Production Year: 2001 - Comedy - Director: Ivan Reitman - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring: Orlando Jones, Julianne Moore, Seann William Scott, Ted Levine, Michael Bower, Dan Aykroyd, David Duchovny more
Director Ivan Reitman (GHOSTBUSTERS, STRIPES, DAVE) turns from ghosts to aliens in this comedy starring David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, and Julianne Moore. When a meteor crashes... more
Evolution [DVD] [2001]
Based on the evidence inEvolution, one thing is perfectly clear: special effects have ... more
evolved, but director Ivan Reitman has reverted to primitive pandering. Equally obvious is the fact thatEvolutionis a defacto rip-off of Reitman's 1984 classicGhostbu...
Evolution DVD
Glen Canyon Arizona the present day. The impact of a meteorite changes the life of ... more
biology teacher Dr. Ira Kane and geology teacher Harry Block from Glen Canyon Community College when he manages to take a sample. Soon he discovers a slimy blue fluid...
reasonably satisfying sequel to 2003's surprise hitUnderworld. Looking stunning as ever in her black leather battle gear, Kate Beckinsale is every goth guy's fantasy as Selene, the vampire "death dealer" who's now fighting to stop the release of the original "Lycan" werewolf, William (Brian Steele) from the prison that's held him for centuries. As we learn from the film's action-packed prologue, William and his brother Marcus (Tony Curran) began the bloodline of vampires and werewolves, and after witnessing centuries of warfare between them, their immortal father Corvinus (Derek Jacobi) now seeks Selene and the human vampire/lycan hybrid Michael (Scott Speedman) to put an end to the war perpetuated by Victor (Bill Nighy), the vampire warrior whose betrayal of Selene turnsUnderworld: Evolutioninto an epic tale of familial revenge. This ambitious attempt at Shakespearean horror is compromised by a script (by Danny McBride and returning director Len Wiseman, Beckinsale's real-life husband) that's more confusing than it needs to be, with too many characters and not enough storytelling detail to flesh them all out. Aspiring to greatness and falling well short of that goal,Underworld: Evolutionsucceeds instead as a full-throttle action/horror thriller, with enough swordplay, gunplay, and CGI monsters to justify the continuation of theUnderworldfranchise. If you're an established fan, this is a must-see movie; if not, well... at least it's better thanVan Helsing! --Jeff Shannon
Evolution [DVD] [2001]
Based on the evidence inEvolution, one thing is perfectly clear: special effects have ... more
evolved, but director Ivan Reitman has reverted to primitive pandering. Equally obvious is the fact thatEvolutionis a defacto rip-off of Reitman's 1984 classicGhostbusters, but this time there's no Bill Murray to deliver the best punch lines (we have to settle for fellow ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd in a broad supporting role) and the comedy has devolved into a gross-fest including deep-rectal extraction of alien insects, fire-hose enemas into a giant alien sphincter, and a full-moon display of David Duchovny's naked posterior. WhereasGhostbusterswas a shrewd, irreverent mainstream comedy that combined gooey spectral ectoplasm with something resembling genuine wit,Evolutionis a crude, juvenile romp in which all things slimy are elevated to comedic supremacy. Granted, that's not always a bad thing. As latter-day Ghostbusters equivalents, Duchovny, Orlando Jones and Seann William Scott make a fine comedic trio, and Julianne Moore is equally amusing as a clumsy scientist and Duchovny's obligatory love interest. Despite the meddling of clueless military buffoons, they join forces to eradicate a wild variety of rapidly evolving alien creatures that arrived on Earth via meteor impact, and the extraterrestrial beasties (courtesy of effects wizard Phil Tippet and crew) are outrageously designed and marvellously convincing. For anyone who prefers lowbrow humour,Evolutionwill prove as entertaining asGhostbusters(or at leastGalaxy Quest), while others may lament Reitman's shameless embrace of crudeness. One thing's for certain: after seeing this film, you'll gain a whole new appreciation for Head&Shoulders shampoo. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.comOn the DVD:Evolution's special effects and CGI are seamless and crystal clear in anamorphic widescreen with some of the "creatures" looking more realistic than the actors. This is a movie with quite a few set pieces, but none show off the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack better than the dragon attack in the mall, connect up a couple of speakers and you can hear the flap of leathery wings behind your couch. In terms of extras there's a making-of documentary from HBO calledThe Evolution of Evolution, hosted by Orlando Jones, in which he interviews his co-stars (most of whom seem to ignore him) and the director Ivan Reitman. You also get the behind-scenes track on the special effects and art direction. Other than that you get the theatrical trailer, the teaser trailer and the original trailer forGhostbusters, which adds a touch classic 80s' memorabilia. --Kristen Bowditch
Comedy - Director: Blake Edwards - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring: Capucine, David Niven, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers
Comedy - Director: John Howard-Davies, Bob Spiers - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring: Connie Booth, Andrew Sachs, Prunella Scales, John Cleese
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
A review by super_stevo on Evolution (DVD) January 19th, 2003
Author's product rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Liked it
Story
Good
Characters / Performances
Good
Special Effects
Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?
