Estado de Calamidade

This feels a little retro: think Soylent Green. The story is the point here, and the descent of humanity following it's devaluation by a government that no longer cares. It is exactly what it seems to be and it isn't pretending to be anything else.

This film is better than I expected. The story is quite suspenseful, and I find the characters engaging and sympathetic.

Another straight to DVD Nicolas Cage movie, I have absolutely no idea what's going on with this guys career.

The Humanity Bureau tells the story of a government agent whose job it is to establish who is contributing to society and who is not. Those deemed "Not" are sent to a place to live out there days away from civilization.

I actually like the idea, I like where the story goes and thought it was very thought provoking and scarily realistic (I could actually see something like this happening in the near future).

The trouble is the idea isn't fully utilized, the movie should have been better but instead comes across rushed, with chronic pacing issues and doesn't embrace the concept quite as tightly as it should have.

Cage phones in an average performance once again and everyone else except Hugh Dillon are instantly forgettable.

Some pretty scenery going hand in hand with some great ideas save it to an extent but it should have been so much better than this.

The Good:

Great visuals

Hugh Dillon

Unpredictable

Fantastic concept

The Bad:

Pacing issues

Wasted potential

Lifeless cast

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

"It's easier to build fear than build a wall" That term is oddly relevant at time of writing

Somehow, someway, despite everything, I'm still a Nicolas Cage fan

In the near future, America is devastated by evironmental and economic disasters. Noah Kross (Nicolas Cage) is an agent of the Humanity Bureau, a government agency which determines whether a citizen is productive or not. He is sent to evaluate the farm of Rachel Weller and her son Lucas. The farm is barren and Kross decides to send them to the relocation center. When he gives them a break, his superior Adam Westinghouse (Hugh Dillon) seeks to stop them all.

It seems like the filmmakers conceived of a dystopian world but failed to create a compelling story within it. This is another Cage special. It should be a warning sign for any of his recent movies. If he thinks the script is great, there is no doubt that something is wrong with it. The big reveal reminds me of Soylent Green. In fact, I'd rather have Soylent Green. This is generally cheap, inferior in every way, and lacking intensity. Cage is going through the motion. This is a small Canadian sci-fi indie trying to hit above its weight and failing.

I gave this a 5-rating for one simple reason: It kept me sufficiently interested to watch it to the end. No, it wasn't enthralling and, no, it wasn't exciting. The characters were poorly developed and no thought or creativity went into the single snowy mountain scenery. Plot holes abound, but I ended up not caring because I never had that suspension of disbelief that great movies inspire.

As a storyline, it had potential. But occasional glimpses of "what might have been" left a deep feeling of wanting so much more than was delivered.

Ultimately, the ending had a genuine feeling of "Oops, we spent too much time and money, so let's finish it quick". Very disappointing, but it did keep me watching (silly me).