Title: Jupiter Ascending
Director: The Wachowskis
Starring: Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne, Douglas Booth, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Tuppence Middleton, Terry Gilliam.
‘Jupiter Ascending’ is the latest tandem cinematic production by The Wachowskis. The American sibling film directors-screenwriters-producers, mainly known for ‘The Matrix’ series, present their ultimate feature: a space opera.
Beyond Earth, beyond our Sun, one family has ruled life on every habitable planet in the universe for millennia: The House of Abrasax. Now following the death of its matriarch, her three primary heirs the Abrasax siblings, Balem (Eddie Redmayne), Kalique (Tuppence Middleton) and Titus (Douglas Booth) are at war, and the state of their dynasty is in turmoil. But another heir has emerged whose claim may be even greater than theirs. A young woman born on Earth, Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), unknowingly carries a genetic legacy that entitles her to power beyond her imagining and the ability to reshape the House of Abrasax and with it, the fate of her planet. With the help of Caine Wise (Channing Tatum), an ex-military hunter who becomes her only ally, Jupiter is forced to leave her ordinary existence behind and confront her true destiny.
Lana & Andy Wachowski truly do create a salmagundi plot where the story often drifts to senselessness. But somehow this incoherence is part of the movie’s charm. The love story and the heroine’s journey are more than predictable, but it would be disappointing otherwise; all of the cast members make the characters intriguing (even the villains are charismatically amusing); and last but not least the film is infused with a sardonic sense of humour that makes it an enjoyable guilty pleasure, especially with the beauteous parade of theatrical costumes and make-up art creations.
Technical: B
Acting: B+
Story: C
Overall: C+
Written by: Chiara Spagnoli Gabardi
