This latest venture of noted director Francis Ford Coppola, another "sci-fi blockbuster," apparently falls short of the mark. "Supernova" comes up not quite as super as billed, according to some reviews.
But that is not to say it isn't fun, by any means. It's all there, the spaceships, the enemy, the stars and the Stars. What more could you ask? Some say, a better plot.
The movie tells of the search and rescue patrol of an emergency medical rescue spaceship, "Nightingale." The ship's captain dies early on in a freak accident, leaving a copilot (James Spader), and the ship's medical officer, (Angella Bassett), in a battle for authority. This ensues as they answer a distress signal from a distant galaxy, all the while running low on fuel.
They rescue a strange young man,(Peter Facinelli), with an even stranger alien artifact he smuggles aboard. As if the stranger, his artifact, and the waging power struggle weren't enough, the space cadets find they are experiencing the gravitational pull of a giant start about to go . . . go what? Go Supernova, silly.
The ship's computer, "sweetie," apparently, steals the show. He (she?) is described as "the warmest, most interesting character" in the movie.
There are some impressive special effects. The Nightingale is made up of glass domes, antennae and nonstreamlined surfaces, all in all, quite spectacular, as is the digital gimmickry. And, like "Starship Troopers," the crew occasionally stroll, or float, around nude.
It is rated PG-13 for intense sci-fi action, violence and some sensuality/nudity.
It is playing at Market Square East.
