Keanu Reeves is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Even though he was no longer quite as prominent on the big screen as he was in the 1990s/2000s, he impressively fought his way back into the spotlight with the John Wick films. He still had to accept a few defeats.
One of his bitterest defeats marks The Day the Earth Stood Still. The remake of the 1951 sci-fi classic of the same name was released in cinemas in 2008 and would have been… biggest Keanu Reeves blockbusters since the end of the Matrix trilogy. What followed was a huge disappointment.
Disappointing sci-fi remake on TV today: Keanu Reeves comes to Earth as an alien
The day the Earth stood still begins with an exciting event: an unknown flying object is spotted in space. It is moving towards Earth at breakneck speed – but not like a destructive comet. Instead, the mysterious spaceship lands peacefully in Central Park in New York.
You can watch the trailer for The Day the Earth Stood Still here:
The Day the Earth Stood Still – Trailer (German) HD
No lasers and no explosions: the devastating alien invasion doesn’t happen. Instead, an alien rises with one important message to humanity from the spaceship: Klaatu (Keanu Reeves). The astrobiologist Dr. Helen Benson (Jennifer Connelly) is one of the first people to contact him.
Keanu Reeves can’t save the indecisive sci-fi remake The Day the Earth Stood Still
The initial situation is pure science fiction. Building on it, one of the… most fascinating mind games of the genre: What happens when an alien comes to earth? Unfortunately, the film directed by Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson doesn’t know what to do with it.
There is none of the infectious magic of first contact like Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, nor the trembling uncertainty that Denis Villeneuve conjures in Arrival. Instead, The Day the Earth Stood Still can be found in one unfortunate conflict of the blockbuster cinema again.
On the one hand, the film wants to strike a thoughtful tone and take unexpected paths. On the other hand, he can Obligation of Hollywood bombast cannot escape and relies on an interchangeable noise until there is hardly anything left of the exciting initial situation. Keanu Reeves doesn’t help either.
When is The Day the Earth Stood Still on TV?
The Day the Earth Stood Still is on tonight on November 20, 2024 at 8:15 p.m. on Kabel Eins. With commercials, the film runs until 10:30 p.m. A few hours later, at 12:45 a.m., the station shows the repeat. If you want to stream the film independently of the TV program, you can currently do so with a subscription to WOW.
This article was first published in a similar form on Moviepilot in December 2021.