Evolution

Today, I’m going to take a look back at the 2001 science-fiction comedy, Evolution.

The plot of Evolution is summarized on IMDb as follows:

A fire-fighting cadet, two college professors, and a geeky but sexy government scientist work against an alien organism that has been rapidly evolving since its arrival on Earth inside a meteor.

The screenplay for Evolution was written by Don Jakoby (Double Team, Vampires, Lifeforce, Death Wish 3, The Philadelphia Experiment), David Weissman (Old Dogs, The Family Man), and David Diamond (When In Rome), and was directed by Ivan Reitman – a comedy icon who is known for films like Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, Junior, Twins, Meatballs, and Stripes.

The cast of Evolution includes Julianne Moore (The Hours, Boogie Nights, Seventh Son, The Lost World: Jurassic Park), David Duchovny (The X-Files, Californication), Orlando Jones (American Gods, Black Dynamite, MADtv, From Dusk Till Dawn 3), Sean William Scott (Goon, Goon 2, Cop Out), Ted Levine (The Mangler, Silence of the Lambs, Wild Wild West, Jurassic World 2), Ethan Suplee (Mallrats, My Name Is Earl), Sarah Silverman (The Book of Henry, Wreck-It Ralph), and Dan Aykroyd (The Blues Brothers, Nothing But Trouble, Ghostbusters).

The cinematographer for Evolution was Michael Chapman, whose lengthy career included shooting Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Suspect Zero, The Watcher, Space Jam, Primal Fear, Hardcore, The Lost Boys, The Last Detail, Scrooged, and The Fugitive.

The credited editors for the film were Wendy Greene Bricmont (Mean Girls, Kindergarten Cop, Junior, My Girl, Annie Hall) and Sheldon Kahn (Out of Africa, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Ghostbusters, Legal Eagles, Draft Day)

The musical score for Evolution was composed by John Powell, who has also provided music for Pan, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Hancock, Jumper, Be Cool, Shrek, Face/Off, Antz, and Rat Race, among other films.

The effects work for Evolution was provided in part by the team of Greg Nicotero, Howard Berger, and Robert Kurtzman, who, combined, have credits that include films and television shows like The Walking Dead, The Faculty, Vampires, Scream, In The Mouth of Madness, From Dusk Till Dawn, From Beyond, DeepStar Six, Dr. Giggles, Tusk, Night of the Creeps, Drag Me To Hell, The Mist, and hundreds of others.

The creature design for the film was done by Phil Tippett, who is known for his visionary work on Starship Troopers, RoboCop, the original Star Wars trilogy, and Howard the Duck. He also interestingly  directed the not-well-recieved Starship Troopers 2.

An animated series based on the film, titled Alienators: Evolution Continues, ran from September 2001 to June 2002 for a total of 26 episodes.

The screenplay for Evolution was originally written as a science-fiction thriller by Don Jakoby, but was rewritten by Diamond and Weissman to be a comedy. In an unusual turn of events, Jakoby was so fond of the changes that he worked on the film alongside Diamond and Weissman.

Evolution currently holds an IMDb user rating of 6.1/10, along with Rotten Tomatoes scores of 43% from critics and 48% from audiences. Financially, it was able to cover its $80 million production budget with a lifetime, worldwide gross of $98.4 million, but it almost certainly wound up in the red due to marketing and non-production costs. It also severely under-performed domestically, with almost two-thirds of its take coming from foreign markets.

In his review for The New York Times, A.O. Scott stated that “the biggest frustration in Evolution is that it squanders an interesting premise.” It is hard to argue that the premise doesn’t have promise – it is a pretty standard framework for an aliens-come-to-earth science fiction adventure, with a rag-tag team of misfits put up against a monolithic, obtuse military force. On its surface, Evolution sounds more interesting and entertaining than it actually is – ultimately, what squanders the film’s potential is the comedic writing that dwells in the movie’s minutiae, which leaves plenty to be desired. Farts, butts, misogyny, homophobia are in ample supply throughout the film, making for a comedic smorgasbord that only the dimmest of “bros” could love. The foulness of the humor sours the impact of some impressive effects work, and hamstrings perfectly talented performers like Julianne Moore, who has so little to do that she apparently improvised her only memorable quality – comedic clumsiness.

Speaking of the creature designs, Roger Ebert, in his review of the film, lauded the works of Phil Tippett as “clever and bizarre…weird manifestations.” Ultimately, the litany of cosmic oddities are the most memorable element of the film – from the dragon-esque winged reptiles to the predatory space-crocodiles, there’s no lack of vision to them. However, they are never quite as distinct or memorable as, say, the graboids from Tremors. I think this is partially due to the wide variety of creatures in Evolution – the audience doesn’t get to spend much time with any particular iteration before the beings have spawned into entirely new creatures with fresh visages. While this let Tippett get to show off his design chops, it didn’t necessarily do the movie any favors.

That said, the CGI throughout the film has held up better than I had expected for a feature from 2001, and the practicals are undeniably fantastic. I’m kind of astounded at how effectively the team pulled off such a wide variety of designs so impressively – they could have easily skimped out, and shown fewer or less tangible creatures.

While the effects have aged surprisingly well, the rest of the movie has not. Evolution, thanks primarily to its writing and soundtrack, feels like a product of its era that can’t (and shouldn’t) transcend its temporal binds. While there are certainly highlights beyond the effects work, like Ted Levine’s portrayal of a slimy military general and David Duchovny’s trademark monotone charm, the negative here generally outweigh the positives. The comedy, which should have been a strength that the rest of the film could rely on, conjures only sighs, moans, and jeers.

As far as a recommendation goes, I’m sure that some people have nostalgic feelings for this film. For those folks, I don’t recommend revisiting it – it isn’t the movie you thought it was. For everyone else – with the exception of monster design aficionados – this is definitely a feature that you shouldn’t think twice about skipping.