By the time we get to Tomorrowland itself, it’s not a particularly interesting world.
Yup, Tomorrowland could definitely be subtitled: The Audacity of Hope.Īll of the film’s mysteries-what is Tomorrowland? What is the cause of Frank’s ennui? How does Athena fit into all of this?-are great fun, but Tomorrowland reminds me a bit of those horror films where, once the Big Bad is finally revealed, it’s disappointingly lame and unscary. “But what can we do to…fix it?” Casey asks, as one teacher stares back, dumbfounded.
In one of the film’s best scenes, we get a montage of Casey’s school teachers droning on about global warming and world famine and nuclear proliferation. What makes Casey uniquely qualified to go on such a mission? Her smarts, of course-she’s a scientific genius, just like Frank. What happened to Frank in the interim-how he changed from optimistic and lovestruck inventor to crusty old recluse-is one of the many questions of the film, but suffice it to say, he and Casey have to team up to return to Tomorrowland and, yes, try to save the world. Young Frank fell for Tomorrowland-and Athena-hard. Athena, however, lurking nearby, immediately saw something in Frank and gave him a pin-which allowed him access to a place called Tomorrowland, a utopian alternate universe populated by genius scientists, artists, and philosophers. Nix didn’t care that Frank’s jetpack almost worked or that the young lad thought there was value in the mere possibility of it working, he dismissed him and moved onto the next young inventor. When he was a young child-flush with optimism and armed with his new invention (a jet pack that almost works)-Frank (then played by child actor Thomas Robinson) attended the 1964 World Fair and met a scientist named David Nix (Hugh Laurie). (She would definitely pass the Turing Test.) Athena dumps her off at the home of Frank Walker (an appealingly crusty George Clooney), a wizened genius, living in self-imposed exile. Then she lets go of the pin and she’s back in the police station.Įventually, she meets an adorable but alarmingly self-possessed little girl named Athena (enchanting Raffey Cassidy, nearly stealing the show), who is actually a robot. In the distance, there’s a futuristic city-all gleaming metal and sleek trains and flying pods. But when she touches it, she’s briefly transported to a beautiful field of wheat. When she gets sprung from jail, the clerk slides a pin with a T on it her way. Casey (Britt Robertson), who lives in Cape Canaveral with her rocket scientist dad (Tim McGraw) and little brother, gets arrested for trying to sabotage the demolition of a space station. I wish-oh how I wish-it was a little bit better than it is.įor a while, though, it’s sufficiently magical.
Tomorrowland, which is directed by the great animation maestro Brad Bird ( The Incredibles, Ratatouille), reminded me a bit of the kinds of films I grew up on-smart, wide-eyed, live-action family films like Back to the Future, War Games, and E.T. It’s interesting that the role was apparently first written for a boy-and perhaps explains why Casey wears a baseball cap at all times (it was a gift from her father) and has not even the slightest whiff of a love interest in the film. So perhaps my favorite new Chosen One: Female Edition, is Tomorrowland‘s Casey Newton.
CASEY NEWTON TOMORROWLAND HAT MOVIE
In Interstellar, Cooper’s daughter Murph basically helps save the world, but the movie isn’t really her story. Divergent‘s Tris is a variation on The Chosen One model, although she, too, comes equipped with a hunky love interest. The Hunger Games‘ Katniss is, of course, a girl, even if the love triangle between her and Peeta and Gale somewhat distracts from her world-saving duties. I could fill up 10 reviews with examples of such boy heroes in fantasy and science fiction film and literature, but lately there have been some stirrings from the other end of the chromosomal spectrum. From Harry Potter to Luke Skywalker to The Matrix’s Neo, the Chosen One-the often unsuspecting individual who is uniquely gifted to save the world-is almost always a boy.
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