WRONG NUMBER
65 is a sci-fi thriller that star Adam Driver really takes seriously. If only we could as such. I mean it's Adam Driver and he's obviously committed, what with screen presence and cred up the wazoo. So then why do we snicker when he fires off a laser gun that looks like a prop from Toys "R" Us? And what's up with his character surviving carnage that would off any other would-be pilot? Oh brother.
Only revealed because of the film's title cards and not giving any valid reason other than to call it 65, 65 takes place um, 65 million years ago via planet Earth. Driver plays Mills, a flyboy who crash-lands there after asteroids hit his spaceship. Mills must pull through, fending off pesky dinosaurs (obviously) while protecting a young girl who doesn't speak English. 65's runtime is 93 minutes and well, you wish the flick lasted a little longer. I mean that way it would come off as at least ad rem.
Raptors and "Newt" wannabes aside, 65 suffers from containing little narrative, little build-up, clunky dialogue, and a sense of cinematic, science fiction deja vu. Yup, I might have to blame directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods for this whole, nutrition-less ode to high-tech weaponry (they've done some stinkers in the past).
Sure 65 looks great (for a $45 million dollar budget), sure there are a few violently tense moments, and sure, Louisiana's locale masquerades nicely as the Triassic period. But why does it feel like you're watching a demo tape of Aliens that unbeknownst to Beck and Woods, really cuts some corners? And why would Driver do all this slimy, physical acting only to have the viewer think of his persona's plight as laughably trivial? Might have to have a sit-down with current agent. There's no "love affair" with this 65.
Written by Jesse Burleson
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