# Now You See Me/After Earth (flops?) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 29, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631 "2013-05-29T15:33:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/41 "2013-05-30T13:33:13Z")
As of 9:30 Thursday morning at RT: _After Earth_: 18 reviews, 3 positive. 17%. It is going to reek. _Now You See Me_: 5 reviews, 4 fresh. Some chance that it will end up fresh. It would seem that the studios do indeed seem to believe that they have duds on their hands, but I’m not sure why they think that about _Now You See Me_. Everything about _After Earth_ seems terrible. Trailer, clips shown on _Letterman_, the nepotism, etc. Note that the weekend after a big holiday weekend is considered a dumping ground. Probably the worst weekend to release a tentpole movie during the summer movie season. The studios are not expecting much out of these. And probably just going thru the motions on _After Earth_. ---
**Author:** ![Victor\_Charlie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7ea924/32.png) [@Victor\_Charlie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Victor_Charlie)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/42 "2013-05-30T13:45:07Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > And probably just going thru the motions on _After Earth_. They dumped $130 million into it before marketing. That’s a lot of expensive motions to be going through. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/43 "2013-05-30T13:45:12Z")
> [@](#): > > After Earth: 18 reviews, 3 positive. 17%. It is going to reek. Also, even the positive reviews aren’t all that positive: _“doggedly straightforward … modestly entertaining … very little humor”_. The other two aren’t much better: _“It’s easy to snark on ‘After Earth.’ It’s dumb, Jaden Smith can’t act and some genius decided it would be a good idea to have the characters speak in an indiscernible accent.”__“The movie spent a lot of time teetering on the verge of failure”_. By contrast, the negative reviews are unabashedly negative: “a wince-inducing drag”; “bears the mark of a work-for-hire who has all but given up”; “waiting for that respite brought about by the damn thing finally getting to its silly, telegraphed point”; “the crashing bore that is ‘After Earth’.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/44 "2013-05-30T15:03:15Z")
> [@GovernmentMan](#): > > Sorry but where are you getting Jaden Smith being arrogant, spoiled, a prick, etc from? Well, here’s a quote from Will Smith about how they raise their kids: > [@](#): > > We don’t do punishment. The way that we deal with our kids is, they are responsible for their lives. Our concept is, as young as possible, give them as much control over their lives as possible and the concept of punishment, our experience has been — it has a little too much of a negative quality. So when they do things — and you know, Jaden, he’s done things — you can do anything you want as long as you can explain to me why that was the right thing to do for your life. It’s from [this article](http://www.metro.us/newyork/entertainment/2013/04/22/will-and-jaden-smith-metros-special-guests-on-life-after-earth-and-more/). I’m not a parent, but I would think letting your kids do anything they want with explanation might be to permissive and let them start being spoiled. I was a smart kid, I could have easily explained why it would be best for me to miss school more, or stay up all night, or not have a summer job. But that doesn’t mean it would have actually been good for me. Also, Jaden does hang out with Justin Bieber, who is definitely not a great influence in how to be a good, thoughtful person. [There were reports](http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/bieber-worst-birthday-worse-article-1.1279048) that Bieber had his recent birthday party at a club in London and threw a fit when 14-year-old Jaden wasn’t allowed in. Other than that, he also has a fledgling rap career and has designed or wants to design his own fashion line. I don’t blame Jaden too much. Many teenagers are annoying and arrogant. It’s just that he also has rich, well-connected parents who can indulge his every whim. Also, has everyone noticed the family’s names? Will, Jada, Willow, and Jaden? It’s not that naming your kids after yourselves is necessarily bad, but along with the comments about starting a Hollywood dynasty, the parents sound like huge narcissists. Maybe no more than most Hollywood people, but still. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/45 "2013-05-30T15:13:57Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > In case anyone was wondering, After Earth was screened for critics and reviews started appearing online this morning. My newspaper carried reviews for both of these movies in this morning’s (Thursday’s) paper, both by critic Roger Moore and both unfavorable. (The review for “After Earth” sounds like it may have been the same one **Snooooopy** read.) ---
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/46 "2013-05-30T16:10:03Z")
The cast for the “Now You See Me” movie looks great. I’d give it a try. Nothing would make me see “After Earth” however. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/47 "2013-05-30T18:06:12Z")
> [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > I don’t blame Jaden too much. Many teenagers are annoying and arrogant. It’s just that he also has rich, well-connected parents who can indulge his every whim. [“‘After Earth’ tells the story of an inexperienced boy trying desperately to please his father while making one mistake after another, and as such, it becomes an uncomfortable metaphor for itself.”](http://www.thewrap.com/movies/column-post/after-earth-review-parents-just-dont-understand-94446) Dang, that’s cold. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/48 "2013-05-30T18:30:58Z")
Onion AV Club: After Earth: [C+](http://www.avclub.com/articles/after-earth,98361/) Now You See Me: [B](http://www.avclub.com/articles/now-you-see-me,98343/) ---
**Author:** ![Katriona](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/katriona/32/113_2.png) [@Katriona](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katriona)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/49 "2013-05-30T18:53:18Z")
This was just weird: > **[Will and Jaden Smith Give Fucking Insane Interview About Patterns](https://www.gawker.com/will-and-jaden-smith-give-fucking-insane-interview-abou-510087159)** > > While promoting their upcoming blockbuster After Earth, Will Smith and Will Smith: Nano (Jaden Smith) gave a very bonkers interview to New York magazine in which they espoused wondrous theories of high level imagimathematics previously published only... ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/50 "2013-05-30T18:55:41Z")
