City of Ember

Bill Murray plays in this odd movie, something that Tim Burton would direct but he did not. I did not pay too much attention to it. So I am not going to be able to dive too deep into the movie which means very little. This is not a movie for most people, I am eccentric but this is a movie made for different types of people.

Apparently, the world ended. When this occured, all of human being's knowledge was placed in a box. How does this occur? Does not matter and it only takes about 5 seconds to realize this movie is so far removed from reality, tidbits like this are not to be dwelled over. Like Matrix, how the world ends, is not really known. The Matrix was frustrating for not explaining this, this movie is already so fantastical it does not matter as much. Another theme from the Matrix, was a city that survives underneath our surface. But it is not called Zion. It is lighted by a generator that is losing steam. This city is not massive, it seems to be smaller than my home town Sacramento. Does the entire world live underneath the planet? Something like Demolition Man, we do not know, atleast I did not hear it explained.

Tim Robbins has a small part. He is the father of the boy who becomes a mechanic who then becomes the hero the movie. Regarding this mechanic, I was not able to simply locate his name nor the cute heroine in the movie. Bill Murray is the mayor of this town, which is rather decrepid. Apparently, Murray's character is stealing food but obviously not clothes since it seems he wears rags too. This town subsists on whatever they produce and make from their own surroundings. No outside trade, no contact with anyone but themselves. Not an exciting existence. If the beginning was not explained, one would not know this is the future, they would like think it being an alternate universe, not that dissimilar to Lord of the Rings. There is not even a lap top computer shown in the movie. There are some small and funny looking robots though.

Murray's character perishes at the end in a similiar fashion to Paul Reiser's character in the blockbuster and incredible 1986 science fiction classic-Aliens. This movie's directos has obviously seen that movie as well.

Fruit like pineapple and probably every other type of fruit are a high commodity. In fact, if someone is seen with a can of pineapple, they are under suspicion.

Ian McElhinney, is an old Irish actor who plays a long time veteran builder. The builders are the town's supposed heroes. I guess they built the generator that powers the city, something like that.

The cute girl and the intrepid young man rides a wooden craft through and on a flooded river. This river escorts them out, in an exciting manner and accompanied by some outstanding music to the surface, or the cave entrance. It is right before sunrise, so they think the rumors are true about the surface always being dark. Not sure who spread these rumors but what ever. The people in this city fell for the big lie. The two young adults and the small child who road with them, watch the sunrise. They then follow a funny looking bird who flies down into the cave hole, the top the ceiling in this huge cave the city resides in. They drop a rock down there, with a note attached informing whomever picks it up, that the surface is the place to be and light is there. Tim Robbin's character, the boys father, just happens to be the one who picks up the rock. The narrator acts like the rock is the key and if it does not make it all the way down, gets caught someone's roof, then there is not any more hope of informing the city or cave dwellers that their is light at the end of the tunnel. The boy or girl only needs to drop another rock with a note attached, not that difficult.

I allocate this movie two stars. ** The music was stimulating.