“The war of tomorrow”: why the film with Chris Pratt is not what we expected?

Is it inevitable that every figure who aspires to success and permanent popularity in Hollywood today will have one or another stumble or blooper on your artistic resume? Perhaps those who have doubts about that question should see “The War of Tomorrow”, a film that Chris Pratt stars and that has just been released on the streaming platform Amazon Prime Video.

The 42-year-old American actor has no less than two mega-blockbusters to his credit. The first linked to Marvel (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) and the second with an almost legendary brand in recent decades: “Jurassic World”. Although different opinions can be expressed about each of these tapes, there is a consensus that we are dealing with products that followed certain quality criteria as far as the entertainment industry is concerned.

The same is not the case withtomorrow’s war”. Directed by Chris McKay, the film was initially scheduled to be released in theaters, but the pandemic -as in other cases- changed the plans, taking it to the catalog of a company willing to pay millions of dollars in order to get hold of productions that allow you to retain and attract new subscribers.

Dan Forester (Chris Pratt) is a retired military man who works as a high school science teacher. From one moment to the next (and while he and his daughter and wife watched a World Cup final between Argentina and Brazil!) He finds out on television about the need to confront terrible aliens capable of destroying the world. In order to fulfill the mission, and in the absence of trained soldiers (because all of them have already died in previous missions), the special forces must resort to ordinary citizens, previously checking if they are “suitable”.

Obvious overweight people, older adults and even academics are teleported 30 years into the future. There they must face the fearsome Espinas Blancas, some aliens that can only be exterminated if they are shot in the throat or stomach. Forester, due to his obvious status as a war veteran, is the one who quickly takes the lead of these civilians. And together with them he arrives (already in the future) in an almost apocalyptic Miami where there are only laboratories standing, those necessary to search for a powerful toxin that helps save humanity (of the present).

If the above described places the film with one foot in science fiction, the other will inevitably remain in the drama segment. “tomorrow’s war” has as its main character a family made up of Dan, his wife Emmy (Betty Gilpin), their young daughter Muri (Ryan K. Armstrong) and, in addition, Dan’s father, James Forester (JK Simmons). Although at the beginning of the film everything seems happy, the truth is that discrepancies are not lacking in this circle.

Already in his short stay in the future, Dan discovers that the scientist who obsessively searches for the toxin that will save humanity turns out to be his daughter 30 years later (Yvonne Strahovski). The bloody confrontation with the Espinas Blancas enters a stand-by and everything becomes the slow recreation of an unexpected (re)encounter. Words of affection, reproaches, but above all a latent sense of guilt will invade a Dan that he never thought to be who he would end up being.

One hundred and forty minutes of duration seem like a lot for a film whose resources are usually depleted. Modern guns that fire nonstop, aliens locked in cells to “study” their composition, endless bursts of fire, trucks, helicopters and bulletproof vests are common currency here. There is, therefore, not even a minor attempt to appeal to the fine humor of Peter Quill in “Guardians of the Galaxy”, less to the charisma of Owen in “Jurassic World”.

The protagonist of “The war of the future” has said that it seems “a compliment” to be compared with Will Smith. And although the latter has not spun big hits or majestic roles in recent years, no one can deny that he is an actor of undeniable ability, highly versatile enough to —just as easily— entertain even laughter in “Men in Black” , captivate the opposite sex in “Hitch”, and move to tears in “The Pursuit of Happyness”.

Everything indicates that, after seeing this new Amazon Prime Video tape, Pratt is, unfortunately, several steps behind Smith.

Synopsis: Time travelers arrive from the year 2051 to deliver an urgent message: 30 years in the future, humanity is losing a war against a deadly alien species. The only hope of survival is for the soldiers and civilians to be transported to the future and join the fight. Determined to save the world for his daughter, Dan Forester teams up with a brilliant scientist and his estranged father to rewrite the fate of the planet.

Platform: Amazon Prime Video.

Duration: 2 hours and 20 minutes

Classification: +16.

Rating: ★★

Two days after the premiere of “Tomorrow’s War” on Prime Video, Chris Pratt announced on Instagram that the film had managed, in those 48 hours, to position itself as the most watched film on all streaming services.