A specialist in apocalyptic blockbusters for several decades, German-born filmmaker Roland Emmerich has accustomed his audience to generous, larger-than-life disaster films.
Read alsoThe Moon approaches the Earth in
Roland Emmerich 's
Moonfall trailer
Between
Independence Day
,
The day after
, or
2012
, the one who settled in Hollywood for thirty years orchestrates without too much finesse great shows allowing to visualize what the end of the world could be.
With
Moonfall
, he is once again having a field day.
The "abracadabrantesque" plot of this uninhibited blockbuster features the lunar star which mysteriously leaves its orbit, threatening humanity with extinction.
Fortunately, a trio of astronauts made up of Patrick Wilson, Halle Berry, and John Bradley (II) will take care of saving the world, using a good old space shuttle in manual mode...
Read also
2012
: the end of the world
Like all the blockbuster films signed by the director of
Stargate
,
Moonfall
perfectly respects the specifications of the apocalyptic science fiction blockbuster.
We meet supertankers flying above the heads of heroes, discredited parents who are offered a second chance, space shuttles galore, impressive tsunamis, spectacular explosions, lunar meteorites crashing on earth by the hundreds of thousands, car chases on dislocated roads… Not to mention the moon which “rubs” against the surface of the earth!
Probably the only time
Moonfall
will sparkle!
John Bradley (II), Patrick Wilson and Halle Berry in
Moonfall
by Roland Emmerich.
© Metropolitan FilmExport
The only advantage of such a film: it does not give the viewer a minute's respite.
As if Emmerich offered him the possibility of leaving his brain at the entrance of the room, to enjoy only the incessant tempo of this roller coaster full of digital effects.
Patrick Wilson facing the spire of the famous Chrysler Building... Like a false air of the end of the world,
Planet
of the Apes
style .
© Metropolitan FilmExport
After crossing the desert and a few minor films (
White house down, Midway
,
Anonymous
...), Roland Emmerich is trying to come back to the front of the stage.
However, we feel that his time has passed.
This new feature is mostly based on a lazy mix between
2012
and
Independence Day
(with a dash of
Space Cowboys
and a pinch of
Armageddon
).
A meaningless shell
With a subject such as the moon, one might have hoped for a few references to Jules Verne, Georges Méliès, or even
Tintin
.
None of that, unfortunately.
On arrival,
Moonfall
looks like a kind of big hollow barnum, like a meaningless cinematic shell, which looks more like a puppet show with big special effects, than a movie worthy of the name.
The children may have fun following the twists and turns of this band of astronauts;
parents, meanwhile, will watch their watch to be set free by the end of the world.