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. As long as people keep buying tickets to garbage, they’re going to get more garbage. “After Earth” is currently 14% Rotten at RT, but I bet it’ll make more money this weekend than “Mud” (99% Fresh), “Before Midnight” (97% Fresh) and “The Stories We Tell” (95% Fresh), the latter two I can’t wait to see, combined. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/51 "2013-05-30T19:02:32Z")
> [@Katriona](#): > > This was just weird: > > [http://gawker.com/will-and-jaden-smith-give-fucking-insane-interview-abou-510087159](http://gawker.com/will-and-jaden-smith-give-fucking-insane-interview-abou-510087159) :eek: Please tell me that this is a performance piece (via a joke on us, a-la’ Joachim Phoenix). ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/52 "2013-05-30T21:16:23Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > Please tell me that this is a performance piece (via a joke on us, a-la’ Joachim Phoenix). There is something odd going on about Will Smith. Some people claim that he is a closet Scientologist, but the pattern stuff doesn’t sound much like CoS. Don’t think I want to know. Still only 20 reviews (falling below 50% fresh) at RT for _Now You See Me_. That is surprisingly few for late on Thursday before release. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/53 "2013-05-31T02:25:44Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > Jada’s brother is Caleeb Pinkett, not Caleeb Smith. Unless something REALLY strange is going on in that family. No, you’re correct. I was just typing away like a madman and put the wrong last name. Good catch! ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/54 "2013-05-31T02:55:26Z")
[NY Times](http://movies.nytimes.com/2013/05/31/movies/after-earth-starring-will-smith-and-jaden-smith.html?_r=0) review. A sample: > [@](#): > > (Smith’s performance) is a calamitously one-note, unpersuasive performance that’s a match to that of Jaden, a pretty teenager with jumpy eyebrows whose character remains an insufferable brat. Once upon a time, Hollywood parents gave their children sports cars as gifts. These days, apparently nothing less than a big-screen vanity project will do for Junior. Ouch. ---
**Author:** ![Battle\_Pope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Battle\_Pope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Battle_Pope)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/55 "2013-05-31T03:23:53Z")
Time to add _Cypher Raige_ to the list of bad science-fiction character names. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/56 "2013-05-31T07:41:47Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. As long as people keep buying tickets to garbage, they’re going to get more garbage. “After Earth” is currently 14% Rotten at RT, but I bet it’ll make more money this weekend than “Mud” (99% Fresh), “Before Midnight” (97% Fresh) and “The Stories We Tell” (95% Fresh), the latter two I can’t wait to see, combined. I think you’ll like “Mud” – saw it last week. It’s the only film besides “Before Midnight” I’m planning to see in theaters between April and July…but now I’ll investigate this “Stories We Tell” you mentioned, and thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Jocko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncle_jocko/32/2932_2.png) [@Uncle\_Jocko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Jocko)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/57 "2013-05-31T11:45:59Z")
> [@MovieMogul](#): > > Film reviews usually are under a **review embargo until opening day** , which means that if a review comes out early, it is probably in violation of the embargo (which could put the reviewer in bad standing for future screenings with the studio). There are exceptions for critics who work for weeklies or monthlies, but for dailies (which would include blogs), it generally applies. That doesn’t mean something doesn’t get leaked early sometimes, but it’s generally looked down upon (and bloggers/reviewers _love_ their industry access). I am certainly willing to defer to you, as you no doubt have far more knowledge in this area, but … you sure about this? My local paper runs its weekly entertainment section on Thursdays, and it always has a review of at least one film opening that Friday. These aren’t local reviewers (this is a medium-sized city in Iowa, for Pete’s sake, we’re happy to have the movin’ pitchers at all), but nationally syndicated reviews. Still, they are published a full day before the films open. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/58 "2013-05-31T12:26:23Z")
> [@Battle\_Pope](#): > > Time to add _Cypher Raige_ to the list of bad science-fiction character names. You’ve got to factor in the man’s rank: say it soft and it’s almost like praying; say it loud, it’s like free-floating anger: GENERAL RAGE! ---
**Author:** ![Bakhesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@Bakhesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bakhesh)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/59 "2013-05-31T13:03:34Z")
Currently at a dismal 13% on RT… > **[After Earth](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/after_earth)** > > People were forced to leave Earth a millennium ago to establish a new home on Nova Prime. Now, Gen. Cypher Raige (Will Smith) heads Nova Prime's most-prominent family. Cypher's teenage son, Kitai (Jaden Smith), feels enormous pressure to follow in... Why do people keep giving M Night money? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631/60 "2013-05-31T13:22:14Z")
> [@Bakhesh](#): > > Currently at a dismal 13% on RT… > > [After Earth | Rotten Tomatoes](http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/after_earth/) > > Why do people keep giving M Night money? Well, look at his last three films: _The Happening_ made $163 million on a $48 million budget; _Devil_ made $63 million on a $10 million budget; _The Last Airbender_ made $319 million on a $150 million budget. That’s disappointing compared to what he used to pull in – _The Village_ made $256 million on a $60 million budget, _Signs_ $408 million on a $72 million budget, _Unbreakable_ $248 million on a $75 million budget, Sixth Sense $672 million on a $40 million budget – but you could do a lot worse. (The real question is, why did _Lady In The Water_ get made?) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-you-see-me-after-earth-flops/659631.md?page=4)