The Wandering Earth II

The Wandering Earth II

Humans built huge engines on the surface of the earth to find a new home. But the road to the universe is perilous. In order to save earth, young people once again have to step forward to start a race against time for life and death.

  • Released: 2023-01-22
  • Runtime: 173 minutes
  • Genre: Action, Drama
  • Stars: Andy Lau, Li Xuejian, Andy Friend, Clara Lee Sung-min, Qing Huo, Ng Man-tat
  • Director: Frant Gwo
 Comments
  • jamesrupert2014 - 17 March 2024
    Not great but certainly spectacular at times
    The impending annihilation of Earth by an expanding sun triggers two competing projects to save humanity: the Digital Life Project (DLP), in which people are digitised and live on in-silico and 'Wandering Earth', in which a select subset of the population lives in underground cites while colossal rocket engines push Earth to a new orbital home around 'near-by' Alpha Centauri. This is a prequel to 'The Wandering Earth' and despite knowing how it's going to end (i.e. We wander), was to me the superior film. The CGI, design and special effects are outstanding at times and the film has a 'hard-science' realism to off-set the somewhat preposterous premise. Unfortunately, the filmmakers sacrificed facts and physics for spectacular CGI set-pieces ('rocket-powered space-elevators' are a bit of an oxymoran, solar storms don't cause lunar dust storms, and when something is 'cut loose' in orbit, it doesn't 'fall'). These kinds of 'scientific' flaws, along with the usual 'sound in space', objects falling on the moon at 1G acceleration, spaceships that 'bank' when flying in a vacuum etc are sadly typical for the genre and might as well be accepted as 'craft' over 'reality' (looking cool is more box-office friendly than looking real). I quite liked the backstory about the proponents of DLP fighting to maintain a project that could potentially 'save' everyone, not just a chosen few, and the side plot about the AI girl with a 2-minute lifespan was quite clever. The acting and direction is fine (and on par with similar 'western' CGI-epics) but the story is a bit disjointed and the mid-credit revelation seems to come out of nowhere (and seems like a simplistic plot driver rather than an intriguing twist). I am a sucker for epic 'world-building' effects, so liked the film more for its look than its substance. Given the mega-budget dreck Hollywood has been gurgitating, a little competition should be a good thing.
  • Aretheu - 24 October 2023
    A Moving Saga of Human Unity in the Face of Cosmic Crisis
    This movie is a captivating cinematic masterpiece that seamlessly continues the story introduced in its predecessor. This science fiction film is a visual spectacle, with exceptional special effects and CGI that take the audience on a breathtaking journey. However, it's not just the eye-catching visuals that make this movie exceptional; it's the compelling narrative and the way it explores the resilience of humanity when faced with the impending destruction of the sun.

    This film serves as a prequel to the first "Wandering Earth" and provides a deeper context for the world it's set in. It shows how humanity came to create the Earth's engines, as well as the initial conflicts and eventual realization of the need for cooperation.