Captive State

I just saw this at my local theater, and I liked it a lot.  I am also kind of sad, because the film basically flopped.  It was released on March 15 (the day before my birthday) and I think it only opened at number seven.  It's a shame, because while it might not be a masterpiece, it's more refreshing and original than some of the other movies (like that feminazi capeshit nonsense that is still number one).

This is more of a political thriller with sci-fi elements than a high-octane alien invasion action thriller.  The story takes place in Chicago, nine years after an alien invasion.  Now the aliens, called the Legislators, rule the planet from afar, and some of the existing government agencies, such as the Chicago police department, enforce their laws.

This is the story of various humans attempting to attack the visiting Legislators, in order to spark a war. 

The main characters are two brothers, whose parents died at the beginning of the movie.  The older brother has passed away - died in an attack on Wicker Park, and now his younger brother wants to join the fight against the Legislators.  Unfortunately for them, the Chicago PD is on the hunt for the insurgents.

So, as I said, I liked this a lot.  Most alien movies are all about the actual invasion - alien ships show up out of nowhere, they begin the attack and the whole story is the battle between the humans and aliens.  And, of course, the humans usually win.  I remember seeing Independence Day in the theaters, and I also remember seeing Signs in the theaters - both really good movies, and both are quite different.  This film is different, as we don't really see the alien invasion - that's told in a montage during the opening credits sequence.  The aliens came to Earth and "unified" the human race, which is quite reminiscent of the mini-series V (another one I loved, and I also loved the ABC remake...I've got both seasons of that on BluRay).

Every human is outfitted with a tracking implant, of which is embedded in one's neck, and contains basic info such as name, birthdate and residence.  Drones fly overhead, tracking each person, and it's pretty plausible.  Not the most original, but still effective.

The special effects weren't too bad, and the filmmakers made good use of their modest budget.  Most of the work was dedicated to the actual aliens, of which we do see, but rather sparingly.

The performances are also pretty good, and it was fun seeing some character actors I recognize - Alan Ruck and Kevin Nunn being two of them.  And, of course, John Goodman and Vera Farmiga stand out, as they should, since they're both veterans at this point.  The younger cast is fairly good - not remarkable or stand-out, but they're good enough.

There's a twist in the story, but it's kind of predictable, and I found myself rooting for it anyway.  The reason I was kinda sad is that the film ends on a cliffhanger, of which stems from that twist, and given how badly it did at the box office, we probably won't get a sequel.  That's a real shame, because the post-invasion world the filmmakers built is very interesting. 

I also kind of liked the score, as it was bloopy and electronic, which was perfect for the story.

I hope a sequel does come out for this movie...on Netflix or some other streaming service, at least.  Maybe it would have done better if it had gone to a streaming service instead of theaters, but I guess we'll never know.  I hope we get more original-ish movies like this, because I am seriously done with the endless superhero movies, remakes, reboots and whatever else.