The Electric State

2025 Netflix

Rated: PG-13

Length: 2 hr 8min

Action ~ Adventure ~ Sci-Fi

Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, Ke Huy Quan, Jason Alexander, Woody Harrelson, Anthony Mackie, Brian Cox, Jenny Slate, Giancarlo Esposito and Stanley Tucci.

“Rage with the Machines.”

THE BOOK:

The Electric State A Graphic Novel by Simon Stålenhag 2018

In late 1997, a runaway teenager and her small yellow toy robot travel west through a strange American landscape where the ruins of gigantic battle drones litter the countryside, along with the discarded trash of a high-tech consumerist society addicted to a virtual-reality system. As they approach the edge of the continent, the world outside the car window seems to unravel at an ever faster pace, as if somewhere beyond the horizon, the hollow core of civilization has finally caved in.

THE MOVIE (Netflix Tudum):

In the world of The Electric State, the ’90s look a little different. Sure, plaid flannel shirts and grunge black eyeliner are still in, but a catastrophic war between humans and robots has left the world scarred and divided. With robots banished to a remote wasteland, an uneasy peace has been reached — but it may not last for long.

The Electric State tells the story of Michelle ( Millie Bobby Brown), a young woman traveling with a sweet but mysterious robot. The pair reluctantly team up with eccentric drifter Keats (Chris Pratt), and set out on a cross-country road trip to find Michelle’s younger brother. Along the way, they have to navigate an electrified, retro-futuristic US landscape with eerie similarities to our own time.

The Electric State is an explosive adaptation of Simon Stålenhag’s 2018 graphic novel of the same name about a young girl and her small yellow toy robot who travel west through a high-tech wasteland. The Russos’ version takes the story concept and runs with it, expanding the world while remaining true to the emotional threads Stålenhag weaved into his work.

“I’m blown away by the movie,” Stålenhag told Netflix. “It was an amazing experience watching things that I have drawn come to life this way. What resonated most with me was the emotional core of the movie, which is the need for family. Even though the movie has changed genre from the book a bit, that main core is still the same and has been expanded on beautifully.”

The Russos and writers Markus and McFeely were in communication with Stålenhag throughout the film’s development, and he was pleased to see the creative liberties they took to make the film stand on its own. “They asked me questions about the timeline and backstory, but it’s their work,” he said. “They’re the best in the world at what they do, and to see them work on a project that comes from me, it’s beyond satisfying, surreal. I am so positively surprised by the end result.”

THE REVIEW:

I didn’t know that the movie was based upon a book until after I watched the movie. I included a lot of information about that because I think I would have had a better appreciation of the movie if I had known that going in. After the fact, looking at the illustrations of the book, the movie does a great job of bringing those illustrations and the book to life. I love Millie Bobby Brown and I think she was good in this, but I don’t think the movie would have survived with another actress. Chris Pratt was good as well but I think the stars were Millie, Cosmo and Devyn Dalton. Devyn Dalton is the Motion Capture actress that played Cosmo.

I appreciated all the robot characters, they started to grow on me. Herman (Anthony Mackie), Mr. Peanut (Woody Harrelson), Popfly (Brian Cox) and Penny Pal (Jenny Slate) were my favorites, after Cosmo of course. Yes, they started to feel like human beings to me. They drew me in to their struggle to be accepted. Robots co-existing side by side with Humans. And to quote Millie in the end, “We are going to do it right this time.” I liked it, but if you don’t like Robots and Sci-Fi, you’re gonna think it was dumb.

Again, take a look at the book the movie was based on, you’ll appreciate it more.

The Tomorrow War

2021 Amazon MGM Studios

Rated: PG-13

Length: 2 hr 18min

Action ~ Adventure ~ Sci-Fi

Directed by: Chris McKay

Starring: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J. K. Simmons, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson, Edwin Hodge, Jasmine Mathews, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, and Keith Powers.

“If I have to save the world to save my daughter, then I’m damn sure gonna do that.”

In the middle of the world televised 2021 Soccer World Cup games, time travelers arrive from 2051 to deliver an urgent message: 30 years in the future mankind is losing a war against a deadly alien species. The only hope for survival is for soldiers and civilians to be transported to the future and join the fight. Determined to save the world for his daughter, Dan Forester (Chris Pratt) teams up with a brilliant scientist (Yvonne Strahovski) and his estranged father (J. K. Simmons) to rewrite the planet’s fate.

