Alita: Battle Angel (2019) Dir: Robert Rodriguez
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I have been indecisive about watching this 2019 sci-fi film for a while now, but finally I decided to give it a shot. Director Robert Rodriguez has shown that he is very capable of creating very enjoyable films, so I wasn't worried about that. The film was also written and co-produced by James Cameron, which wasn't the worst omen either.
I must admit, I was not impressed with the film's CGI; it looked more like a video game than a film. The vision was bold, but the execution flawed. Interestingly, these visuals reminded me of the questionable CGI in 2004's 'Van Helsing', though certainly more modern.
The film felt like an amalgamation of several different creations, including other Rodriguez films like 'Spy Kids', particularly the third one, as well as many unrelated media productions like 'Tron' and various video game releases, including a sentimental favourite of mine; 'F-Zero GX'.
The story was fine, nothing special. It got a bit bogged down by some random and seemingly irrelevant subplots, but there was still a fair amount of fun to be had in spite of these. Whilst I did enjoy some of the world building, it did get to the point where some of it slowed down or distracted from the plot.
Rosa Salazar gave a solid, but not exceptional, performance in her leading role. I don't think it helped matters that she was entirely motion capture, which gave everything she did an artificial feel, and not just because she was playing a cyborg. I will say, her acting in the more emotional scenes was good.
Christoph Waltz, for once, disappointed me a little. It is safe to say that this was not his strongest performance. Considering how prodigious his acting talents are, I would have liked, and indeed expected, to see Waltz give more to this role. He didn't act badly, but it was certainly below his usually very high levels.
Jennifer Connelly and Mahershala Ali were bright sparks among a fairly dull cast. I thought they both gave their characters more life than the screenplay alone gave them. Both are talented actors, and while these won't be anywhere near the top of their best performances, they still helped improve this film.
Keean Johnson bored me, if I'm being honest. He wasn't particularly charismatic, and his acting wasn't all that convincing. I can't say I bought him as a viable love interest either. He felt outclassed by those around him, despite nobody in the film giving exceptional performances.
Ed Skrein played the same kind of antagonist he always does, but he did it fairly well at least. I must say I did roll my eyes a bit with some of his dialogue, which wasn't the best. I think I'm just bored of seeing him play the same kind of character in 'Deadpool', 'Rebel Moon' and now this.
Overall, I enjoyed parts of this sci-fi action film, but there was plenty more that just didn't do it for me personally. The film set up a sequel which, to-date, has not arrived. Even though I wasn't the film's biggest fan, I hope that sequel does get made, because if not, it will make this one's ending even more unsatisfying.
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