Plot
Astronaut Scorch Supernova finds himself caught in a trap when he responds to an SOS from a notoriously dangerous alien planet.
Release Year: 2013
Rating: 5.0/10 (1,457 voted)
Director:Cal Brunker
Storyline
The story takes place on planet Baab where admired astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) is a national hero to the blue alien population. A master of daring rescues, Scorch pulls off astonishing feats with the quiet aid of his nerdy brother, Gary (Rob Corddry), head of mission control at BASA.
Writers: ,
Taglines:
Earth's greatest secrets are about to break out!
Country: ,
Release Date:
Box Office Details
Budget: $40,000,000
(estimated)
Opening Weekend: $15,891,055
(USA)
(15 February 2013)
Gross: $47,844,105
(USA)(8 March 2013)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
Whenever two last names are said in succession, they match up with the names of famous directors, e.g. a hazmat says: "Peter! Jackson! Detain him!" or; "James! Cameron! Don't let him get away!" See more »
User Review
If it's the worst animated film I'll see this year, I'll be quietly content; if it's the best I'll be concerned.
Rating: 6/10
Escape from Planet Earth is the theatrical debut from a little studio
called Rainmaker Entertainment, and shows a tad more promise than the
wealth of uninspired animated sequels such as Ice Age: Continental
Drift that families have been forced to sit through this past summer.
It concerns a place called Planet Baab, where a pair of brothers named
Gary and Scorch Supernova (voiced by Rob Corddry and Brendan Fraser,
respectively) work for a space program. Gary is the head of mission
control, frequently pressing buttons and maintaining different
technical jobs, while Scorch has the luxury of experiencing everything
firsthand given his role as the astronaut. One day, Gary gets tired of
Scorch's carelessness for assignments and his run-of-the-mill planning
thanks to his ego, and Scorch is tired of Gary's sophistication and
smothering seriousness. To show gumption, bravery, and self-reliance,
Scorch decides to venture to a place called "the dark planet" (Earth),
where, not long after, he is kidnapped by a group of humans and locked
in Area 51. It's up to his brother Gary, who leaves behind his wife and
kids, to save his brother's backside, yet again.
Just within the first half of Escape from Planet Earth, we see how this
film came to fruition. When Scorch lands on Earth, he noticed a waving
balloon in front of a store and mistakes it for another lifeform. The
waving balloon is a door-greeter for a 7/11 perfectly adjacent to Area
51. Inside the 7/11, where Gary stops upon his arrival to Earth, two
geeky employees try to get him to drink a gorgeous blue Slurpee,
shoving more product placement in our faces. Escape from Planet Earth
doesn't have the budget of many CGI features (and I highly doubt it
will make anywhere near the money they are known for either), so much
of the profit and spending money was likely built because of
unnecessary, unsubtle advertising.
Aside from that fact, this animated feature isn't half bad. It's first
half is slow, methodical, and a tad too chaotic, where its second and
third half are a delightful mix of humor and colors. At least for me.
The rows in front of me which were occupied with about fourteen kids
rarely chuckled or even so much as laughed. I fear that kids are
reaching a phase where they've "seen it all," what with being bombarded
by constant new animated programs and films, and because of that, this
film inevitably feels like a genial, yet uninspired rehash of material.
This I can agree with; my chuckles never stemmed past that nor were my
smiles held for very long. There was no gripping attachment to these
characters unlike what I've seen in Disney, Dreamworks, or Pixar films,
and because of that, this falls flat in the impact and character
departments.
Yet I still can't neglect the high level of imagination this film
possesses and the overall smoothness of its production. Rainmaker
Entertainment has long produced direct-to-DVD features that have been
met with mixed public reception. Scrolling through titles like Scary
Godmother, Stuart Little 3: Call of the Wild, and a never-ending
onslaught of Barbie-trademarked films gives the impression to an
unfamiliar consumer that they specialize in digital babysitters rather
than impacting adventures. However, if there's one thing they seemed to
hit home with here, it's the level of surprise, style, and motion that
was put into picture. This doesn't quite look like a direct-to-DVD
movie, and its adventure translates nicely to the big screen. Even the
animation doesn't seem like it would blend in with other medium-budget
CGI features often found on Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. It's a
surprisingly very tasteful endeavor.
As far as the storyline, which seems reminiscent of a film called
Planet 51, unseen by me, there's not enough interest to make you
analyze every possible outcome the characters could end up in, but
there's not enough distance to where you absolutely don't care either.
By the final act of the film, I wasn't deep into the mindset of loathe
and actually found myself giggling at plot-points and certain details.
Take for example the justification for imprisonment one of the aliens
makes when Gary is thrown into Area 51 while trying to rescue his
brother; he states that it was aliens who created revolutionary
technology like the smartphone, the computer, the search engine, and
even animated films. The reason we weren't told that was the evil-head
of Area 51 named Shanker (William Shatner) imprisoned the aliens and
gave credit to men like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and John Lasseter.
"C'mon, man, do you really think a human could've made all that stuff?"
one alien asks.
Escape from Planet Earth isn't really the most ideal viewing for
children, especially considering even at eighty-nine minutes it treads
the fine-line of being much of a muchness. But there's a good heart, a
somewhat interesting story, solid visual flair, tolerable characters, a
recognizable and capable cast of voices, and the generic but welcomed
warmth animated films so innocently bare. If it's the worst animated
film I'll see this year, I'll be quietly content; if it's the best I'll
be concerned.
And do I even need to conclude with a statement about the inert and
mediocre nature of the 3D?
NOTE: Escape from Planet Earth marks the first film of the year that I
will do a companion-video review for on Youtube,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mH0WOZfi9Y
Voiced by: Rob Corddry, Brendan Fraser, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jessica
Alba, William Shatner, Craig Robinson, George Lopez, Jane Lynch, Sofía
Vergara, Jonathan Morgan Heit, Ricky Gervais, Steve Zahn, and Gregg
Binkley. Directed by: Cal Brunker.
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