Elevation

"Elevation" is a movie with a compelling premise that, unfortunately, stumbles in its execution. While there are glimmers of creativity and moments of genuine intrigue, the film ultimately falls short of fully capitalizing on its potential.

The story explores a high-concept idea that feels fresh at first but quickly becomes bogged down by uneven pacing and underdeveloped characters. The script occasionally touches on deeper themes but lacks the focus or depth to make a lasting impact. Instead, it relies on predictable plot beats and moments of unnecessary exposition that drag down its momentum.

On the positive side, the visuals are stunning. The cinematography does an excellent job of creating a sense of scale and immersion, and the production design gives the movie a polished, modern aesthetic. The soundtrack also enhances key scenes, adding emotional weight when the story struggles to provide it.

The performances, while not bad, don't elevate the material as much as they could have. The lead actor delivers a solid performance, but the supporting cast feels underutilized, leaving some relationships and dynamics feeling hollow.

Overall, "Elevation" is an admirable attempt that fails to reach its lofty ambitions. While it's not a bad movie and has some entertaining moments, it doesn't leave a lasting impression. For viewers who enjoy thought-provoking concepts, it might be worth a watch, but don't expect it to soar to great heights.

I watched Elevation early as part of Marcus's Mystery Movie series. And I knew nothing about it beforehand. Watching movies this way maximizes your enjoyment, which it definitely did here. Unfortunately the enjoyment offered is fairly limited.

Elevation has some cool parts mixed into a mostly boring movie. The majority is walking and talking with exposition mixed in. It's a fairly standard movie within the subgenre. I like the creature design and a few suspenseful scenes. The rest isn't bad, but it maxes out at serviceable.

From someone who thinks most streaming movies are low-quality garbage, I see Elevation as more of a good streaming movie. But theatrically released, it feels underwhelming.

In a similar subgenre, I found Nicolas Cage's Arcadian to be more entertaining.

(1 viewing, early screening Marcus Mystery Movie 11/4/2024)

C'mon, folks, you can't be a serious person and think this movie isn't trash. The problem is, it's a bit difficult to explain exactly why without using spoilers. But I'll try.

Well here's a shortcut to explaining why: Plot holes abound. People do stupid stuff that makes no sense. Stuff you know they wouldn't do (or be allowed to do) IRL.

This isn't a spoiler since it's revealed at the very start of the movie: The "creatures" don't ever go an inch above 8,000 feet of elevation. This is clearly absurd, and is never explained. Oh, and someone very nicely marked the 8,000-foot elevation line on an entire mountain range, and they did so with hyper-precision. So much precision, in fact that you can lie down and rest just beyond the marked line even if there's a creature that was just bearing down on you, because the creature will stop in its tracks. Absurd.

Splash in all the usual contrived garbage, sprinkle in a bunch of nonsensical plot absurdities, and top it off with a laughably absurd conclusion.

And nothing is ever explained. I guess they looked at the garbage script they had and rightly decided it wasn't worth explaining. Good call.

Started as normal end of world storyline. Humans mostly wiped with small group of humans trying to survive. Good mix of peril and discovery. Movie got to point with 90 minute runtime. Quickly establish a reason for me to keep watching.

The character cast was interesting enough and not annoying. Some favorites actors from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Little character development, honestly I was fine that.

If you liked Quiet Place then you will like this movie. Also this gave me Godzilla monster vibes.

The ending made it worth the watch. Hopefully this will spawn a series or another movie.

Go see this movie!

It was an interesting concept and an entertaining movie. There are several plot holes, and things that don't make sense. Much less get answered. It's not scary, but it does get a little tense in some spots. Unfortunately a lot of the characters are cliche and the dialogue seems forced sometimes. The mystery of Elevation is the strongest part of the movie. Rarely do I hope for a prequel to explain the story better. However in this case I think one should be made I don't think there will ever be one, my son and I went to it and there was literally only one other person in the theater. In my opinion it is definitely worth a watch.