Evolution comes up just a notch above Dude, Where’s My Car? in the entertainment department.
Things go from bad to worse as the alien critters get bigger and the gags get lamer. "It´s flying away," cries Harry. "Is that a bad thing?" No, Harry, that´s a good thing; this film is a bad thing. Every character is a stereotypical idiot, from the mad-hatter army general to the uptight governor of the state (wasting the talents of Dan Aykroyd in a minor and most unamusing part). True to routine clichéd form, Ira and Allison start out hating each other and wind up falling in love as they join forces against the evil space creatures and the even more evil U.S. government agents.
And true to form, when all appears lost and the world is about to be taken over by the alien beasts, it´s our team of intrepid heroes who must save the day.
Video:
The picture size from DreamWorks is an unassuming 1.74:1, with an image quality that´s smooth but not perfectly well delineated. In fact, it´s a bit softer than I´ve encountered in most new movie transfers. Colors, though, show up quite naturally, and there are no noticeable signs of grain, moiré effects, or other abnormal artifacts.
Audio:
Audio is available in Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, or Dolby 2.0 stereo. The DD 5.1 is excellent, especially in its surround characteristics, with good impact and deep bass. Voices are pretty much confined to the center speaker, but most other aural effects are spread out well around the sound stage. Expect explosions, gunfire, animal noises, and, needless to say, helicopters to be arriving from all directions.
Extras:
The powers that be at DreamWorks don´t produce too many films each year, and I´m surprised this one got the green light. Perhaps to make up for the film´s lack of originality, they have included several bonus features on the disc to make amends. Foremost is an audio commentary with Reitman, Duchovny, Jones, and Scott that sometimes has the appearance of a free-for-all. They call it a conversation, and I suppose that´s what it is. Then, there´s an HBO First Look Special, "The Evolution of Evolution," fifteen minutes of behind-the-scenes and promotional materials combined. An eleven-minute visual effects featurette fares better. Six deleted scenes, including an alternate ending, were the highlight of the operation for me, largely because it surprised me that Reitman could have filmed anything even worse than what he put in the movie. Cast and filmmaker bios and twenty-two scene selections round out the extras. English and French are provided for spoken languages; English, French, and Spanish for subtitles
Parting Shots:
Let me close by adding further insult to injury. It´s bad enough "Evolution" cloned the plot and characters of "Ghostbusters," it practically stole the music and the logo, too, with only minor variations. Now, why would a guy as savvy as Ivan Reitman do all this "borrowing"? Did he think enough people had forgotten "Ghostbusters" that he could get away with doing another one? Or did he think enough people remembered "Ghostbusters" that he could do an indirect spoof of the older film? In any case, about the only thing Reitman does succeed in doing is wasting an hour and forty-two minutes of our time. Seems a little unfair, even to such a lowly evolutionary life form as I am.
And true to form, when all appears lost and the world is about to be taken over by the alien beasts, it´s our team of intrepid heroes who must save the day.
Video:
The picture size from DreamWorks is an unassuming 1.74:1, with an image quality that´s smooth but not perfectly well delineated. In fact, it´s a bit softer than I´ve encountered in most new movie transfers. Colors, though, show up quite naturally, and there are no noticeable signs of grain, moiré effects, or other abnormal artifacts.
Audio:
Audio is available in Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, or Dolby 2.0 stereo. The DD 5.1 is excellent, especially in its surround characteristics, with good impact and deep bass. Voices are pretty much confined to the center speaker, but most other aural effects are spread out well around the sound stage. Expect explosions, gunfire, animal noises, and, needless to say, helicopters to be arriving from all directions.
Extras:
The powers that be at DreamWorks don´t produce too many films each year, and I´m surprised this one got the green light. Perhaps to make up for the film´s lack of originality, they have included several bonus features on the disc to make amends. Foremost is an audio commentary with Reitman, Duchovny, Jones, and Scott that sometimes has the appearance of a free-for-all. They call it a conversation, and I suppose that´s what it is. Then, there´s an HBO First Look Special, "The Evolution of Evolution," fifteen minutes of behind-the-scenes and promotional materials combined. An eleven-minute visual effects featurette fares better. Six deleted scenes, including an alternate ending, were the highlight of the operation for me, largely because it surprised me that Reitman could have filmed anything even worse than what he put in the movie. Cast and filmmaker bios and twenty-two scene selections round out the extras. English and French are provided for spoken languages; English, French, and Spanish for subtitles
Parting Shots:
Let me close by adding further insult to injury. It´s bad enough "Evolution" cloned the plot and characters of "Ghostbusters," it practically stole the music and the logo, too, with only minor variations. Now, why would a guy as savvy as Ivan Reitman do all this "borrowing"? Did he think enough people had forgotten "Ghostbusters" that he could get away with doing another one? Or did he think enough people remembered "Ghostbusters" that he could do an indirect spoof of the older film? In any case, about the only thing Reitman does succeed in doing is wasting an hour and forty-two minutes of our time. Seems a little unfair, even to such a lowly evolutionary life form as I am.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]9080[/release]