Like M. Night Shamylan, the Wachowski Brothers have arguably hit their peak too early in their career, and have not succeeded in gaining that former glory since. To be fair, their peak came in the form of The Matrix, one of the most influential science fiction films of all time, and that’s pretty difficult to top.
But even then, they haven’t made a film that can be considered good or a box office hit, even directors who hit their peak still have a number of great films to demonstrate their talents.
Instead they gave us the disappointing Matrix sequels, the polarizing Cloud Atlas, and the less said about Speed Racer, the better. Hoping to still make an impact on the big screen, they give us their newest project, Jupiter Ascending. Does the film fly past expectations, or descend the reputation of the once promising director team?
The film focuses on Jupiter Jones (played by Mila Kunis), a young woman unsatisfied with her life and job. She lives in a world where human beings on Earth and different planets are unaware that they were established for the purpose of harvesting the resulting organisms to produce a youth serum for those in high positions on other planets by families of alien royalty.
The movie certainly is ambitious and can keep the audience interested in its world building. Given that Hollywood is overrun with superhero movies, sequels, remakes, reboots, and adaptations, it is nice to see something original on the table.
The visuals and action scenes are also well done, showing that the siblings still succeed in this particular department of filmmaking. Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum also perform decently as their respective characters. Nothing great, but nothing terrible.
Unfortunately, the movie falters heavily in terms of the writing.
The story is not well connected and there are certain scenes and characters that did not feel like they contributed to the story, particularly Jupiter’s family. The story itself is the typical “chosen one” story arc seen a number of times, including The Matrix, and relies on a good chunk of monologues to tell the audience the story, sometimes underestimating their intelligence.
The romantic subplot feels forced, the characters do not seem to be developed properly, and the dialogue can range from pretentious to just stupid. I also feel bad for they way they made poor Eddie Redmayne act in this movie.
Do yourself a favor and watch Theory of Everything to actually know what Redmayne is capable of. Here he sounds like a combination of Voldemort and an over-the-top Bond villain.
Jupiter Ascending is an ambitious mess. It has decent acting that range from ok to embarrassing, a story that has various elements of the Wachowskis ripping off themselves, and a script I would not classify as good, for both the plot and the dialogue.
It has great visuals, but not everyone can be Michael Bay and make money off of eye candy while disregarding a good script.
I get the fact that some filmmakers are so dedicated to a film that they take up a number of responsibilities, but maybe the Wachowski brothers should assistance with their writing. A good world can go to waste if you don’t have a good story to tell in it.

-Brady Lass