Review: ‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’

Ram Man:

Brendan Fraser is putting the mummy hunting on hold for a month or so to update the Jules Vern classic “Journey to the Center of the Earth”. This time its modern day and it’s in 3-D!   So be prepared  for this ride, Dinosaurs are trying to steal your popcorn and you can almost feel the heat from the lava. Eric Brevig (The Island) used amazing visuals in his directorial debut.

2008’s Journey tells the story of Professor Trevor Anderson (Fraser) researching his brother Max’s hypothesis that there are large enough caverns and vent tubes near the center of the earth to have a world living in a world. Max Anderson went missing years before exploring in Iceland leaving behind a wife Elizabeth (Jane Wheeler) and son Sean (Josh Hutcherson). While taking Sean for the summer, Trevor observes a lot of seismic activity in Iceland just like when Max went missing, so  the two set of to Iceland to get some answers. Upon arrival the hire a mountain guide Hannah (Anita Briem) and after a freak lightning storm find themselves trapped in a cave.   They set off to find another way out and after two prototype amusement park rides (roller-coaster mine train, water slide) they find themselves in the center of the Earth. This is where the fun really starts. The encounter Dinosaurs, mutant piranha fish, man-eating plants and glow-in-the-dark birds.

Remember to get your Real-D glasses upon entry because this is really 3D! People were jumping in the theater and  don’t forget  to watch out for those fish. This is a thrill ride enjoyable for the entire family. Brendan Fraser is a little hit and miss with his movies but with the 3D effects he hits this one out of the park!

3 out of 5

Travis:

Everyone have their Real-D 3-D spectacles on? Are you firmly planted in your seat with a tight grip on your popcorn? Great … now, everyone keep your arms and legs inside the viewing area and do not leave your seat until the experience has come to a complete stop.

‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’ succeeds on one level only and that’s purely a level of amusement park fun, offering roller coaster and theme park style thrills. That’s cool … nothing wrong with that. I actually enjoyed this ride despite my otherwise reluctant attitude towards seeing this film in the first place.

The film is directed by Eric Brevig, who prior to this film, was primarily a visual effects guy. Hence, the feature-length visual gimmick. ‘Journey’ is a moderately successful joyride of mild fun and humor, primarily rooted in that of children’s fantasy-adventure fare … both the kids and the adults in the theater appeared to have gotten a kick out of Brandon Frasier’s fantastic voyage to the center of the Earth. However, the film’s success lies solely in the gimmick of the 3-D glasses.

From having Professor Trevor (Frasier) spit his mouthwash into our faces to a wild and physically implausible mine car ride to having a T-Rex nearly bite our buns off, the gimmick works very well at keeping the audience entertained while wearing the somewhat uncomfortable 3-D glasses. But, take the viewing apparatus away and all you have left is your typical kid’s adventure film with little to show for in the way of originality. Not to mention the picture just looks weird without the glasses, as the entire film was shot with the intention of being viewed in 3-D, which is actually a step up from my last experience watching ‘Superman Returns’ and having only three scenes in 3-D, requiring me to watch for the signal to dawn the glasses and then time their removal appropriately as to avoid sudden 3-D glasses induced hallucinations when the 3-D effect was over.

I really have nothing more to say about ‘Journey’ … first time in a while I’ve been relatively short-winded on any movie. Its a good kid-flick with enough going on not to bore the rugrats. Adults will likely enjoy it as well for its novelty, but anyone who gets motion sickness may want to avoid watching an entire feature film presented in this new Real-D 3-D medium.

2.5 out of 5

Charles:

‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’ is a adventure-filled family film that’ll take you on the ride of your life…. in buttery theater seats littered with bunches of hooligan kids and teens. I enjoyed this movie because of the 3-D experience it had to offer. Crazy colored insanely large toothed fish were popping out all over the screen with ginormously monsterous plants that would tear the screen apart. WARNING! Must keep 3-D glasses ON because there is NO WAY you will appreciate the full effect of the film without them. Yes, so honestly the storys a little corny, but who cares!? If you like suspense at all, the 3-D action is bound to keep your complete attention. Now, I’m actually a fan of Brendan Frasers earlier successes, like ‘School Ties’,’Encino Man’, and ‘Airheads’. And while this is a typical Fraser film, its more along the lines of The Mummy Trilogy, which I’m not so impressed with, but apparently there are mummy fans I’m not gonna mess with. Nobody has heard from this guy in the last few years but I’m betting this will reboot his career, coupled with the new Mummy movie, and added to his 2007 ‘The Air I Breathe’ (where he brilliantly plays a psychic gangster) and !BANG! he’s back in business folks. Not gonna lie, this movie is totally for everybody. It delivers action, comedy, and romance. What more do you want? Just make sure to gather up the fam damily and kids for this journey and spectacular 3-D thrill ride! Oh and by the way, the movies ends off with a chapter from a new book that will follow in a sequel. Wait for it…

2.5 out of 5