The Invasion (2007)

Plot: Carol Bennell (Nicole Kidman), a Washington psychiatrist, slowly discovers that something very strange is happening around her but finds herself distracted by the sudden return of her ex-husband, Tucker (Jeremy Northam), and the attentions of her best friend, Ben (Daniel Craig). By the time Carol, Ben, and Ben's colleague Stephen (Jeffrey Wright) figure out what is going on, Carol has begun a frantic search for her son, Oliver (Jackson Bond), who has gone missing in his father's care.

Oh, forget it. It took me forever to come up with that, and there's no point in trying to be coy. It's the fourth film version of Jack Finney's novel, for Pete's sake. Fine -- you win. Alien virus takes over human race, turning them into mindless automatons. Oliver may be the cure.

I want you to know that I went into this with my eyes wide open. I fully expected it to suck. And, to be honest, it didn't suck quite as much as I thought it would. Mind you, now I am wondering which scenes were original director Oliver Hirschbiegel and original screenwriter Dave Kajganich's and which to credit to the Wachowski Brothers and James McTeigue. Knowing such things makes it a little tricky to know where to lay blame or praise. Let's just go ahead and call the whole thing not very good, shall we?

Now, it should be pointed out that I've never read the book or seen any of the other versions, so it's quite possible that I may complain about or praise an element that didn't originate here. Well, that's the way it's going to be. I can only comment on what I've seen.

Considering the fact that the plot is so basic (mother desires to protect child against all odds), it's pretty impressive the way the editors wring tension out of a lot of the encounters by moving backward and forward through time near simultaneously. The tension is greatly increased by showing us the beginning of some scary moment, cutting quickly to the aftermath, cutting back into the moment, then further to the end, and so on and so on. It's a clever device that keeps us interested in the 'how' long after we know the 'what.'

The tension is also surprisingly well drawn out by showing the change slowly affecting the city through repetitive shots. We watch Carol walk to work day after day, and the streets slowly morph from lively, jostling place to eerily quiet shadow lands.

Of course, the movie also tries to raises our sympathies in ways that fail spectacularly. Ooo, dogs can sense it! Well, then it must be bad! Aliens always are neglecting their pets! Oh, look -- that kid isn't with his mommy. Heartbreak. Except that part doesn't ring true: everything we've seen before that moment has suggested that pretty much any passerby would instantly turn that kid. So, not so much with the sympathies for that crying kid. In all fairness, I felt sorriest for the elderly woman who was injected* on the train, quietly remarking that she doesn't want a shot. Poor old lady! Who is going to protect her?

*With the alien virus, stupid "Goofs." And the helicopter landed in Baltimore. The movie sucked, but at least some of us managed to stay awake. Oh, look, I can update that page. That's more exciting than the entire movie. Damn thing only wants to listen to me about the helicopter. Oh, I'm a little off track, aren't I?

Shortly after I saw this movie, Em and I agreed that Craig is a stone fox. In fact, I submit that if stone fox finds its way into the dictionary, Craig's picture should appear next the entry. It was great to watch Craig and Wright in all their chameleon glory. This time around they are both reserved science types, although Craig gets to be twinkly and sexy, too.

Their combined talent made Kidman all the more difficult to take. I've long thought of her as good little actress, as adept with comedy as with drama, but this Botoxing her face right out of existence has got to stop. The voice provides plenty of emotion, and she can still squirt some tears out, but I need more. I know she's capable of more. Why won't she just let us see her? Sigh. At least her hair's a bit darker.

There's so much of this movie that doesn't work (spoilers!). The promotional material focused on the last third of the movie, robbing the picture of what should have been its moments of greatest tension. They make Carol's ex Patient Zero, but then they turn his attempts to infect Carol in a creepy pseudo-rape scenario that left me feeling cold. Why not just offer her a beverage like he did with the others? It only makes sense if virus maintains not only Tucker's memories and knowledge but also his feelings of inadequacy and desire to control Carol that he later discusses. Which also didn't ring true. You make a whole big deal about how emotionless the virus makes everyone, how it robs them of their free will, and then you have people turn around and do something that would have had the desire to do before they were infected? WTF? Having a character claim that the virus circumvents humanity's violent impulses and then threaten to murder a child in the same scene? Sort of confusing.

Oh, movie. You try to be political commentary about Iraq; you end up ham-fisted and annoying. You try to draw an ambiguous line about free will; you end up bludgeoning your audience with anvils. If I wanted to see that point made, I'd probably just watch the Jasmine arc from season four of Angel again. I'd be better off. C

Ed. Note: 500th post! Yay me, yay you, yay for everyone!