Good
Advantages:
some laugh out loud moments
Disadvantages:
something is missing . .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I was just sat in my room doing nothing remotely interesting and I see this dvd I haven't watched in a while so I just decided to bung it on for of it. So now I thought well I might as well write about it .
** Come To Wipe that silly smile off Your planet ****
From the director of Ghostbusters - Ivan Reitman brings us Evolution.Since the beginning of time when mankind has first appeared in the big wide world , he has pondered one of the biggest questions ... are we alone ??
This film is a comic view at the chaos caused when a meteorite hits the earth and single celled organisms undergo 5 million years of evolution in a single month.
College teachers Ira Kane (Ducovny) and Harry Block (Jones) are inadvertently called to a site of a meteorite crash where they discover single celled alien life forms they think its the happiest time of their lives and going to make them rich and famous.
But when the alien cells begin to evolve at a alarming rate things start to get out of hand as they turn into monstrous creatures that can adapt to the earths atmosphere and threatens the race on this earth.
So its a battle of good versus evil . When the military try to sort out things but make things a lot worse it is up to Ira Kane and his scientific team pitch in together to destroy the alien scum which is about to wipe out the planet.
____________________________________________________ directed by Ivan Reitman running time 98 minutes approx rating PG - Parental guidance ____________________________________________________
** cast and crew members **
Ivan reitman (producer)
He has been responsible for many successful and enduring comedies for the last two decades and help launch a career for a number or popular stars.
Films directed and produced :- meatballs , stripes , ghostbusters (1984),ghostbusters 2 (1989) , twins , kindergarten cop , junior , legal eagles , Fathers day , six days/ 7 nights , national lampoons - animal house , road trip , space jam , beethoven , beethoven 2 , Private parts, " the late shift".
* Phil tippet ( Visual effects Supervisor)*
He is a two time Academy award winner for his work on the blockbusters "Return Of The Jedi" and "Jurassic Park".He has also been Oscar nominated for the visual effects in Starship Troopers , Dragonheart , Willow and Dragonslayer.
David duchovny- Best known for his role as FBI Agent mulder in X-files.
** Orlando Jones **
Born in Mobile , Alabama and raised in Greenville , South Carolina , Jones began his career as a writer for the NBC sitcom " A different world.
He then went onto Fox Television to write for " Roc Live" and the following year he become a producer for Fox's half hour sitcom " The Sinbad Show". He made his movie feature debut in the film "sour grapes".
As well as his acting career he still continues to write and produce.
His movie credits include :- Say It Isn't So, Bedazzled , The Time machine (2002), Liberty Heights, Office Space , Double Take (2001) , The replacements.
** Sean William Scott **
Probably most famous for his role as Steve Stiffler in american pie and american pie 2. He has worked with reitman before in the hit Road trip. He has also played the voice of the possum in the film Doctor Dolittle 2. He has also appeared in Dude Wheres my car? and a dramatic role in the film Stark Raving Mad.
** Julianne moore **
She starred as FBI Agent Clarice Starling in the movie sequel Hannibal.
In Evolution , She plays Government scientist Allison in this film and starts off going head to head with Ira Kane and Harry Block but ends up teaming up with them to help banish the aliens off the planet.
Also stars in this film is Dan Akroyd who has appeared in many of Reitmans films including Ghostbusters 1 and 2. His acting in this film is slightly over the top and isn't much to write home about. Its certainly not one of his best performances thats for sure.
********** Movie Reviews **************
" If you like your film fun , fast furious and full of fizz this is for you " 9/10 daily star.
Evolution is action packed science fiction that delivers plenty of laughs. If you enjoyed MIB or MARS ATTACKS! you'll have a rollicking time *** -The Daily Mail
I bought this dvd when it was first released in the shops 10/12/2001 . After looking at advertisements in the papers and hearing film reviews , I thought I might as well try this film out.
I bought it for 17.00 GBP but I have seen it in HMV and ASDA WALMART for 10.00 GBP. So basically the same with anything its best to shop around for the best prices. It is available in all good retail shops and some supermarkets. Also if you are into online shopping you can look around for the cheapest prices .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Good Points ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This film has some great special effects and is full of fun gaggs for all the family . The graphics on the DVD are pretty sharp and the sound is great. It is produced by a big name and stars some famous stars who make this film work well and give great all round perfomances.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bad points ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This film has some great potential and for me I feel it was lacking just that final kick to make it a complete movie. The plot was there but the end product was slightly weak. It tries to be something like Ghostbusters but it doesn't have the same kind of feel to it and seems to be way off the target with that one.
