Film Review: Moonfall

Director: Roland Emmerich
Starring: Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley
Running time: 130 minutes

You might have seen the trailer for Moonfall and thought, ‘Ooh, this might be one of those films that’s so bad, it’s good.’ Well, you’d be wrong for thinking that. This is, in fact, one of those films that’s so bad, it’s painful. Before you roll your eyes and think that this is just another review from a stuck-up, pretentious journalist who hates anything that tries to have fun, let it be known that this writer loves a stupid film. Scary Movie. Hot Rod. Bad Boys II. These are some of the finest works of art to ever hit the big screen. But Moonfall? Well, let’s just say it has no right to be uttered in the same breath as Bad Boys II. 

This brainless blockbuster follows Patrick Wilson’s Brian Harper, a famed astronaut who, after his team is attacked by an unknown alien force, is blamed for the death of his colleague when his explanation of the events that transpired falls on deaf ears. Taking the hit badly, Harper becomes a mopey, carefree and passionless drifter - until, wouldn’t you know it, the alien force strikes again, and he’s called upon to miraculously save the day. 

If this premise sounds like the workings of a ten year-old tasked with creating a short story in English class, that pretty much sums up the quality of the script at large. Such is the cringe-worthy nature of the dialogue, at times it feels as though the cast itself are holding back a grimace as they say their lines - to the point where the likes of Eme Ikwuakor, as typical military man Doug Davidson, seem on the verge of breaking into laughter at any moment.

While the main plot does, at times, threaten to border on interesting (taking on aliens in an old-school space rocket with ‘F*ck the Moon’ scrawled on the side? You can’t go wrong), there is another, human interest-based subplot that feels terribly familiar. Each time the camera cuts away from the wonders and craziness of the extra-terrestrial world director Roland Emmerich builds in outer-space, and pans back down to a group of horribly uninteresting side characters back on boring old Earth, a groan of disappointment can almost be heard from the audience. 

Within the wider set of poorly-developed set of characters, though, there is one shining light - John Bradley as unlikely scientist KC Houseman. Bradley appears to be having the time of his life in the role of comedy relief, adding light-hearted humour and a slight semblance of self-awareness whenever things threaten to get too serious. Other than that, this phenomenally gifted cast - which also includes the likes of Halle Berry and Michael Peña - is severely underused. 

Some impressive visuals and a relatively unique take on life in space aside, Moonfall is a pretty joyless film that wastes the boundless potential of its ludicrous premise - failing to ever justify its lengthy two hour-plus runtime. Emmerich, the king of apocalyptic blockbuster storytelling, has never been known for nuance or subtlety, but this is a definite miss even by his standards. From its script to its character building, this disappointment falls short at nearly every turn.

Did you know? Josh Gad was originally cast as KC Houseman, but dropped out of the film due to scheduling conflicts.

Moonfall is now showing in cinemas.