wanting the popcorn to save the film is in bad taste

Friday, February 18, 2011

I'm Number Four

11:13 PM Posted by Gautam Chintamani , , No comments

You know some films that people warn you about and you still watch them to form your own opinion? This is one of them. Stay away for it’s not worth of forming any opinion.

Based on the book by Pittacus Lore, I’m Number Four is about the fourth of the nine special kids who survived the attack on their planet and made it to earth. Once here they blend amongst the others but ugly monsters who destroyed their planet are searching them and killing them one by one. Number Four, John Smith (Alex Pettyfer) has got to know that the third one is dead and now his warrior guardian Henri (Timothy Olyphant) has moved him to Paradise, Ohio, in order to hide him. John falls for the high school cutie Sarah (Dianna Agron) and befriends the school nerd, Sam (Callan McAuliffe) and fights the football captain while dealing with his newly discovered super hero like powers. The monsters find him, kill Henri and wreak havoc in the sleepy town but John decides to stop running and fight the battle. Mystery gal who keeps stalking him turns out to be Number Five (Teresa Palmer) and together they save the day. Once the entire town is destroyed they move on to find the remaining four of the Nine who came in order to prepare for the bigger fight.

There are some films that you sit though no matter how bad, even endure in the hope that there’d be some payoff in the end but I’m Number Four ain’t one of those. You see warriors from another planet fight planet-traveling monsters and yet don’t feel anything. You look at troubled teen from another world, in the literal sense, trying to blend in and become one of us and you feel nothing. You see a cute girl finding her own spot in the sun by clicking photographs on antiquated cameras rather than being the football jock’s arm candy and you feel nothing. You see a young science nerd dealing with bullies and missing his father, who he believes was abducted by aliens and you feel nothing.

Director D.J. Caruso blows up things like any good Hollywood action flick but this one just bores you to death. What’s scary is that there might a couple of sequels in the making. Watch it if you must but be warned even the popcorn tastes bad.

Rating: 1/5

Cast: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Dianna Agron, Callan McAuliffe and Teresa Palmer

Screenplay by: Alfred Gough and Miles Millar based on the novel by Pittacus Lore

Directed by: D.J. Caruso


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