Title: I Am Number Four
Directed by: D.J. Caruso
Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant and Dianna Agron
Rated PG-13, Running Time 1hr 49min, Available on Blu-ray
An extra-terrestrial teen posing as a high school student (Alex Pettyfer) and his guardian protector (Timothy Olyphant) seek out fellow aliens on earth while eluding an enemy alien race who are hunting them down. He is “Number Four” on the enemy hit list.
Anybody who wasn’t entertained by this film needs to remove the stick from their bum. This isn’t Academy Award material, its fun escapism. I am a little annoyed they put an Adele song in the soundtrack, this film is not worthy of its placement and Teresa Palmer (The Sorcerer’s Apprentice; Take Me Home Tonight) as “Number Six” needs to stay away from Kristen Stewart’s acting coach, although she’s got a few good action flicks in her future. Dianna Agron (Glee) as the love interest is just so cute you could almost punch the dog.
The Blu-ray bonus features have an entire segment dedicated to Theresa Palmer titled “Becoming Number Six” showcasing the grueling stunt work she had to endure; so even though her character acting is on the meh side, she earns some respect for her difficult physical acting. There are also six deleted scenes with introduction by director D.J. Caruso; one scene includes actress Karen Allen who was entirely cut from the film, which was kind of a bummer. The blooper reel was short and forgettable. A feature that I love is the “description for the visually impaired” track (an option that I’m finding on more newly released DVDs, which back in the day this service was very limited) because the film turns instantly into an audio book.
I watched this with my spouse along with Shockya.com’s production manager John Corder, who stated this film was too similar to Twilight. I don’t entirely disagree with him because there is a bit of a cheese factor, but you really have to lose yourself in the fantasy. I can watch this film more than once, while I don’t think I’ll ever sit through Twilight or any of its connected films again. The love story is predictable, but the special effects are far superior and the writing is definitely better.
Total Rating: B-
Reviewed by JM Willis
