rise

I arrived in the theater with the lowest of expectations, but “Jupiter Ascending,” the latest film by the Wachowskis who also brought to us the groundbreaking “The Matrix Trilogy” many years back, turned over its head and was entertaining through and through. And to think that this is not a sequel of any franchise, not based on a comic book or a young adult novel makes it a bold piece of cinema. To make it clear for everyone: It is original. That alone makes every cent for a ticket worth it.

Despite the pastiche of references (a sample was an excellent scene that dives straight into Terry Gilliam territory), the pieces fit well together. For some who knows only a thing or two about pop culture bits from around the world will be scratching their heads though. And there was one big red herring that, I believe, disappointed a lot of critics and resulted to the film’s almost unanimous and overwhelming bad reviews. Don’t believe them. I think they’ve seen an entirely different movie. It was fun, and that’s what matters, right?