Finally got around to seeing this film, and not surprisingly, it was a disappointment, but that's not to say it was a bad film. In fact, it was quite good. Once you understand what this film truly is (perhaps Future World would be a more fitting title) it works. But at the end of the day it had so much potential to be more, and that does not sit well with me.

The acting is good. The direction is solid. The writing is witty. But the story is rather lackluster. What's sad is the concept and message are brilliant. I for one love the smack this film gives to the dystopian sub genre. We've visited dystopia so much by now, it's time to visit utopia.

I understand this film was not going to be Bioshock meets Disney, and that's cool, but this film could have had it's cake and ate it too. Once again, as if by some sort of wizardry, Magnus is right again. The best aspect of this film is the relationship between Frank and Athena. It felt original and it was moving and it spoke to the crux of the theme. This needed to be more of a driving force to the movie. Instead we are left with Casey who, while she works for what she is, just simply is not as interesting. I would have still kept her as the protagonist, but I would have given Athena and Frank more screen time and a more fleshed third act.

In the end it is a solid, but unspectacular turn for Mr. Bird that sadly left me wanting something more.

B+

Uh...what's the difference (between Future World and Tomorrowland)?

Overall a nice review, but still a bit too kind with the final grade I think.

You know, I may sound like fanboy, but I really can't blame Bird for the shortcomings in this film. If anything his direction and witty dialogue is the only thing that salvages this film. The story, and overall script choices are what key this film down. One can hope Bird is given another chance, but hopefully back in animation.

I loved this movie. A wondrous Spielbergian adventure, taking me away from the brutal cynicism of the world that so many sci-fi movies love to reenforce. Imagine a world where the heroes save the day before it's even in danger. Where the greatest enemy is our own acceptance of the end. They fight that crippling pessimism that keeps any solutions always out of grasp, which wears the face of Dr. House. Tomorrowland takes us on a smile-inducing joyride through our world and beyond. All of this sounds like Don Draper pitching Tomorrowland, but that is what I was feeing while watching. And you just can't beat that feeling.

So more specifically; I loved Casey. They might spend a little too much time proving she's smart, but her reactions to things are what make her loveable. The funniest moment was when she screamed "Human!" right after knocking the guard out. The pure enthusiasm she displays they're about to do something really cool along with her humor and spirit make her worthy of this adventure. Clooney is also great, becoming the least creepy pedo ever. The way he looks at Athena during the car scene, with the eyes of a spurned ex-lover who is disgusted by his own feelings completely sells us on his character. We can see how that big-eyed boy in the prologue ended up a bitter old man. And again, what could have been a super creepy romantic subplot ends up being very touching. The score is aces, the visuals are beautiful, the pacing is perfectly swift. The entire movie is a delight. And as much as I'd like to spend more time with Casey and the crew, ending the story here will hopefully preserve this bright future here forever and Casey's spirt will never be ruined by a sequel-villain.

Bird did a fine job with Ghost Protocol. I believe he can make good live-action films. He just needs the right project and full control.

Lucas Star Wars prequel's come to mind, that I'm totally against full control by anyone for anything.

I assume he had full control over Tomorrowland as well.

I'd say Lindelof had a good deal of control.

You see, I'd assume that Disney poked their nose in more than other studios would have done.

So Lindelof might have been a lot at fault here, and that would be no surprise. The third act was obviously poorly written, and as producer he might have pressed for certain creative choices with the movie as well.

And Lindelof he has such an awful record it just makes sense to pinpoint any failure of TL on him.
Cowboys & Aliens, Prometheus, World War Z...those are the ones I've seen, and awful.

There's also one thing they pretty much all have in common, including TL. They all start rather well, the first hour of those movies could be considered very good. Then things take a turn for the worst.

I can see this stemming from him coming from TV. Greatly able to write a 45min-60min script, but once it comes to making a 2hr movie coherent he clearly fails.

I enjoyed Lost and I had no idea he was involved in that. I thought that was just JJ.

Yeah, that's convinced me. It's his fault. Although Bird isn't free of blame either. He wasn't taken hostage to direct this film.

Lindelof has always been better at raising questions than answering them. I liked that he didn't try to overexplain everything here though.

His other big success in film has been the Trek series. He only wrote the second, but was a producer on both.

Bird actually passed on The Force Awakens to do this.

Brad Bird brings his trademark theme of greatness being suppressed by societal expectations. And of course the beautiful pacing. The 130 minutes flew by for me.

Tomorrowland is a flawed movie of something that could have been more. The first 2/3 of the movie is pretty enjoyable as we're following Casey in exploring the meaning of the pin she received. Once they arrive in Tomorrowland and the story should reach it's height it fizzles instead. The leads are all pretty good, Britt Robertson plays a great Casey, she's smart, sexy and cute at the same time. Clooney is just Clooney, he doesn't really own the role, but he's his own self cool enough to have a place in any movie. Raffey Cassidy as Athena steals the spotlight from him though, she's really a revelation as a child-actor for me. Only Hugh Laurie doesn't reach his full potential I think. He was wasted, and couldn't play his true self in children's movie in the end I feel.

So ultimately Tomorrowland is disappointing. Not daring, not trying to do anything else that most of this teen-flicks like maze runner, hunger games etc. are cramming out for several years now already. But the first hour to 90min, did engage me, as it was fun to learn about this Tomorrowland, and being introduced to an appealing protagonist.

B-

I thought it was complete shit. I was bored out of my mind the entire time and I hated the lead girl.

This might be the worst film of the year so far. I couldn't stand it. So much bad acting. So many missed opportunities. So many unintentionally funny moments. What a disaster. F

I absolutely loved this movie. I wasn't sure what to expect, and it blew me away. Few are the movies I want to watch again right after viewing it the first time, this is one of them. Pretty much everything worked for me. I don't understand the negativity. The worst thing I can say about it is it looked like a movie with a budget of 100M, not 190M.

A

Yay Solc9, welcome to the club. We now have a population of 2.

I very much enjoyed this overall. The issue was the beginning was really slow, and the third act a bit muddled, but I was so in love with the concept and the world that was created, I did not care. The actors were all good, especially the actress who played Athena. The middle act with the pins and all the questions being raised got me intrigued after being a bit underwhelmed by the opening, and while they are not all answered by the film's end (I would love a Tomorrowland 2), it is satisfying enough. They don't have nearly enough time in the expensive looking Tomorrowland to justify a 190 million budget, however. Overall, I liked it very much and will almost certainly revisit it in the future. It is a real shame this bombed.

A

Wow, I'm surprised by the decent reception this has here. I thought it was awful. A poor script and way too silly for my liking. It's also a total bore. One of the worst of the year. D+

This.

I just think the last two reviews before yours are positive. In general, people don't like it on KJ.

Yeah this was really a shit pile. I can't even remember anything about it except the fact that it was BAD!