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The Astronaut's Wife

The Astronaut's Wife

List Price: $9.97
Your Price: $5.99
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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A Balanced View
Review: I'm a bit surprised by some of the very negative views of this movie. While it is derivative from Rosemary's Baby, it is still thoroughly it's own plot, complete with a very surprising ending. The underlying premise is also very interesting, and is an unusual spin on alien invasion. Sparing us some of the bloody details of movies of this type, it still builds suspense and terror, feeling both real and surreal at the same time. Depp's character evolves slowly into the sinister being he has become and I felt was done convincingly, even though I'm not particulalry a Depp fan. Look for a very interesting supporting character in the NASA scientist who tries to help expose the nature of the offspring, complete with some surprising and believable plot twists. All in all, this movie should appeal to anyone who has an interest in science fiction/horror. The military weapon that is the purpose of the alien being's incarnation is an intersting idea, but the use of that weapon is not entirely clear. Are they developing it to dominate the world? That's left for the viewer to decide.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: ALIEN STEW
Review: Johnny Depp has definitely proven his versatility and his ability to save an otherwise "average" movie---take PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, for instance. Who else but Depp could have pulled off that Mick Jagger impersonation so effectively? In ASTRONAUT'S WIFE, however, it is his performance that drags this movie down, and leaves it limp and unmoving. Charlize Theron, again proving that beauty does not beget banality, does a strong job in her role as the titular heroine, but the movie is so bogged down by slow pacing, an unearnest Depp performance, and no clear sense of direction.
Seems like something happened to Depp and his partner on a routine shuttle mission; now that he's back, he's acting a little weird, and lo and behold, Theron is going to have twins. There's one scene where Depp explains at a dinner party about a new plane he's developing...the lack of coherence in this scene dooms the finale, and the Outer Limits ending does little to tie it up.
Bravo to Theron, Clea DuVall and Joe Morton for their impassioned performances, but this is no thriller; it's mainly an exercise in style without substance.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: silly little movie
Review: Astronaut's Wife tries hard but it's just too silly to be taken seriously. Johnny Depp is fine as Spencer an astronaut who may be possessed by an alien but he's stuck with Charlize Theron. Although she gotten much better as an actress and went on to win an Oscar this year in this role she's ghastly. She was evidently directed to do an imitation of Mia Farrow ala Rosemary's Baby and falls flat partly becuase she's got to work with dumb lines from a poor script.

Having said all that the movie is entertaining if you enjoy throwing popcorn at your TV and yelling insults at the actors.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A very optumistic dark thriller, it's great
Review: Johnny Depp and Charleze Theron are one of the most gifed actors in hollywood today and this piece is one of the most dakest, smooth sexy thriller where johnny depp plays an astronaut caught up in deep space for two minutes where he had a near death experience as a transmetic wave collided and entered his body forcing his original charecter to dissapear and an alien to takeover his body, all this in two minutes. Charleze, who plays a vunreble wife and 2nd grade school teacher in florida realizes a change in her husband's reactons and investigates further with the help of a retired scientist from NASA.
A twisted ending, terrific screenplay and a dynamic score, all star cast and one of the greatest dark thrillers in hollywood today, the astronaut's wife is a keeper. 9.5/10.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Harmless thriller
Review: Good acting from Depp & Theron (an interesting pairing that could work in a different film) can't save this predictable thriller that relies heavily on overwrought suspension of disbelief. Is it the writing or the direction? Hmmm...I think it's more of a case of, "Hey...let's try and make an alien version of ROSEMARY'S BABY." Polanski did it first and he did it better, and no Mia Farrow haircut can help Theron (who is burdened with nearly every scene in the movie) out of this jam. In a different era, this would have been a great DRIVE IN movie.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A few comments
Review: As others have already skewered this movie on their petards pretty thoroughly I just wanted to make a few comments.

This film is sort of like a weird combination of The Right Stuff and Rosemary's Baby. In another review I once said The English Patient was sort of like a combination of the Elephant Man and Lawrence of Arabia, except that movie actually worked, but this one really doesn't, although I did appreciate the stylish cinematography--I'll give them credit for that.

