The special effects are plain awful, but the story is deeper than I realized, having watched it recently. SPOILER When Rachel explains to her brother that oblivion is all they can offer the Wilburforces (explaining the words" I give you the gift of oblivion")because they live such a miserable and meaningless existence. I would LOVE to see this redone with the capabilities we have now with CGI. I managed to obtain a copy of this on DVD from a friend who taped it off Nickelodeon when we were kids, so watched it recently again-I would love to see this get large screen treatment.
The one thing that always bothered me about the story was Mr. Jones. He is supposed to be the "good guy", however I question a great deal of his actions. The mind control issue always bothered me. How he got the Aunt and Uncle to go from being mad to absolute acceptance overnight is beyond me. I was always curious about the Aunt and Uncle's reactions after they discover Ricky sacrificed his life for the rest of earth. I always loved the character of Ricky, a sweet,good looking nice guy, who clearly adores his cousins and is unsure of what he sees around him, but knows that they ultimately have a mission and that his life is worth risking for it. The coldness in which the Wilburforces attack and slay him is shocking, especially at 9 years old-when I watched this. The 5 seconds of Ricky face down in the water- a message of how little the Wilberforces care for life-is disturbing.
Rachel is the calm, accepting one, Theo questions. They reflect this, as Rachel cares for Mr. Jones after he is knocked down-and how she and her brother hold each other watching the seeming disaster that really is the salvation of the world, BUT only they know it.
I have ordered the book, cannot wait to read it.
The one thing that always bothered me about the story was Mr. Jones. He is supposed to be the "good guy", however I question a great deal of his actions. The mind control issue always bothered me. How he got the Aunt and Uncle to go from being mad to absolute acceptance overnight is beyond me. I was always curious about the Aunt and Uncle's reactions after they discover Ricky sacrificed his life for the rest of earth. I always loved the character of Ricky, a sweet,good looking nice guy, who clearly adores his cousins and is unsure of what he sees around him, but knows that they ultimately have a mission and that his life is worth risking for it. The coldness in which the Wilburforces attack and slay him is shocking, especially at 9 years old-when I watched this. The 5 seconds of Ricky face down in the water- a message of how little the Wilberforces care for life-is disturbing.
Rachel is the calm, accepting one, Theo questions. They reflect this, as Rachel cares for Mr. Jones after he is knocked down-and how she and her brother hold each other watching the seeming disaster that really is the salvation of the world, BUT only they know it.
I have ordered the book, cannot wait to read it.