by Dylan Craig ’16

“After Earth,” directed by M. Night Shyamalan and starring the Father-Son combo of Will and Jaden Smith, features impressive acting, but has a weak overall plot.

“After Earth” is about an estranged father and his son trying to survive after crash landing on the remains of Earth, which is now inhabitable. Cypher Raige, played by Will Smith, is severely injured in the crash, and his inexperienced son Kitai, played by Jaden Smith, must journey across rugged terrain and face hostile creatures to recover a rescue beacon to signal for help. Will Smith, as usual, is solid and intelligently portrays his character. Jaden Smith also impresses, and he achieves the same charm and charisma that his father has displayed in earlier movies.

“After Earth’s” downfall is its weak CGI and a predictable plot. The special effects are unrealistic, and there are scenes in which viewers easily can tell the film is using a green screen. There is one scene where Kitai is climbing a volcano, and it almost looks like a Pixar animation since the CGI is so pathetically edited. The plot of “After Earth” is mostly unoriginal, and has the same overused cliché action scenes so many other movies have shown before. Surprisingly, most of the movie is basically uneventful, creating a feeling that it is is dragging on forever with a few interruptions when action takes place. M. Night Shyamalan did not feature his trademark twist ending, and there is an over-reliance on usual movie tropes such as loud, sudden musical cues to heighten tension or dramatic camera angles.

Another flaw is the improper use of Will Smith’s abilities, who has always been amazing in action movies such as “I am Legend,” “Independence Day,” or “I, Robot.” In “After Earth,” Smith isn’t in any of the action scenes. Instead, his injuries confine him to the wreckage of the spaceship while Kitai tries to find the rescue beacon. If Will Smith had a bigger role in the movie, his natural charm and charisma would have improved the movie by leaps and bounds. Jaden Smith is solid in the action scenes but nowhere near as interesting and intense as his father would have been. A much better use of a viewer’s time is to re-watch one of Will Smith’s earlier action-packed films when he is the main star from beginning to end.