The Wandering Earth—China’s first sci-fi blockbuster movie
The movie that was released during the Chinese New Year, The Wandering Earth, despite its mediocre director–Frant Gwo–the movie stands out from the others with a fresh perspective and engaging storyline. The movie not only marveled the audience in China, but it also received recognization from foreign countries. The trailer of The Wandering Earth ranks the fourth on YouTube’s “2019 sci-fi movie,” proving its popularity and success in the world.
The Wandering Earth takes place a hundred years in the future when the Sun dies, and Earth is forced to leave the Milky Way in order to find a new environment for humans to survive. The concept of the movie is closely connected to people’s daily lives, reflecting the problems that exist in reality. There are scenes that include real-life landmarks in China which reduces the gap between imagination and real life.
The Wandering Earth influences the Chinese sci-fi genre with its innovative approach to the problems on Earth. Most of the people who speak highly of the movie are drawn to the setting and emotions of the characters instead of focusing on practical logic. However, as the movie’s reputation spreads around the world, it garnered criticisms along with its rising popularity. A large group of people finds the setting unreasonable. They question, “How can living things maintain life on Earth without the Sun?”
Due to limited budget and knowledge about sci-fi films, The Wandering Earth is not perfect. In fact, technical ideas and staging should be improved. The feedback from audiences includes both positive and negative opinions. Some believe that it is the best movie that they have ever seen, while others criticize that it is the worst sci-fi film.
Helen Zhang (9C) comments that The Wandering Earth is “…surely a good movie…” however, Helen also finds the movie to be a bit immature in its portrayal of the plot stating, “I don’t think this movie is as good as people said since the middle…[section of the movie] confused me a lot.”
The Wandering Earth becoming the first blockbuster sci-fi movie from China is a milestone. Additionally, there is even an article published online titled “China challenges Hollywood with its own sci-fi blockbuster.” This is a major first step for China’s movie industry.
The Wandering Earth becoming the first blockbuster sci-fi movie from China is a milestone. Additionally, there is even an article published online titled “China challenges Hollywood with its own sci-fi blockbuster.” This is a major first step for China’s movie industry.
Feature Image – Planets in spacePhoto Courtesy of pixabay.com