Geostorm (2017)

Directed by: Dean Devlin | 108 minutes | action, science fiction | Actors: Gerard Butler, Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Alexandra Maria Lara, Daniel Wu, Eugenio Derbez, Amr Waked, Adepero Oduye, Andy Garcia, Ed Harris, Robert Sheehan, Richard Schiff, Mare Winningham, Zazie Beetz, Talitha Eliana Bateman, Daniella Garcia, Ritchie Montgomery, David S. Lee, Billy Slaughter

In 2019, the world will be ravaged by major natural disasters. Reason for the governments of seventeen countries to join forces and “fight back” against the natural disasters. A satellite shield is being built around the entire planet, so that the weather on Earth can be monitored from the International Space Station. For three years it goes well, but then the system starts to fail. There is every indication that new, gigantic storms will arise that will then join together and create a global and world-destroying “geostorm”. Just a few weeks before the US handed over control of the system to the ‘international community’. Are you still there?
Oh yes, and then the global climate-controlling satellite system was conceived and run under the direction of the brilliant scientist Jake Lawson…. played by Gerard Butler.

That really stretches the credibility of a plot. The makers of ‘Geostorm’ throw a lot of ridiculous assumptions at the viewers within five minutes. It raises hordes of questions: how did seventeen countries work together in unison, devise, build and execute a solution in space within three years, and then hand over the lead to the US with the President bearing ultimate responsibility? A 600-person project led by Lawson, who is introduced as a no-nonsense mourner who carelessly antagonizes a Senate committee in his first scene? It also doesn’t help that Butler moves through the film rather nonchalantly and plays a totally unsympathetic character, where you secretly hope that he doesn’t make it to the end of the film.

Basically no character is invested in so you don’t care if anything happens to them. Not to mention the “accidental” relationships between the protagonists, which propel the thin story to the next scene. It’s all mediocrity and that despite expensive reshoots (15 million dollars was spent after disastrous (ha!) test screenings.

‘Geostorm’ is the directorial debut of Dean Devlin, a veteran of the film industry who mainly earned his spurs as a producer with, among others, ‘Independence Day’, ‘Stargate’ and ‘Godzilla’ (from 1998). You would think he should know better. Together with Paul Guyot, he wrote the incredible screenplay, which, in addition to the natural disasters, also has time for childish and superfluous melodrama between Jake and his younger brother Max (Jim Sturgess). And the special effects don’t do much good either. There’s something of a perverse pleasure in seeing world cities destroyed by natural disasters (or superheroes), but here it’s all on a relatively small scale and in too short of scenes. We have seen this much more often and much better in countless other films. It’s better than what the SyFy Channel throws out every week, but at least those movies are still “campy” and therefore also fun to watch. So ‘Geostorm’ actually misses the mark in all respects.

Also the cast with some familiar faces: the aforementioned Butler, Andy Garcia as US President Palma, Ed Harris of Secretary of State and Abbie Cornish as secret service agent and secret girlfriend of Max: we also have them much better in other films seen – with the exception of Butler. It’s the squandering of talent—and quick-money actors—that makes Geostorm so disappointing. Skip quickly and watch ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ or ‘Armageddon’. At least they made fun of it.