That’s the synopsis from Amazon Prime’s site. Society and Governments decide after that little interruption that they need to have a worldwide draft, and help the future fight. Each service consists of a week in the future, counted down in hours by the electronic metal arm sleeve they attach. Dan Forester (Chris Pratt),one r, (inside movie joke) is drafted and leaves his wife and young daughter behind to serve his week in the future. There are two major story lines and two sub-plots here:

The invasion of a deadly alien species hell bent on humanities destruction and demise.
Time Travel between now and thirty years into the future.
The relationship between Dan and his daughter Muri (Yvonne Strahovski)
And Dan’s tumultuous relationship with his estranged father (J. K. Simmons).

I’ll be honest, I put off watching this one for awhile. I have seen the reviews and had it on my watchlist. Given the reviews I thought, “Ehh…I don’t know….I’ll save it for a rainy day or a cold winter day.” Last night was the end of a cold Winter’s day so…..I watched it last night. Sci-Fi can be tricky, it is either really good or it is at best a B-movie. It can be a fine line and The Tomorrow War straddled that line. The effects were outstanding. I loved the Alien creatures, stealthy killing machines that were fascinating to watch. Reminded me of The Creatures in the A Quiet Place Movies.

It also reminded me of Edge Of Tomorrow and Looper, because of the time travel scenario. Looper was kind of hard to follow time travel wise because of the implications of every action in the present affecting the outcome of the future. It was deep and you really had to pay attention. The Tomorrow War is not that deep, like the people that had to be transported 30 years into the future and fight, you don’t need to think about it. You just need to buckle up and experience the ride. I think the star power helped it’s cause, if there had been lesser known actors it would have fell into the B movie Sci-fi category.

I liked Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski and Sam Richardson in this. Sam had me chuckling at his character. I liked J.K. Simmons but his role wasn’t that deep or detailed. He didn’t really have much of a presence until the very end. And when the heck did J.K. Simmons get so buffed out? I remember seeing him in Red One and asking myself that question. I didn’t really find anything implausible with this movie’s time travel scenario or the movie itself, but then I wasn’t looking that hard. I went in thinking I’m just gonna turn the brain off and get lost in a movie. And I did exactly that, I got lost in it. The almost 2 and a half hours flew by

And that is exactly the kind of movie it is. You want to put down the notepad, quit analyzing, grab some popcorn and a beverage and lose yourself in the journey. That’s what this movie is, a good escape, an Action Adventure Sci-Fi thrill ride that takes you to another place and time. Dealing with things that are imaginary, outside the normal scope of our day to day.

There is a sequel in the works The 2morrow War and I would watch it to see where they take it.

It’s worth a watch on a rainy day or a cold Winter’s night.

A Quiet Place

A Quiet Place Part II

A Quiet Place: Day One

Edge Of Tomorrow

Red One

Passengers

Passengers

2016 Columbia Pictures

Rated: PG-13

Length: 1 hr 56min

Sci-Fi ~ Romance ~ Drama

Directed By: Morten Tyldum

Starring: Chris Pratt, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, and Andy García.

“Say you were trapped on a desert island, and you had the power to wish somebody there with you. You wouldn’t be alone anymore, but you’d be stranding the person on the island. Would you make that wish?”

Chris Pratt stars as Jim Preston, a mechanic travelling aboard the Starship Avalon. He is one of 5000 Passengers and 258 Crew headed for the planet Homestead II as part of a colonization program. The ship is on autopilot and everyone aboard is in suspended animation sleep in hibernation pods during the 120 year voyage from Earth to Homestead II. The ship encounters a meteor shower and is damaged by a meteorite that gets past the ship’s protection shield. Jim’s hibernation pod malfunctions and he is wakened 90 years too early.

Jennifer Lawrence stars as Aurora Lane, a writer making the voyage to write a story about the voyage and the Planet Homestead II. Over the year Jim is awake alone on the ship he sees Aurora in her hibernation pod and becomes obsessed with her and her passenger profile video. After many alcohol fueled arguments with himself and a failed suicide attempt, he decides he is going to wake her up by making her pod malfunction.

What follows is the story of how they grow together and fall in love as they deal with being the only two people awake on a spaceship damaged by a meteorite for the next 90 years. With the exception of Arthur(Michael Sheen) the humanoid bartender they share their lives with and a brief appearance by Deck Chief Gus Mancuso(Laurence Fishburne) after his pod malfunctions, they share in an adventure of life, love and peril alone as they hurl through the heavens towards Homestead II.

I have seen this movie several times and love it. The chemistry between Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt is great. It’s as if you were right there with them through all they experience. An excellent Sci-fi Romance Drama!

Highly Recommended!

Two Thumbs Up!