Most of the aliens were a bit too corny and certainly a bit over the top.
And also not many dvd extra features which is fairly dissapointing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ DVD EXTRAS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HBO First Look - " The Evolution Of Evolution "
This is behind the scenes of filming evolution narrated by Orlando Jones. This lasts for around 20 minutes and promises to go deeper than anyone has before and get into the stars lives and cover every single detail. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to deliver as much as what was promised and therfore slightly dissapointing.
*** Filmographies ***
This gives the profiles of David Duchovny , Orlando Jones , Sean William Scott ,Julianne Moore and Ivan Reitman.
* Language and subtitles menu
Well this is what you get with most dvds.The feature where you can chose the language and also use subtitles if needed.
*** Scene Selections ***
You can skip to any scene you want by using this feature which is a lot easier than fast forwarding or rewinding movies on VHS.
** theatrical and teaser trailers **These are just quick trailers to give you a quick glimpse of the film.
Ghostbusters cross Promotional Trailer
Filmmakers
* Production notesThese are just film notes and just basically a ramble from the producer which is quite boring!
********* Final Thoughts ***************************
Reitman's film is pacy and witty with great effects and a lot of laughs. Its got great dollops of Jurassic Park and MIB and repeated variations of the great primal scene where ET slurps on John Hurts face.
But at first viewing I wasn't too impressed after all the newspaper and film reviews hyping it up. But after seeing it a couple more times I started to enjoy it a bit more.
I did laugh at this and thought it was a fun and comic kind of film to watch.
This is definately a film for a quiet saturday night in with the family for you all to enjoy.
I give this one 4 out of 5 and say its one for all the family. Enjoy !!
Advantages: good special effects, good performance from Orlando Jones Disadvantages: Julianne Moore - why was she there? Poor script, few laughs
...sure how.
Evolution follows the story of a crashed meteor which is carrying alien life. Kane and Block happen to discover it, but being only mere college professors (well, so we're told) it isn't long before the government step in and take over the entire area. Kane, an ex pentagon scientist, along with Block are determined to get credit for the discovery. They, after all, were the ones to realise that the alien cells they collected from the meteor ... ...forms are popping up all over the place, including an incredibly cute dog like creature and a rather vicious dog like piranha hybrid. There's also a bird like dinosaur thingy with a rather unusual way of dealing with shoplifters (lifting the said shoplifter quite literally into the air). It all gets quite out of control, and it’s up to Kane and co to save the day (in a rather dubious fashion I might add) rather than the army (who basically ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Occasionally funny Disadvantages: Doesn't do anything new and can be tedious at times
...since she saw mention of Evolution in one of my 'magazines'*. So finally it gets rolled out at our local picture emporium and off we marched...
When a meteorite slams into the desert in deepest Arizona, local community college teachers Harry Block and Ira Kane head out to catalogue what will no doubt be another useless chunk of rock from outer space. But this isn't a normal rock - How many rocks bleed? Something is seriously wrong and a further ... ...impressive films ever since. Could Evolution be his chance to turn the corner back into quality street? The story has one foot firmly planted in science and it's obvious that someone along the line has understood the implications of throwing an alien into a closed eco-system (like ours). But is it any good? Well yes and no. While the story itself is passable, it certainly has echoes of Ghostbusters and I'll apologise right here for the numerous comparisons ...
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Advantages: great special effects, good acting, funny jokes Disadvantages: Obvious product placement!
...them, but the jokes in Evolution seem to come naturally, rather than being artificial (as if a comedy about an out of control alien life form could ever be artificial!)
And there you have the basis of the plot. Hold on a bit, let me explain some more.
One dark and stormy night (ok it wasn’t stormy, but it was definitely dark) a meteorite lands in the deserts of Arizona. By an unfortunate coincidence, Wayne Green (Sean William Scott) happens to ... ...the time (you'll have to watch the film to get that one explained!), and nearly gets very squished. Luckily for poor Wayne, he manages to get out of the way just in time, unluckily for Wayne his car gets totalled by the rock, which crashes into one of the many caverns littering the area.
