crothman

The funniest thing about the movie were the closing credits, and I spent the entire film hoping they'd arrive soon.

The jokes were unfunny and repetitious, figuratively poking you in the ribs with every line to say "This is funny. It is. It's really funny). The characters are too stupid to care about. The only one who was funny was Kevin Spacey, and he was in the film for about three minutes. Otherwise, it made you long for the subtle and clever humor of the Ritz Brothers.

Jason Bateman gamely tries to hold the thing together, but both Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day play characters who are just too stupid to remember to breathe and the dull script thinks plugging in a few outrageous concepts without humor makes comedy.

The first movie was only mediocre, but it had some laughs in it. This wastes talent on an immense scale.

You've seen Terra Nova before, in dozens of science fiction shows and movies. There is really not a single original moment in the entire show and, alas, it doesn't seem to realize this.

The setup is a society that's on an ecological disaster (like "Blade Runner"), where a family is sent back into the past (with dinosaurs like "Jurrasic Park") to form a colony (like "Earth 2"). The family consists of a heroic father, a smart mother, an angsty son, a genius daughter (like Lisa Simpson) and a younger, cloyingly cute younger daughter. None have the depth of a cardboard cutout.

Storywise, it's a mess. There is never a moment when you can't predict accurately what will happen next. It's not even difficult to do so: when the doctor is treating an accident victim, you know she's going to say "stay with me."

It also makes no sense. People say one thing about the world, then act as though the situation is completely the opposite. The setup is ludicrous (a colony has houses like that?).

Ultimately, this is third-rate science fiction that's about as entertaining as watching a turned-off television. It may be worth it if you create a drinking game of "name the cliché," but you wouldn't make it over a half hour before passing out in a drunken stupor.

There is bad, there is terrible, and then there's Terra Nova.

As others have mentioned, the description -- a bunch of kids gaining super powers -- doesn't begin to describe what the show is about. The characters are complex (even the minor ones), the situations are believable, and the stories go places you never expect. Actions all have consequences, but the show doesn't forget to have a sense of humor.

The key is that the super powers are all closely tied in with the characters' wishes, dreams, and personality; they stories are nothing like how this situation would be portrayed in the US. No one fights crime; they're too busy trying to deal with their own lives and the consequences of their personal strengths and failings. The first two seasons have been put online at Hulu.com; watch them and be amazed.