Jupiter Ascending

 

What is the movie about?

The matriarch of the House of Abrasax, a powerful alien dynasty, dies. Her children - Balem, Kalique, and Titus fight over the inheritance of her assets. Jupiter Jones, who is the main character of the movie, was born on a boat at sea to a Russian mother. Her father had been killed in a robbery prior to her birth, and her mother named her Jupiter, a name her father had loved. Years later, Jupiter is working as a maid alongside her mother and aunt. They clean the properties of wealthy citizens of Chicago, scrubbing toilets, and Jupiter finishes each day miserable, whispering to herself about how she hates her life. She dreams of seeing the stars through a telescope she can’t afford to purchase. With the encouragement of her cousin, Jupiter decides to sell her eggs to a fertility clinic to get some money and buy the telescope. At the clinic, the doctors and nurses are revealed as agents of Balem Abrasax sent to kill Jupiter. The assassination is interrupted by Caine Wise, a half-human, half-canine former Legion soldier sent by Titus Abrasax to rescue Jupiter. He gets her away from the clinic, but Balem’s agents appear and attack them. A massive chase scene through Chicago occurs, and Caine and Jupiter finally make it out of the city by car. The two escape and visit Stinger Apini, a half-human, half-honeybee soldier and former Legion comrade of Caine’s. Stinger confirms Jupiter is the genetic recurrence of Seraphi Abrasax, the mother of the previously mentioned children. They are, however, ambushed once more, and then Kalique Abrasax decides to take them to her palace. Kalique explains to Jupiter that she is genetically identical to their mother, and therefore the rightful heir to Earth. To get to Jupiter, Jupiter’s family is taken hostage by Balem. Holding the family ransom, he demands Jupiter relinquish ownership of Earth to him, else her family dies. Realizing Balem can’t get to Earth without her permission, she denies him ownership. Balem retorts by trying to kill Jupiter, only to be rescued by Caine. A battle ensues that leads to Balem’s death, and Jupiter’s family is rescued by Caine and returned home with no memory of the abduction. Jupiter, having gained a new appreciation for life, returns to her old existence, still the rightful owner of Earth. 

Is it a good or enjoyable movie?

Jupiter Ascending is the creation of the Wachowskis who have worked as a writing and directing team through most of their careers. They made their directing debut in 1996 with "Bound" and achieved fame with their second film "The Matrix" (1999), a major box office success for which they won the Saturn Award for Best Director. They wrote and directed its two sequels, "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" (both in 2003), and were involved in the writing and production of other works in the Matrix franchise. However, "Jupiter Ascending" was known to be the Wachowskis' latest misstep. It had all the makings of a cyberpunk “Star Wars” meets “Dune” mashup: royalty that needs rescuing, parental issues, alien life forms, fanciful spaceships, and distinct outer planets. What it severely lacks, under my impression, is any sense of cohesion. The previously mentioned directors excel at creating fantastic new worlds lurking under the surface of our own, but in "Jupiter Ascending," they've not presented what was expected of them.  Too many characters clutter the narrative, while the central figure lacks a compelling arc. For most of the movie, the main character is reduced to filling the "damsel in distress" role, constantly needing to be rescued by a speed skating Caine. However, the Wachowskis' strong suit has always been their eye for design, and this is one trait “Jupiter Ascending” does not miss. The worlds and spaceships built are magnificent, elaborate, and opulent. There’s a cheeky extended joke on one bureaucratic planet that takes our characters through various versions of workplace hells and so on and so forth. Considering all the points mentioned above, this movie was not as good as it could have been. For all the reasons mentioned, I believe that this movie should "only" be regarded as "good", for it could maybe have been so much better,