Posted in: Movies, Review | Tagged: 2067, Aaron Glenane, climate change, global warming, kodi smit-mcphee, RJLE Films, ryan kwanten, time travel

2067 Means Well as Sci-Fi Cautionary Tale But Falls Flat [REVIEW]

When it comes to upcoming theatrical releases, the timing of 2067 doesn't seem to have any kind of organic fit in the current paradigm. If it weren't for the current context of a pandemic, the film's messages and theme could resonate more with audiences. 2067 focuses on an earth where humanity is rendered near exist due to global warming ravaging all existing plant life. As the plants wither and die, humans are deprived the essential oxygen to survive, so they have to rely on creating the element synthetically, which has more adverse effects in the long term.

As a last-ditch effort to survive, scientists send Ethan Whyte, played by Kodi Smit-McPhee (X-Men: Apocalypse/Dark Phoenix), to the future to try to save humanity in the past from going extinct. Directed by Seth Larney and co-written by Dave Paterson, it's up to Ethan to find out the secret of how plant life can survive in 2067 to send back home before time runs out. It's an interesting concept the way to use time travel as a plot device. When Ethan gets to 2067 with a sequence reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and Interstellar (2014), the film shifts from a narrative of global warming to trying to solve the mystery of a time paradox.

Ethan finds his friend Jude played by Ryan Kwanten (True Blood), who's assigned to protect him but going into an existential crisis that drags a bit and their brotherly bond is strong. Smit-McPhee does an admirable job of someone who sounds more like he's submitting an audition for The Walking Dead than simply just exploring the space he's given. I found myself on the fence at times whether to care about who and what his character. The end result comes with lots of styles, but not as much substance as there should be. Other standout performances include Aaron Glenane and Deborah Mailman. 2067 from RLJE Films feels more like it fits better on a streamer like Netflix than as a regular theatrical release. The film, which also stars Sana'a Shaik, Leanna Walsman, Finn Little, and Damian Walshe-Howling, comes to theatres, digital, and on-demand on October 2.

By the year 2067, Earth has been ravaged by climate change and humanity is forced to live on artificial oxygen. An illness caused by the synthetic O2 is killing the worlds' population and the only hope for a cure comes in the form of a message from the future: "Send Ethan Whyte". Ethan, an underground tunnel worker, is suddenly thrust into a terrifying new world full of unknown danger as he must fight to save the human race.

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