Kidzworld saw the disaster thriller Geostorm. Are the special effects cool? Is weather gone wild on your radar for a trip to the Cineplex? Check our movie review.
By: Lynn Barker
A Geostorm or at least the beginning of one, is created when a system of satellites designed to control world-wide climate malfunction. Whole towns are frozen while others bake. It’s a chain reaction of massive climate-induced disasters. Was this truly a malfunction or was somebody trying to use the system as a weapon? It’ll take Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler), the system’s architect, to uncover the truth and stop a possible weather-palooza!
A satellite malfunctionsCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Backstory and Intrigue
We learn that In 2019, when climate change was running rampant over Earth, several nations teamed up and created “Dutch Boy”, a system of satellites made to control world-wide climate. These satellites are controlled from a larger International Space Station. Creator Jake is fired for insubordination and replaced by his brother Max (Jim Sturgess). Three years later, a United Nations team find a totally frozen village with popsicle people in Afghanistan. Whoops, the satellite controlling that section must have gone on the fritz bigtime!
Jake is fired for insubordinationCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Re-enter Jake
U.S. President Andrew Palma (Andy Garcia) wants to cover up the incident but Max insists that the government take responsibility. Max needs to bring Jake back in to figure out what is going on. Jake lives in Florida after a divorce and his daughter Hannah (Talitha Bateman) lives with him part-time. She doesn’t want her dad to return to space but Max persuades him that he is badly needed. Meanwhile, a huge temp increase in Hong Kong is frying eggs on the sidewalk!
Is President Palma (Andy Garcia) behind the malfunctions?Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
On the Space Station
When Jake and crew try to check out one of the broken satellites, there are more malfunctions and data is lost. On the ground, system workers can’t “reach” the Hong Kong satellite. This could escalate until all the controlled areas are melted or frozen or worse. On Earth, Max brings in hacker friend Dana (Zazie Beets) and learns that he has been locked out of satellite control. Jake goes outside the space station in his space suit to retrieve a needed flash drive that was ejected.
Dana (Zazie Beets) learns that Max is locked out of satellite controlCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Suit Malfunction
Outside, Jake’s suit also malfunctions and he is shot out into space, narrowly getting back to the station. Someone is trying to kill him! He has the flash drive but is keeping that fact secret. He thinks someone in the White House is at the bottom of this. On Earth, Max learns about a program called Zeus that can predict what will happen when more satellites malfunction. It doesn’t look good! Jake and crew learn that the entire system has been infected by a computer virus.
Jake (Gerard Butler) knows he has to go outside the space stationCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Reboot the System
Max thinks President Palma is behind the malfunctions while trying to use Dutch Boy as a weapon. In order to reboot the system he needs a kill code only held by the President. Max asks Sarah (Abbie Cornish) his fiancé and also a secret Service Agent, to get it for him. But, is the President really behind the malfunctions or someone else in a high government position? Who is the inside man on the station doing the dirty work? Can the coming Geostorm be stopped?
Max (Jim Sturgess) asks Sarah (Abbie Cornish) to get the kill codeCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Wrapping Up
Geostorm provides plenty of disaster-type big scale special effects; freezes, burns and mega-storms to entertain but the characters are all stereotypes and there is way too much political intrigue and jargon to bog down the film. Of course it’s not that hard to figure out who might be the bad guy as well.
Massive heat and twisters in Hong KongCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Gerard Butler is great at saving the planet in a macho manner as usual while Jim Sturgess does fine as a more cerebral type on Earth. There are personal complications like in all disaster flicks. Other than making the solution for a climate crisis the culprit for world destruction, the film follows the usual disaster movie formula.
Jake wonders who is the traitor on the International Space StationCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
If you and your posse like big effects films with plenty of mass destruction, you will get your ticket’s worth but you might be a bit bored on the path between storms. We can go three stars.
Geostorm Movie Rating: 
Geostorm Movie PosterCourtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
You can see Geostorm in theaters now!
Have Your Say
Are you a fan of big scale disaster movies? Are you worried about real-life climate change and what we can do about it? Comment below!
