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Mania Grade: C+

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Info:
  • Blu-ray: I Am Number Four
  • Rating: PG-13
  • Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Dianna Agron, Kevin Durand, Teresa Palmer
  • Written By: Alfred Gough, Miles Millar
  • Directed By: D.J. Caruso
  • Distributor: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
  • Original Year of Release: 2011
  • Extras: See Below
  • Series:

I Am Number Four Blu-Ray Review

Silly But Enough Adrenaline to Entertain

By Tim Janson     May 30, 2011


Alex Pettyfer in I AM NUMBER FOUR(2011)
© Walt Disney Home Entertainment

 

Expectations can be very interesting things. Set them too high and you’ll likely be disappointed. But set them low and you might find yourself pleasantly surprised. Expectations certainly were not high for I am Number Four, a film that had all the earmarks of being yet another kinetic yet soulless film in the vein of Push or Jumper. And so while it’s not a great film it is one that does come as a surprise even though it is short on exposition.
 
John Smith (Pettyfer) is a teenaged alien from a planet called Lorien who was sent to Earth as an infant along with eight others to escaped a hostile race of alien conquerors called the Mogadorians. The first three have already down on Earth and killed and John is Number Four. Each of these aliens has a guardian who keeps them safe, mostly by moving constantly to different towns and staying one step ahead of the Mogadorians. John and his protector Henri (Olyphant) arrive in Paradise, Ohio to again start a new life. John’s transfer to his new school is complicated first by falling in love with Sarah (Agron) whose ex-boyfriend Mark who happens to be the big jock in school. He also befriends nerdy kid Sam who is a frequent target of Mark’s abuse. It’s also complicated by the development of John’s alien powers that give him super strength, speed, agility, and the ability generate light from his hands.
 
As the aliens close in, Henri begins to investigate a local UFO hunter who has began to put the pieces of the alien presence on Earth together and has found an alien rock which lets the Loriens locate each other. While Henri wants to leave the town again, John is determined to stay with Sarah and tries to fight off the Mogadorian hunters and gets unexpected aid in the form of Number Six (Palmer).
 
I am Number Four has been compared to being Twilight with aliens instead of vampires but the show owes far more to TV’s Smallville. No surprise as the screenplay was written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar who created Smallville. John is bullied by the school jocks but holds back from using his powers to maintain his secret. There’s not a great deal of chemistry between Pettyfer and Agron and their budding romance comes off as trite and unconvincing. His chemistry with Henri made for more enjoyable viewing, as Henri was part father and part protector. The conflict between them was far more believable, particularly as John’s growing powers meant there was little Henri could do to force him to go along with his desire to leave. 
 
Palmer added a dynamic that greatly helped the last third of the film as she had greater control of her powers. Hers was a character that we wish had been introduced earlier in the film. Kevin Durand plays the Magadorian Leader and Durand simply excels at playing the villain no matter how many times he plays one.  There’s a fine climax as the pair square off against the Hunters and it makes you able to forget about many of the plot holes. We never find out anything about John’s world or the Magadorians. They’re the bad guys and that’s just the way it is. Why they want the Loriens all dead is never explored. It’s also never explained just how the Magadorians were killing them in numerical order that we MUST assume they did since Number Six proclaims herself AS Number Six. Seems a bit too neat and tidy. But in the end, there are worse ways to kill off 1a couple of hours…Grade C+
 
Blu-Ray Extras
 
Deleted Scenes (18:58) There are some interesting deleted scenes. Chief among these is where Henri meets Sam’s mother who is played by Karen Allen. Seems such a waste to bring in a well-known actress for a single scene and then cut it, but that’s what they did.
 
Becoming Number 6 (12:00) Teresa Palmer discusses playing her tough chick role and the extremely physical training that was involved including a great deal of work on suspension wires.
 
Bloopers (3:15)
 
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Bryzarro 5/30/2011 8:36:35 AM

 Well another film changed from the book format.  But what else is new.  They did it to Jumper IMO for the worse.  And this was not too bad.  I had mid level expectations and ejoyed it.  

JDK008 5/30/2011 9:21:19 AM

 I really enjoyed this movie.  I thought it was well acted and well written.  I don't see the comparison to Twilight since the acting/writing is so much better. I thought the critics were especially harsh on this one.  Show a little love guys, seriously.

Muenster 5/30/2011 12:07:46 PM

Do you hear that sound? That sort of air rushing, moist gurgling... That's the sound of Suck my friends.  

Wiseguy 5/30/2011 5:07:40 PM

Yeah, I actually enjoyed this film quite a bit. Not familiar with the books but it seems that they did skip quite a few elements or details to streamline the story and it actually may have backfired. Too bad too cause I would've loved to see this to its conclusion.

Same thing with Jumper. Really liked it and don't know why they never greenlit a sequel since it did fairly well at the box office

flinshadytoo 5/31/2011 4:33:51 AM

 Haven't seen this (yet!). Push I thought was gonna be better but didn't do it for me, but I have to say I like Jumper, it wasn't anything new but it was a good uncomplicated little sci-fi movie with some cool effects.

spence34 5/31/2011 1:12:23 PM

Saw this before I heard about the book.  It was an enjoyable movie, if not a great one.  I just read the book this weekend and while they compressed some and made a few changes, there was nothing really to far away from the books primary arc.   Sure they changed some things from page to screen, but the essential story and feel was left intact.   That is completely different from Jumper, they changed so much I had to make sure I was thinking of the correct book.  Not to mention the #1 steaming turd of 2011, Green Hornet.  I still don't know why they insisted on calling a completely unfunny slapstick mess by the name of a 30's masked avenger. 

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