Earth vs. Moon? I Got the Moon at 5-2!

Posted by Brian Salisbury (bsalisbury@filmschoolrejects.com) on August 20, 2009

According to reports from FirstShowing.net, the writers of the upcoming comedy Zombieland are gearing up to start shit between the Earth and the moon with their new script…..Earth vs. Moon.  Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick have apparently adapted concepts from a Stephen Hawking speech into a screenplay about a civil war between the inhabitants of a colony on the moon and the residents of Earth itself.  The project was sold, fittingly, to Universal.

Zombieland is one of my most anticipated  films of the Fantastic Fest 2009 lineup.  It seems like the film that will finally scratch my Shaun of the Dead itch.  Granted I am basing most of my assessment on the trailer, and that has had disasterous results in the past, but it seems like the perfect blend of badass zombie action cannon and comedy.  But again, have not seen the film so my excitement for Earth vs. Moon is based almost entirely on its concept.

I believe we are seeing a renaissance in science-fiction right now.  The films that are cropping up right now are focused on telling amazing stories and examining the human condition.  The spaceships and aliens merely serve as the instruments of that storytelling.  Not to say that the final action sequence of District 9 isn’t action savvy, but delivering the explosions and laserblasts is secondary to making a deeply involving film.  Moon is another great example of this.

I am interested to see if Earth vs. Moon continues this trend or if it devolves into popcorn-pushing, mind-melting dreck.  It is based on a Steven Hawking speech about the inevitability of colonial expansion to other worlds so the philosophical basis is there, but it seems within reason that these writers would pander to the mainstream with the sophomore effort.  I suppose it does happen once in a blue……never mind.

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