Drawing inspiration from the cult classic War of the Worlds, Revolt is a solid alien invasion movie. Finally, we’re not following resistance fighters in the USA or Europe as we did in so many movies. This time we find ourselves in Africa. Kenya to be more precise. This gives Revolt a distinctive visual style as both urban and rural landscapes look refreshing and exotic. I know what you’re thinking, District 9 already did this much more competently. And I agree, that movie is fucking masterpiece. However, I still liked this one.
First of all, it is visually impressive. The special effects and cinematography look stunning, like they don’t belong in this indie production. Secondly, Lee Pace is a force of nature, that’s just a fact. If fucking Thranduil is going to lead the resistance movement sign me the fuck up! And finally, you can feel the passion and effort that was put into this project. Revolt has a few weak spots that make it a bit more dull than it needed to be. The script is pretty poor and sometimes pretentious. And the structure of the story is just so straightforward that you can’t help but feel a bit bored towards the end.
We walk from one cliche to the next and end without a satisfying conclusion but with a familiar “the fight goes on”. Granted, there are a couple of nice twists but they are not as nearly impactful as the director thought they would be. All this being said, I’ve seen so much worse big blockbusters dealing with the same issues that all these are forgivable offenses. Battle: Los Angeles and The Darkest Hour are two of them. We can also add Australian Occupation and Outpost 37 to this list of lame movies. And I would compare Revolt to another pretty solid science fiction movie Skyline.
The first thing he felt was terrible pain and exhaustion. Then he realized he’s in a cell. A cell that’s located in a police station full of dead bodies. Finally, he realized that he doesn’t know who he is or why he’s there. And then he started hearing these strange sounds. Sounds that were alien to him…
With a runtime of just eighty minutes, Revolt is a relatively short and sweet affair. It’s a perfect warm-up movie to kick start your science fiction movie night. The post-apocalyptic setting looks very realistic and it sets the mood perfectly for this somber expedition. I also like the things that went on behind the screen. For example, the production launched an Indiegogo campaign to help people living in this area. And you sense that it meant the world for the locals to be involved in making such a movie. Who knows, maybe the next Neill Blomkamp is among them…
Finally, if you’re looking for movies like Revolt, check out our Subversive Rabbit selection of Alien Invasion Movies. Enjoy.
Director: Joe Miale
Writers: Joe Miale, Rowan Athale
Cast: Lee Pace, Bérénice Marlohe, Jason Flemyng, Wandile Molebatsi, Sekoati Sk Tsubane, Leroy Gopal
Fun Facts: Most locations were abandoned gold mine facilities, abandoned due to a depletion of gold.
Rating:
IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3722614/
