Reviews

For science fiction content, this is the best sci-fi movie. This is a real world solution to meteorites. Hit them with a microwave beam to cause out-gassing which causes the meteorite to redirect its path. This what science fiction should be about one scenario and one technology. Untried technology has awry results. Meteorites lead to ice ages.

The CGI looks like CGI. Nice female presence who get to some "acting" on scene even if its a little forced. To people who think cold is bad, for items- cold keeps equipment in excellent condition- keeps humidity right down and decay e.g. Lawson's Hut has survived 50 years. Freezing temperatures are only bad for animals and plants and some metals if stressed.

This disaster movie has pulpy romance side plot but less than other movies of its genre. Its has ridiculous science. The worst is really that a directed signals from Earth would take probably decades to get to aliens as they'd have to be ten of light years away- further than Alpha Centuri. Also satellite probably can't redirect signals as precise beams and neither can land-based radio telescopes but can they send signals- that part is easy- honestly the aliens should have noticed our TV signals a long time before we deliberate tried to contact them. Intense radiation is usually indirectly viewable when passing through matter depending on the matter that it pass through.

The missing part of this movie is the aliens. I think not showing the aliens as making a complete mess of coming to Earth- they smashed into several satellites. They had to do resource conservation and that they came to water- to save energy and as its spacecraft they are terrible in the atmosphere and worse on water so they are clumsy and bad at fighting the humans- they do a makeshift weapons and try not destroy everything.

Also they actually here as science mission with a massive military complement which leads to big conflicts between those group- such that the scientists want to study the humans and the military have decided the humans are a threat to be stopped. That's why viewers had such different pictures of the aliens- they are not a coherent group. There are many hints such this is true such as the many scans of the humans and their equipment. The alien military does not have a coherent strategy- they don't how to fight humans.

Good special effect and hinted plot elements makes this a good disaster movie.

Once you have seen a lot of other based on reality special forces movie/re-creations, this movie no longer strikes you as unrealistic. Real strike special forces have lost the specialness in tactic, strategy and autonomy- so like in this movie they are extra tough real troops with lots of firepower acting in tough missions that easily goes way over other their heads if the slighted thing goes wrong (as in this movie -one shot to their radio). I was watching the movie in Japanese with out subtitles so I can't judge the acting but it seemed alright. Its not a propaganda for French special forces as they don't come out alive like they should have with good planning and abilities.

Crap parts of this movie as well the above- no bank robbery.

I can understand why Lawson doesn't drive across the border- what one border notices him as possibly wanted for other crimes and he's stuffed.

Criminals don't usually intentionally go to police stations for any reason- instant draw attention to yourself- one minute after they left country police dispatcher and then a major manhunt- What the criminals couldn't find a real guide from a pub. Criminals think police are dumb. It could have been almost the same movie but Jim and his daughter got caught up while criminals have a fight with their guide.