The body of the “Hunger Games” franchise isn’t even cold yet and in swoops another story of a plucky teenage heroine in another dystopian world to take its place. “The 5th Wave,” directed by J Blakeson, isn’t as slick or futuristic as the Katniss Everdeen-manned juggernaut, but it does check a lot of the same boxes.
Bleak, gritty future in which humans turn against one another? Check. Badass weapon-toting girl willing to do anything for her family? Check. Two hot but soulful dudes (Alex Roe and Nick Robinson) along for the ride? Double check.
The bad news is that “The 5th Wave” does not put out a single original thought. There’s nothing here that you haven’t seen before. Even lines like “You don’t have to be tough all the time” feel ripped from other scripts. And while the alien invasion hook does have enough intrigue and action to hold attention, so much of the plot is explained via monologue or voiceover narrating montage after montage that you begin to wonder where the story is.
The good news is that both our heroine, Cassie, and the actress who plays her, Chloe Grace Moretz, bring something interesting to the table. Cassie drinks beer, texts in class, kills a guy out of fear and makes out with one of her suitors when she’s supposed to be finding her little brother. Unlike the untouchable martyrs of franchises past, this girl actually feels like a human. What’s more, she actually feels like a teenager.
There’s no way around the clunky exposition and rampant clichés that make up the majority of “The 5th Wave,” and it’s hard to digest its awful title (although may I remind you that “The Hunger Games” once sounded pretty silly too). But as in all quintessential teen flicks, only one thing really matters:
Are you Team Ben or Team Evan?
2 stars (out of 4)
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