Battle for Terra Review

First things first, this movie is nothing you haven't seen before. Filled with plenty of cliche
characters and an alien invasion type of story. Chances are, you've likely seen it done better elsewhere.

With that out of the way, I'll start by talking about the movie's visuals. Absolutely nothing in
this movie is breathtaking. Even in 3-D there was never really a moment where I said "wow".
What the movie does nail, to some degree, was atmosphere. And even then I felt like that
atmosphere was secluded to Terra alone (no pun intended). Which, to be fair, is 80% of the movie.

The story follows an alien female named Mala. Who at first seems like a rebellious teen that
ditches class often and gets into trouble. Luckily, the movie drops that rebellious attitude before
it gets annoying. Mala is an only child that lives with her father. There's a hint that her mother
has recently passed away (or just left them), but the movie NEVER explains how or why.
Missing an opportunity for a bit more character development.

Before long, something appears in the skies of Terra that casts a huge shadow over the alien
village. Small spaceships come down abducting the aliens, including Mala's father. Seeking to
rescue her father, she manages to capture one of the abductors, who turns out to be human.

That's where the movie starts to pick up a bit more traction and where Mala starts to develop
as a more compassionate character.

Sound wise, the musical score was done fairly well and I remember whistling a tune from
the movie after leaving the theater. The voice acting was decent with the only exception being
Evan Rachel Wood doing a great job as Mala.

Verdict:

Despite the movie's theme of war and survival, it's pretty family friendly. Nothing here really wowed
me but I surely don't regret seeing it. As a matter of fact, I rather enjoyed it.

MATINEE