‘Jupiter Ascending’ sets bar high
By Deanna Lee, Staff Writer //
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015 is already proving to be a year of cinematic achievements and with films such as “Avenger: Age of Ultron”, “Insurgent”, “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2”, and “Star Wars: Episode VII- The Force Awakens” only a few months from their release, each and every movie is in competition to set the bar higher. With a budget of $175 million dollars, the well-seasoned Wachowskis brought “Jupiter Ascending” to screens this past Feb. 6. This says a lot considering that the average movie budget is around $100 million and in the movie industry, the other $75 million is not that much more. The Wachowskis are known for dabbling in the science fiction world with their works such as “The Matrix” trilogy and “Cloud Atlas,” but this film elevated a bit higher on those scales.
This film stars Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum as the main characters in this distant futuristic world. Kunis portrays Jupiter Jones, a human of Earth that works as a janitor and feels that she has no importance in the large scheme of life. Tatum plays Caine Wise, an ex-military hunter who is a genetically spliced human with wolf DNA. The plot of the movie follows the idea that birth of the human race did not occur on Earth and Jupiter has now been thrown into a war between the family that are products of the original human beings. The Abrasax family, Balem, Titus, and Kalique, are the three heirs to several planets across the universe, but they all want to get their hands on the planet Earth due to its massive beauty in size and population. Balem, played by Eddie Redmayne (“The Theory of Everything”, “Les Miserables”), is the eldest of the three, wanting all the power for himself. This makes him the main antagonist, but the side his siblings are on is kept a mystery even from the main characters until things begin to truly unravel.
What I enjoyed about this film was that it appealed to a very wide range of audiences. Not only does it incorporate a heavy science fiction feel, but there is an equally adequate amount of action to balance it out. I have seen hundreds of movies and it is safe to say that I know great action when I see it. This film had very well-choreographed action scenes that intrigued and drew the audience in, which is hard to find in films nowadays. There are sprinkles of humor and, of course, romance to sustain the cliché in these types of movies, yet it was an interesting perspective on intergalactic romances in my opinion. The story itself was very well planned out as the Wachowskis are known for doing in their works and the film provided such a great flow from beginning to end. For those movie-lovers and film-goers, this is one of those that needs to be seen because it is truly a fantastic film. 2015 is going to be a year of films that blow audiences out of the water, but this one has definitely set the bar high.