie to cheer me up a bit. Aliens, David Duchovny and Julliane Moore sounded just like the fun film I needed. It was not. This is a bad movie, stupid and insulting. A particularly repulsive aspect of this film is that while the idiotic white guy (Duchovny) at least has a heroic past as Colonel in government medical operations, the black guy (Jones) who is supposedly a professor of geology is a complete and utter bufoon with no redeeming intelligence whatsoever. I was even sadder after the movie than I was before.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Great cast wasted on a goofy film
Review: This is a film with an identity crisis. Director Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters, Meatballs, Twins, Kindergarten Cop) can't seem to make up his mind if he wants it to be a straight science fiction flick or a parody. The result is a film that is far too goofy to be good science fiction and nowhere near funny enough to be good comedy.

A great cast is wasted on a script that lays one unfunny egg after another. The only one able to squeeze any comedy out of his lines is Orlando Jones. David Duchovny and Julianne Moore mostly try to play it straight other than a moon shooting by Duchovny and a bunch of pratfalls by Moore. Ted Levine plays his part as too much of a doofus. Seann William Scott is occasionally so bizarre that it is humorous, but mostly his character is more stupid than funny.

The one strength of the film is the visual effects. The monsters are innovative and realistic. The scene where the flying reptile is terrorizing the shopping mall is particularly good.

I rated this film a 6/10 on the strength of the creatures. It seems like it may have been written as straight sci-fi and Reitman (more of a comedy director) futilely tried to change its direction. The result fell flat and hung a lot of talented actors out to dry.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Have a nice end of the world
Review: Evolution is a great movie. It is hilarious and smart. If you don't laugh your nots. It involves alien microbes that evole a billion times faster than earth creatures do. Eventually they get big enough to take over the world. It has a great cast of caractors and creatures. Great special effects. The only reason it gets 4 stars is the deleted scenes. The scene where they were chasing the creature (don't know why they call it a bird). That was a great scene and showed have been in the movie. Also the alternate ending was way better than the stupid head and shoulders commercial they chose. Still evolution is a great film. People who don't like it need to evolve.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Mediocre comedy not as funny as trailer promises.
Review: With a star-studded cast of likeable actors, and a director heralded for his work on "Ghostbusters" and various other successful comedies, "Evolution" had all the makings of an enjoyable comedic escape from the summer drivel and lackluster blockbusters. The good news: the special effects are well-crafted, the creatures amusing, and the acting soars. The bad news: the film is not nearly as funny as it should be, and aside from a few chuckles, it's lacking in laughs and humor.

The movie contains elements of slapstick, situational humor and gross-outs, centering around a story hook that begins when a small meteor strikes in the deserts of Arizona and is stumbled upon by college science professors Ira Kane and Harry Block (David Duchovny and Orlando Jones), who protest the involvement of the federal government, led by Kane's rival, General Woodman (Ted Levine). Woodman, along with CDC official Allison Reed (Julianne Moore), take over the project, and soon the evolving creatures that arrived on the meteor begin to wreak havoc on the citizens of nearby towns, leaving our rag-tag team of scientists to stop them.

This is all Reitman's territory, and for the most part, he does remarkably well in making a ludicrous story enjoyable (think of it as "Galaxy Quest" in the desert). The plot moves along a familiar path the provides us some nice-looking special effects and creature creations that aren't convincing, but have no reason to be; these effects prove to be the most fun you'll get out of the experience.

The cast also provides small moments of humor, including a full-view shot of Duchovny's backside, who plays Ira Kane like Fox Mulder on helium. Moore is exceptionally entertaining as the clumsy love interest for Kane, and looks like she's having a lot of fun. It's good to see Orlando Jones make a good comeback from his role earlier this year in "Say It Isn't So," and Seann William Scott charms us as an aspiring fireman who discovers the asteroid.

All of these aspects in place, the film had set a course for a great deal of comedy, though it lacks the serious laughs and gut-busting fits needed to make it a good film. A extraction of an alien insect from Dr. Block by way of his rectum is hilarious, as is a stint involving a sad-eyed alien who instantly goes awry, and the use of Head-and-Shoulders shampoo as a way of combating the new arrivals. Unfortunately, these laughs come at intervals of about twenty minutes, with long periods of boredom and disinterest to fill in the holes.

The fact of the matter is that "Evolution" should have been funnier, and deserved to be, in a way. It had all the perks of a good comedy: a good cast, likeable characters, and a plot that is silly enough to provide some hearty laughs and a pleasant diversion from reality. Reitman's heart is in the right place, but he seems to have lost his knack for comedy, and the result is a film that will provide some small measure of entertainment on a rainy afternoon, but little else.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This is the Evolution of funny movies!
Review: When I first looked at the case of this movie at my video store, I was in doubt over if I should rent "Evolution" or "The Score". I finally gathered up the courage to pick this one up over renting "The Score". I put this movie in my computer, and from when I put it in to the end I laughed very hard. I didn't think I was going to like this movie, but it kind of reminded me of "Men In Black" more than "Ghostbusters". Some of the creatures in this movie were really disgusting, but the sarcastic remarks that David Duchovny and co. made were so funny, that I forgot that the creatures were gross. One creature I thought was very adorable, the little pug looking one, with the snake tongue. I recommend renting this before purchase. Unless you think you're going to like it anyway. I really think people should rent this first. But hey, I'm just a reviewer, I'm not your mom or your dad. Just see the movie already!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Funniest Darn Movie I've Seen In A Long Time
Review: The last time I remember laughing this hard at a movie was when the original "Major League" came out. David Duchovny does comedy surprisingly well. The movie is a take-off on his X-files character to an extent. If you liked Ghostbusters or Tremors, you'll like this movie.


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