The Day the Earth Stood Still is an utterly pointless movie remake. The original - and I'll pause here for everyone who's never seen it to roll their eyes - is one of the best sci-fi films of all times. This modern telling keeps only the names of the characters and abandons everything else.<br /><br />In this version the trouble starts early on. Alien visitors arrive on earth (in an improbably crowded Central Park at night) but we don't see the landing of their vessel. Instead we get lots of dramatic mist and scientist types in haz-mat gear looking lost. Keanu/Klaatu emerges from a pretty orb, greets the pretty microbiologist, then gets shot.<br /><br />Cue Gort, the indestructible robot guardian of peace. In what should have been the most dramatic part of the film ends up being its biggest disappointment. Gort, a textbook example of budget CGI filmaking, appears and makes a loud noise that frightens police dogs. And just when he seems poised to open a can of whip-ass, he gets silenced by Keanu/Klaatu who is coiled up in a fetal position on the pretty microbiologist's lap.<br /><br />The rest of the movie plays like a throwaway Spielberg vehicle with a cute kid, lots of cheap sentiment, an alien who eventually goes home and the never-ending message that Love Will Save The Day.<br /><br />Listen folks, save your money and seek out the 1951 version, filmed in beautiful black & white. The soundtrack alone is worth the price of a rental and when you see it, you can join the legions of fans who's eyes glaze over when they hear those three immortal words: klaatu barada nicto.