IMAGINE a place where the greatest minds in the world came to be free to create whatever they pleased, without fear of being held back by anything or anyone. A land where scientists, artists and the like have absolute freedom to use their talents to the fullest and see their dreams come to life.
While some of you may think of Rapture from Bioshock, which is probably the worst-case scenario, imagine the best-case scenario, a futuristic city way ahead of anything we have on Earth. Wouldn't that be a sight to see?
Thankfully, Tomorrowland gives us a glimpse of that sort of place and promises to take us on an adventure to see it. And while it makes good on its promise of an adventure, the destination falls short of the expectations set.
Without giving too much away, the story goes like this: Casey Newton (Britt Robertson) sees a vision of Tomorrowland and sets out to find it, leading her to Frank Walker (George Clooney), a man exiled from Tomorrowland and the only one who knows how to get there.
As Casey slowly learns that there's more to Tomorrowland than meets the eye, she and Frank embark on a journey to that seeming utopia, where the very fate of the earth hangs in the balance.
From the very start of the movie, the world building of Tomorrowland itself is excellent. There's a genuine feeling of sharing the sort of awe Casey feels when she sees Tomorrowland.
A place where there are flying cars, vertically stacked swimming pools, and travelling 20 light years is considered small, seems like such a promising world to live in. When the whole tease is done, you cannot help but feel the same sort of enthusiasm as Casey, and hope that you will get to see the city it in all its glory.
However, that is my chief complaint with the film. It is difficult to discuss this without spoiling too much, so the simplest way I can put it is, for the very limited time we were actually at Tomorrowland, we were shown very little of the splendor that was promised. It is not just about the place, however, but also how the story plays out when you get there.
The whole final act feels so rushed and lackluster. With the whole "save the world" scenario going on and given the setting wherein it's supposed to be resolved, you'd expect some sort of genius level of inspiration needed to come up with a grand solution.
Tomorrowland is about more than just the destination. Though the destination may be lackluster, the journey to it was incredible. The road to Tomorrowland is paved with rich characters and action-filled sequences as the characters escape an android police force bent on keeping them from reaching their destination. I'd also like to point out the set inside the Eiffel tower, which is one of the more imaginative and beautifully crafted sets I've seen lately.
I'd like to commend Tomorrowland for its theme of fate. There's a part where characters can see into the future and a question that arises is whether or not it's all set in stone. There's a moment wherein that issue is addressed really well, but it's easily disable due to it happening so fast and the sort of shock that comes with the scene in question that you might forget to connect the dots.
All in all, Tomorrowland appeals to the dreamer in all of us, but kind of lets us down. Sure, you could make a case that it's about the journey and not the destination, but they made the film so much about the destination that you can't help but feel disappointed that it all falls apart when you get there.
Tomorrowland score: 7.3/10