Summary
Bird Brad’s 2015 science fiction adventure film titled ‘Tomorrowland’ was co-written by Bird and Damon Lindelof. The movie attempts to combine action and innovation with optimism and works to delve into imagination, reality and their merger. Tomorrowland was not well received at release owing to its ambitious theme and star studded cast, but has since garnered love from sci-fi fans for original storytelling.
The film has two main protagonists; the first is a teenage girl called Casey Newton (Britt Robertson) who is an inquisitive teenager passionate about tech and science. The other is a recluse inventor, Frank Walker (George Clooney). The movie starts with a younger version of Frank attending the 1964 New York World’s Fair where he showcases his invention of a jetpack. Although he was met with jeers from a judge David Nix (Hugh Laurie), he surprisingly does capture the intrest of one mysterious little girl called Athena (Raffey Cassidy) who hands him a pin only to take him to a hidden domain known as Tomorrowland and an advanced futuristic city with limited public access enabled through technology and dimensional travel.
Flash forward to the present: An America suffering from environmental calamaties, political stagnation, and social decay is where Casey is living. Because a launch site is being dismantled, her father, a NASA engineer, is on the verge of being unemployed. In an attempt to reclaim something worth fighting for, Casey starts undermining deconstruction efforts, which subsequently leads to her arrest. After meeting with a lawyer from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, who later provides Casey with a pin that sparked her curiosity, the initial experience grants the wearer glimpses of Tomorrowland, leaving the user yearning for more.
Eventually, these clues lead her to Athena, who turns out to be an Audio-Animatronic: sophisticated AI technology designed with human traits and emotions. Athena presumes that with the level of hope and curiosity that Casey exhibited, she could be one of the last few people who can stand in the world’s way. Directing her efforts to save the world instead of remaining dormant. They go after Frank too, who has become a cynical recluse after being exiled from Tomorrowland for having too many bizarre ideas. While initially resistant, Frank decides to help Casey and Athena after realizing the world is on the brink of disaster and that Casey might actually be able to do something to stop it.
The three friends set out to visit the one and only Tomorrowland – a city that used to thrive but is now in constant decline and controlled by Governor Nix. Frank enlightens them on the city’s predictive device called ‘The Monitor’, which forecasts the Earth’s future. According to The Monitor, the world’s future is headed towards climate collapse, war, and famine. These overly pessimistic predictions causes humanity to freeze in place, abiding by a will devoid of hope. In light of these predictions, Casey’s unshakeable optimism serves to disrupt the machine’s certainty. This character embodies the belief that the future does exist, but is shaped by belief, and not a preordained path defined by inaction.
Nix brings to light even more chilling truths, explaining that these predictions were both accurate and self-fulfilling. When exposed to uninterrupted visions of doom, mankind simply accepted it as reality and chose complacency versus innovation. While Nix is inclined to think that tomorrow’s progress cannot be preserved without isolating the rest of the world from Tomorrowland, the philosophy drives cynical worldview that stands in stark contrast to the film’s central takeaway.
In an ultimate showdown, Casey, Frank, and Athena try to destroy the Monitor in an effort to reset humanity’s trajectory. By using her final moments to motivate Frank and Casey, Athena burns herself out. When the Monitor is destroyed, this not only stops the doomsday predictions, but also frees Tomorrowland from its technological and philosophical stagnation.
This film features an ending where Frank and Casey abandon Tomorrowland and decide instead to look forward to the future. With the hope of rebuilding a better world, Frank and Casey shift their vision towards recruiting a younger generation of dreamer, scientist, and even artist: those who will be given Tomorrowland pins. The pair plan on starting from the realm of imagination and possibility.
Cast & Crew
Clooney provides disillusioned genius ‘Frank Walker’ with gravitas as he assumes the role of a character who suffers from the exacerbated emotion of his surroundings. Clooney’s shift from a bitter exiled man to an inspired mentor embodies one of the movie’s emotional backbones, and is sure to be remembered.
Robertson, whose performance as the film’s protagonist ‘Casey Newton’ showcases the young woman’s intelligence, optimism, and motivation conveys the film’s ethos.
Cassidy’s turn as the AI Athena in the film proves to be the standout performance. The matured warmth and subtle melancholy blended to portray this character transcends the robotic backstory of the character.
Hugh Laurie as David Nix: Laurie takes his turn as the philosophical villain David Nix, a captivating and morally ambiguous figure fixated on determinism and unhealthy levels of solitude.
Brad Bird (Director, Co-writer): Known for The Incredibles and Ratatouille, Bird applies his trademark vision and frenetic pacing to Tomorrowland with hopes of reigniting the wonder in science fiction.
Damon Lindelof (Co-writer): Lost’s co-creator and the screenwriter of Prometheus, Lindelof brings to the tale deep, layered mystery, rich exposition, and ambitious philosophic underpinnings.
Michael Giacchino (Composer): Acclaimed composer Giacchino’s score adds a contemporary emotional depth that enhances the film’s wonder and adventure, evoking the spirit of classic sci-fi.
Critically, the film has received an average rating.
As of now, Tomorrowland has an IMDb rating of 6.4/10, which for the most part showcases a combination of mixed critical and audience reception. While many viewers appreciated the originality, idealism, visual flare, others found shortcomings in the film’s pacing, exposition-heavy storytelling, and a multitude of underdeveloped story elements. The film was widely praised for its ambitious ideas and uplifting message, however, it was critiqued for a lack of cohesion within its narrative execution.
Critics accepted the film’s stunning visuals and exceptional performances, especially by Cassidy and Clooney. However, they pointed out that Tomorrowland struggles to merge its philosophical introspection with the action-adventure framework, resulting in narrative lapses. Even so, the film has gained a cult following among those who appreciate its optimism and courageous defiance of dystopian nihilism.
In Conclusion
Tomorrowland is a bold visionary film. Unlike other contemporary works that portray dark and cynical views of the future, it issues a sustained and constructive challenge to the audience—encouraging them to envision a hopeful future and take action to realize it. The film is an exceptional combination of science fiction and social commentary featuring wondrous visuals and heartfelt performances.
Despite its imperfections, Tomorrowland ultimately tells us a story about the boundless capabilities of hope, creativity, and the belief that the future is alterable. It compels us to reconsider our preconceived notions of how society should and does move forward, reminding us that innovation and humanity are two intertwining forces, and that the tomorrow we envision is as bright as we are willing to make it.
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