Thus the next morning the local member of the United States Geological Survey, recently signed up by Internet and a teacher of Geology at the local college, one ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: high-action and funny Disadvantages: some poor special effects
...end, but having said that Evolution is in fact much better! The film is set in a fictional Arizona town called Glen Canyon and opens with a meteor crashing towards earth. Trainee fireman Wayne Green (Seann William Scott) predictably has to race away from his car as the meteor chooses the only part of the vacant desert ground where there is anything it could possibly destroy to head towards! The former Mulder of "The X-Files" (Duchovny) plays Ira ... ...his geology professor friend Harry Block (Orlando Jones), are the first to stumble upon the mysterious meteor. The excited scientists discover living organisms on the meteor rock. However not only do these organisms begin to multiply but they also start to evolve at an alarming rate. They evolve from single-celled organisms, to worms, to fish, amphibians, reptiles and so on, in just a few days. Incredulously it takes them just these few days to achieve ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: A fairly funny script, easy to enjoy Disadvantages: a few minor flaws but nothing that really stands out
Before the release of Evolution back in 2001 I was a little dubious to say the least. The lack of advertising seemed to suggest to me that it really wasn’t going to be that good. All that seemed to be used was the little yellow smiley with the three eyes and that really worried me. But I went to see it anyway, not really sure why but I did and left the cinema pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t anywhere near as bad as I thought it was going ... ...those towns you see in a lot of American based film. Quite a big place with everything you would ever need. Wayne (Seann William Scott) is a waiter at the local Golf club but he’s training to be a fireman. The night before his fireman’s exam he heads out into the desert for some last minute practise. However whilst here a meteor strikes his car sending it flying into the air and leaving him Stranded.
The police take charge of the situation ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Really Good Music Vids Disadvantages: Missing Some Of My Favorite Songs
...Hello to you all, I hope your well...
Firstly, thanx for the read, just make sure you keep reading. lol.
Now, first off, I'd like to talk about...
~~~Some Personal Stuff!!!~~~
I've always been a fan of Dead or Alive ever since I can remember, (which was about five or six years ago actually) and I bought this collection earlier this year. (When I finally got round to it!)
Before I bought the 'Evolution - The Hits' album, actually before I'd evan heard of it, I had only ever heard of 'You Spin Me Round' ('Like A Record') (the 1985 version) and the reason I found out about this collection (like the Hits CD) was in 2003 when Pete Burns decided to re-release the song with a new leas of life. Giving the song more of a modern twist and making it more of a dance or club (depending on where you go) mix.
Well, I loved the song...
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Advantages: Chow Yun-Fat understands the provenance of the movie... Disadvantages: but none of the other players or the director do.
...acting.
The original music by Brian Tyler barely gives the viewer a moment?s respite with his overly loud arrangements. If it isn?t dark cellos and chasing strings with pounding percussion, it?s rock guitar and drums or tense brass and strings. It?s too big a score for the accompanying action, overwhelming it rather than highlighting the action.
?Dragonball Evolution? will find its niche with pre-pubescent fans of the cartoon series. For those hoping for something a bit closer to its manga origins, you?re likely to be disappointed. The movie is marred by poor production values, a disjointed directorial style, paper-thin plotting and performances that are either anodyne and/or wooden. There?s a distinct lack of thrills and spills, not to mention story. If your little ones are already fans, then they?ll probably love it, but you might find...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Director Ivan Reitman (GHOSTBUSTERS, STRIPES, DAVE) turns from ghosts to aliens in this comedy starring David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, and Julianne Moore. When a meteor crashes into the Arizona desert, local community college professors Ira Kane (Duchovny) and Harry Block (Jones) are shocked to discover that it has introduced rapidly evolving aliens to Earth. Although the professors try to keep their discovery a secret, the U.S. military takes over the investigation, sealing off the fantastic creatures and the environment that the aliens have established. But when aliens start popping up on nearby golf courses and in the local mall, it's up to Kane and Block to save the world. With a little help from Allison Reed (Julianne Moore), a clumsy scientist with the Center for Disease Control, and Wayne Green (Seann William Scott), a dim-witted country club pool manager and fireman-wannabe, the two professors devise a plan using an unlikely weapon to kill the alien population before it wipes out the human race. Fittingly, former Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd appears as the governor of Arizona.
Technical information
Special Features: Making Of Featurette, Production Notes, Filmographies, Trailers
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 English, Dolby Digital Stereo English French German Italian Spanish
Professional reviews
Review: "...Plenty entertaining....The movie is visually witty and even marvelous when it comes to depicting the spectacular creatures..." (Entertainment Weekly, p.53, 15/06/2001)
"...A good-natured spirit....Duchovny and Jones play off each other nicely..." (Hollywood Reporter, p.10-101, 08/06/2001)
"...Mr. Duchovny and Mr. Jones make an amusing pair..." (New York Times, p.E13, 08/06/2001)
"...Amiable and entertaining....It's quite an achievement to create not only a one-off monster but an entire ecosystem..." (Sight and Sound, p.43, 01/08/2001)
"...A consistently amusing action romp....[With] exceedingly vivid and credible visual effects that blend seamlessly with the action..." (Variety, p.17-23, 11/06/2001)
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