Movie Review—I am Number Four

Directed by D.J. Caruso

Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, and Teresa Palmer

Rating:

Good Movie, Glad to Have Seen it (4 popcorn boxes out of 5)

This month’s review belongs to the just released I am Number Four.

John Smith could be just any athletic teenager on the run but he’s not. He has special abilities he is just discovering and comes from somewhere else. A deadly group known as the Mogadorians is chasing John, portrayed by Alex Pettyfer, across the country. They have already killed three others like him and will search for any who survive. When he left his home planet, he was sent with a guardian, played by Timothy Olyphant, who knows the tricks of the trade to change identities as needed and throw in bits of training and advice along the way. Now they have landed in Paradise, Ohio. Here he falls for a local girl, Sarah, portrayed by Dianna Agron, and soon ends up in teen triangle angst that leads to more self-discoveries and the need to learn even more if he is going to save himself and any others. The local football hero becomes his nemesis and the local nerd becomes his friend and helper. As the trouble finds him, so does Number Six, played by Teresa Palmer; she has cool skills that they both will need just to stay alive.

The movie is based on young adult science fiction novels by Pittacus Lore and starts with action and the death of Number Three. One main complaint with this film is that there is little basic history of John’s Planet and the reasons the Mogadorians are chasing and killing those who are numbered. The acting is enjoyable and simple to watch. The action, while not of 2012 or Independence Day caliber is interesting as John learns what he is capable of and seriously improves as he gains more control and new abilities. Throw in Number Six and the menacing behavior of the Mogadorians, and buildings and things start to explode and danger erupts. Along the way and between moves from city to city is a dog for John’s, who just so happens to help in the fact that it is a chimera, and a very cute pup. The movie ends as almost every movie seems to these days, with no real ending except to say good-bye and promote the fact that there will be a sequel and maybe five more. If they keep up the entertainment, I’ll go see the next one.