I knew I was in trouble when I realized the screenwriter felt compelling opening tension could be found in a rich couple unable to maneuver their limo around a corner (if I had a nickel...). This might work in comedy but certainly not after a forty minute slow-motion montage of Earth's demise.
Moving on, and now two hours late to their own reception, Justine and her husband (what's his name again?) make their way to the ball room where we are introduced to Justine's family, co-workers, friends, and a series of speeches by characters we never see, or care to see, again. Justine, perpetually aloof and dull as wood, then proceeds to have a series of inexplicable pow-wows with her sister Claire as well as by herself. During one sojourn, we are treated to Justine using the grounds as a toilet as she gazes at the stars where, for the second time this evening, she notices a strange star.
Fast forward (and I mean literally -- fast forward through the entire wedding sequence because it's pointless) a couple hours, and Justine has quit her job, left her husband, had sex with a man we can only assume is her lover ("Business Guy"), and been nude.
The second half of the film draws mostly from interactions between Justine, Claire, and John (Kiefer Sutherland). Unfortunately, these characters are woefully one dimensional -- things just happen because the characters just happen to be on the screen; aside from the huge planet hurling toward Earth at 60,000MPH, there is ZERO tension between any of these characters, who, by the way, do not act like any person would in real life (a character commits suicide and nobody says a thing -- the world's about to end and a mother isn't hugging her son -- come on!). Sadly, because there is no build-up, there is also no audience investment into the well being of any one of them -- their lives come and go in two hours, and we couldn't care less -- the ending is unbelievably flat.
That being said, this movie had somewhat good eye-candy. The opening montage, while plodding and patently unnecessary, was very well-shot. The color scheme set the mood well and Claire/John's grounds made for some very beautiful scenery. Unfortunately, the handheld style didn't work for me. I gave it a chance because I assumed it would come into play later as The Planet's gravitational effects wreaked havoc on Earth's inhabitants -- but we see none of that, so why was it shot hand held like an action movie?
To close, I won't say any more, but suffice it to say there are many more things this movie did wrong than did right. Watch at your own risk, or you may very well find yourself wishing for your own apocalyptic event to whisk you into space.
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