THE FIFTH WAVE (2016) MOVIE NEWS & REVIEW

the fIfth wave (2016) movie

Genre               |   Science Fiction

Classification   |   M

Running time   |   114 minutes

Released         |   14 January 2016

cast

Chloe Grace Moretz as Cassie
Ron Livingston as Oliver Sullivan
Liev Schrieber as Colonel Vosch

director

J. Blakeson

writer

​Susannah Grant ... (screenplay by) and
Akiva Goldsman ... (screenplay by) &
Jeff Pinkner ... (screenplay by)
 
Rick Yancey ... (based on the novel by)

cinematographer

​Enrique Chediak

music

​​Henry Jackman

film editor

​Paul Rubell

---

box office result

Worldwide             $​109,906,372  

Australia                 $5,206,013

North America        $​34,916,787 ​    

---

the best dialogue

Cassie Sullivan: Want do they want?
Oliver Sullivan: Earth, that's why they're here.

​Cassie Sullivan: [having been reunited] I missed you so much, Sam.
Sam Sullivan: [struggling not to cry] I missed you Cassie

​Cassie Sullivan: The Others hit us with an electromagnetic pulse that killed all the power on the planet. No more engines, no more electricity, no more running water. No more everything we took for granted.

---

THE FIFTH WAVE (2016) IMAGES

THE FIFTH WAVE (2016) STORY SYNOPSIS

​Four waves of increasingly deadly attacks have left most of Earth in ruin. Against a backdrop of fear and distrust, Cassie is on the run, desperately trying to save her younger brother. As she prepares for the inevitable and lethal fifth wave, Cassie teams up with a young man who may become her final hope - if she can only trust him.

THE FIFTH WAVE (2016) MOVIE REVIEW

Reviewed by Mark Geraghty   |   Review date 29 January 2016
​Pop Movee Rating ⭐⭐⭐

THE 5TH WAVE is a feature film adaptation of Rick Yancey’s young adult science fiction novel about an alien invasion of Earth that slowly wipes humanity from the face of the planet. The film is one of the most underwhelming science fiction tales to be released in a long time, as there are very few scenes involving the alien threat and the human’s response to it. With the exception of a handful of CGI shots to reinforce the destruction of Earth’s major cities, THE 5TH WAVE is a relatively small-scale production, utilising a lot of “as is” exterior locations with some low-budget set dressing to convey the message that humans are in the last throes of existence. It becomes pretty clear, pretty quickly that the production’s $38 million prevented a full-scale depiction of events along the lines of INDEPENDENCE DAY or one of Michael Bay’s TRANSFORMER films. Instead, director J Blakeson, whose only other feature film credit is THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ALICE CREED back in 2009, focuses on obtaining maximum screen time from young Chloe Grace Moretz, as the film’s central character Cassie Sullivan.

Working from a screenplay by Susannah Grant and LOST staff writer Jeff Pinker & Oscar-winner Akiva Goldsman, it’s hard to fathom why the finished version of THE 5TH WAVE is not better than what it is. There’s certainly a structural problem with the movie, as nearly half of the story is told in a prolonged flashback sequence, while the other half uses the opening scene as its jumping-off point to tell the remainder of the story. Without talking with the film’s producers, it’s hard to determine whether the flashback sequence was written that way or whether it was introduced when it came time to edit the film in an attempt to improve the impact of the story and the film’s pacing. It’s understandable that viewers understand the context of Cassie’s predicament, but the decision to download the entire backstory in one continuous chunk weighs the film down. The film’s second half is considerably better than the first, as Cassie becomes focused on the mission save her younger brother Sam (Zackary Arthur); reluctantly accepting the help of Evan (Alex Roe), a stranger who takes Cassie in when she is wounded by an alien sniper.

Some may find it scary that the film’s producers claimed THE 5TH WAVE would do for aliens what the TWILIGHT series did for vampires. It’s an idea that never really comes to its full fruition and the thought of teen angst being the main event when humanity is at death’s door never quite works. This doesn’t prevent the producers from creating a love triangle in the film’s Third Act when Cassie’s High School crush Ben Parish (Nick Robinson) crosses paths with her. (It does feel all a bit coincidental that Ben has taken Sam under his wing throughout the film’s parallel B story, which shows young children being taken to a military base and trained how to kill the alien invaders.) Without giving up the ending, THE 5TH WAVE is the first in a series, but Sony’s decision to release the film in January will limit its chances of becoming a bona fide box office success.

Other than the three young leads, THE 5TH WAVE does benefit from established character actors being involved. Ron Livingston plays Oliver Sullivan, Cassie and Sam’s father, who does what he can with a limited part that sees him out of the picture by the halfway point of the movie. Liev Schreiber growls his way through the second half of proceedings as Colonel Vosch, the career Army man who’s determined to see humanity fight until there is no one left to defend the planet from the invading aliens. Maika Monroe adds some much needed sizzle to the younger section of the cast as Ringer, a hard-ass who adds some starch to Ben’s young group of soldiers. Monroe is almost unrecognizable from her recent IT FOLLOWS role, as her long blonde locks have been replaced with a hard, short black haircut for this role.The only other significant role is Maria Bello’s Sergeant Reznik, who comes off a little bit creepy as she brainwashes the new young recruits Vosch has brought in to help win the fight.

​THE 5TH WAVE is a film that’s been made on a budget. $38 million to be precise. Despite the producer’s hopes, the film is not going to launch the science fiction equivalent of the TWILIGHT series. Director J. Blakeson has put together a competent film, but by no stretch of the imagination is he pushing the creative envelope. By virtue of its January worldwide release, THE 5TH WAVE is almost guaranteed not to miss its target audience, as teenagers in both the Southern and Northern Hemispheres have returned to school. The film’s low-key marketing campaign hasn’t helped either. The most obvious comparison that can be made to the TWILIGHT series is the recommendation that THE 5TH WAVE will be able to be enjoyed as much on home entertainment formats as it is in the cinema.

digital updates delivered

facebook

instagram