This movie tells a grim and dark tale of what a future Armageddon might look like. Keanu Reeves plays Klaatu in a deadpan, detached way which might very well be how an alien would react if he came to our planet. He has come as part of a plan to rid the earth of human life, and to begin again, akin to what happened with Noah and the flood which, by the way, is mentioned in the film. The people of the earth fear more alien invasions and the result is a global panic.
Jennifer Connelly plays Dr. Helen Benson, a scientist who attempts to convince Klaatu that man can change. “Some people, at the precipice, change” he admits, although he is not confident human beings can do so. One thing Klaatu notices is that Helen has had problems with her stepson since his father died, but she is always there for him and the stepson begins to depend on her when he realizes she truly cares for him.
This movie has some moments of violence, which includes a lot of explosions and a little blood, but nothing gratuitous. The language was surprisingly, and nicely, tame and we are happy to award our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal to the film.
