The Day the Earth Stopped (2008)

Waste of time

Redundant and unnecessary.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOPPED is the Asylum version of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, the needless Keanu Reeves remake of the 1950s science fiction classic about aliens visiting Earth and discovering that it comes up short. I thought the Reeves version was pretty pathetic in itself, and this cheap rip-off is even worse.It's probably the most heavy-handed film that I've seen in a while, containing nausea-inducing scenes in which the alien characters discover the value of human life by witnessing love and family relationships here on Earth. Plus we get a ton of religious inference, no surprise when a production company called 'Faith Films' is listed as one of the film's backers.Pity poor old C. Thomas Howell, who not only acts - badly - as the film's wooden protagonist, but directs to boot. He does a bad job in both roles. Mainly this is about Howell travelling around with a female alien (who is supposed to look like Angelina Jolie, which is a real stretch by anyone's imagination) while a CGI robot stands guard over the city. It's lamentably bad, and if you don't laugh then you'll be crying.

I think Asylum are finally getting getting the hang of the mockbuster genre . Not only do you need to rip off the title of a big budget cinema release but you also need to rip off the plot of the similarly titled film too . The film is called THE DAY THE EARTH STOPPED and that sounds suspiciously like THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL . Both films feature spaceships landing , giant robots and an alien who states if mankind doesn't start behaving itself then the giant robots will give mankind a fatal beating . Yes indeed at this rate David Michael Latt will find that the films he's producing will be widely advertised - after appearing in a Hollywood court charged with plagiarism . It can only be a matter of time before some bored lawyer flicks the channels on his remote only to discover the schedules for the Syfy channel and decide that there might be a good chance of a law suit TDTES starts with a hot naked chick exiting a spaceship . When I say that most of my interest for the film disappeared when the character found some clothes it indicates the only reason I watch films is to see naked hot chicks or that the film in question is very tedious , and no naked hot chicks is not what I watch films for . In fact not only does the character Sky , played by Sinead McCafferty , ruin the film by putting her clothes on but she ruins the film by opening her mouth . Actually all the characters contribute to the disintegration of any potential by opening their mouths . That's what most of the film consists of - people sat in a room talking . It's like a senior citizens tea party with the occasional shot of a giant robot thrown in or a car chase Of course this shouldn't necessarily be enough to condemn a film because the original THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL ( 1951 ) was very talkative but that has an average user rating of 8.0 on this site and spent a considerable number of years in the IMDb top 250 . Maybe that's because the original had memorable situations and intelligence in depth ? here we see mawkish situations and plot turns that don't even begin to make sense along with a very obvious lack of budget The world won't stop and I have a very bad feeling Asylum and David Michael Latt won't either . I just wonder when the company and its producer might end up in court though ? Not that I'd like to see this happen but they're sailing closer and closer to the wind

Six hundred and sixty-six huge robots from outer space land in strategic locales all over Earth wanting humanity to prove it's worth in the grand order of things or face certain annihilation. The robots don't ever say this outright (other then a few reactive strikes, they don't really do much of anything truth be told), but two other alien visitors, a guy & girl, let the military (as well as the viewer) know what's going on.As far as movies from The Asylum go, this is among the cream of the crop. This isn't because the film is any good whatsoever, mind you, just that the other swill that the company usually makes is so mind-numbingly God awful that the bar for them has been so vastly lowered as to make this seem better than it is. C. Thomas Howell continues his descent into sub-mediocrity with his continued part in these awful films, while Judd Nelson should've really known better. Really the only saving grace is Sinead and after her nude scenes are done (she has two very early on in the film) there's really no other reason to keep watching the movie.However it's STILL better then that crap big blockbuster Keanu Reeves travestyEye Candy: Sinead McCafferty provides the T&A (there's also some man ass)My Grade: DWhere i saw it: Instant Netflix via X-box 369

Alright here's the score: Two nudie aliens in human shape have appeared on Earth. Along with their toy robots which are about twice the size of a skyscraper. 666 of 'em, landing at different major cities all over the world. Said machines will destroy the planet unless we prove humanity is worth a damn to our visitors from space. Why they feel they can judge us when they can't even find a decent tailor is beyond me, but never mind. After a very naked chase through the woods on arrival, both are tranquilised and captured by the US army. Obviously, what with the American forces being a bunch of boneheads, they further antagonise the situation by treating the extra-terrestrial lifeforms with contempt, locking the bloke up in a cage and interrogating the woman with threatening questions. Even a nuclear strike doesn't work against these Transformer (TM) lookalikes, so what can our race do?Fortunately, among the gung-ho soldiers, there is ONE MAN. This ONE MAN realises these aliens are friendly because the girl communicated to him telepathically. He helps her to escape from this roguish lot surprisingly easily, and in return she starts his car for him when the ignition freezes during their getaway using her mystic powers. She shows him her home planet in a non-Vulcan mind-meld, and surprise surprise, its covered in greenery and has a flowing waterfall. YAWN. So passé. They wander around a very abandoned downtown Los Angeles ( because of the upcoming Apocalypse, or the budget could only accommodate for about 30 extras) get their car stolen, ponder weird human phrases and even deliver a baby. You can see the resolution from a mile away: The girl alien sees the value in human life in the birth of this tot, sadly the mother dies (BOO!) but is brought back to life by the healing touch of the alien (YAY!) and as a reward even has the kid named after her (Sky WOOP WOOP!) Yep, all like clockwork so far.Sadly, those nasty GIs have tailed the odd couple and shoot and injure the girl and capture the renegade soldier. Yep, they have but one hour left to live and they STILL want to ignore good advice and keep her prisoner while the Earth crumbles. Forget stupidity, these cats have a death wish. Anyway, what with this being so predictable up till now. You don't need me to tell you (but I'll tell you anyway to kill some time) that our hero manages to escape, grabs the alien miss, convinces his hitherto sceptical best friend in the service to turn tailcoat and join them before they rush off back to the alien's ship in a jeep together. They are pursued all the way by Mr Paranoidy Beardie Guy and his troops, who catches them just as the extra-terrestrials are about to embark on their voyage home. He shoots our hero dead (BOO) but in an amazing twist, he is brought back to life by the alien (YAY) and then the beardie dude is subsequently disintegrated by a robot for being a nasty sort of chap (WOOP WOOP). The alien's male friend (who escaped earlier) finally reappears, but instead of asking him "WHERE THE BL**DY 'ELL HAVE YOU BEEN ALL THIS TIME YOU USELESS GET" she embraces him. Funny how women are so eager to forgive.Finally, the tearful goodbye, lots of metal capsules containing Transformers (TM) start flying aware from Earth, the ponderous narration with a moral about why EVERYBODY SHOULD LOVE ONE ANOTHER RIGHT NOW. Roll credits. AANNDD I can get on with writing this review. Only it isn't a review. It's more of a plot synopsis with a few sarcastic remarks included for good measure. Why? Because frankly this film is such a big pile of nothing, it doesn't deserve detailed analysis. It just sits there, with it's bargain basement special effects and cut-out cardboard characters, neither thrilling you nor interesting you in the least. Not even inspiring enough to get up off your lazy butt to change the channel. It's the kind of movie you leave on in the background while you're mopping the floor or changing the cat litter, and you don't remember a thing about it later on. Cos you likes the noise. And you're a very lonely person. Like me. Sorry, what was I talking about? *Looks back through review* Oh yes.Could the Keanu Reeves version of this story be any better? Who cares? All I know is I'm steering clear of space movies for a while, and I'm off down the pub before closing time. 'Night all.. *Stretches and leaves scene* 3/10