I didn't think the acting was as bad as some of the other reviewers here thought, but the premise is pretty silly--aliens erasing a couple of astronaut's brains with a powerful radio signal and then taking over their minds themselves--and even getting their wives pregnant with supposedly alien babies. Why all of this is so sinister is never really revealed, since most of the time the Johnny Depp character is helping his new employer design a new plane. And the babies are expected to be pilots some day. So what? This is supposed to be some sort of evil alien invasion or plot? Snore. Call me when the sky starts falling down.

Still, the overall ambience was adequately creepy almost from the start to the end, and the special effects with the Depp/alien creature at the end getting fried were pretty cool--with some effects reminiscent of the Ark of the Convenant scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark. I give it 3 stars for the nice cinematography and overall weirdness factor. Otherwise it might only be a 2. Big Steve says wait for this one on HBO and don't Bogart the popcorn.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A character driven science fiction movie
Review: This was a completely good movie in almost every aspect. I don't understand what all the hubbuub is about, The Astronaut's Wife was not that bad a movie. Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron superbly portrayed their characters, right down to the smallest detail. Depp really shows how far his acting range can extend to. And Theron completely took me by surprise, she really steals the show. As for all the comparisons to Rosemary's Baby, they are few and very far between. The most apparent would be Theron's hair style which is a distant reminder of Mia Farrow. But from this man's point of view, this film completely stands on its own as original, entertaining, and thrilling. My only beef is the DVD itself, there aren't any special features included save a theatrical trailer and a few biographys. Although a director commentary and/or making of documentary would have been a nice bonus, the picture and sound are both a ten, and that is enough to satisfy me.

Just imagine, a character-driven science fiction. What's more, there are only two visual effects shots throughout the entire movie, which says something. One might say that the film budget was too low to allow it to become an effects movie. I disagree, though, because for what it lacked in effects the movie made up for in story, acting, directing, and script. Please watch this with an open mind, don't let all the critics sway you. It never ceases to amaze me how many people will believe and watch a movie based on what one or two people have said about it. Form your own opinions, not just for this movie but for all the others that have gotten a bad rap.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Harmless thriller
Review: Good acting from Depp & Theron (an interesting pairing that could work in a different film) can't save this predictable thriller that relies heavily on overwrought suspension of disbelief. Is it the writing or the direction? Hmmm...I think it's more of a case of, "Hey...let's try and make an alien version of ROSEMARY'S BABY." Polanski did it first and he did it better, and no Mia Farrow haircut can help Theron (who is burdened with nearly every scene in the movie) out of this jam. In a different era, this would have been a great DRIVE IN movie.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: ALIEN STEW
Review: Johnny Depp has definitely proven his versatility and his ability to save an otherwise "average" movie---take PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, for instance. Who else but Depp could have pulled off that Mick Jagger impersonation so effectively? In ASTRONAUT'S WIFE, however, it is his performance that drags this movie down, and leaves it limp and unmoving. Charlize Theron, again proving that beauty does not beget banality, does a strong job in her role as the titular heroine, but the movie is so bogged down by slow pacing, an unearnest Depp performance, and no clear sense of direction.
Seems like something happened to Depp and his partner on a routine shuttle mission; now that he's back, he's acting a little weird, and lo and behold, Theron is going to have twins. There's one scene where Depp explains at a dinner party about a new plane he's developing...the lack of coherence in this scene dooms the finale, and the Outer Limits ending does little to tie it up.
Bravo to Theron, Clea DuVall and Joe Morton for their impassioned performances, but this is no thriller; it's mainly an exercise in style without substance.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Get ready for a really creepy show.
Review: In this drama, a loving astronaut's wife wishes him well as he embarks on yet another space shuttle mission. There are problems however, when the two astronauts on board leave the ship to fix a problem. For two minutes, NASA cannot reach them. Those two minutes turn out to be the evil of all evils. When Johnny Depp, who plays one of the astronauts, comes home to his wife, he acts like nothing has happened, yet something very sinister has just come to earth, and start popping the popcorn, you don't want to miss this one.


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