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'Ember' Generates Sci-Fi Adventure

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By CHRISTY LEMIRE

The Associated Press

Published: October 12, 2008

Finally, a post-apocalyptic utopia movie for the entire family.

"City of Ember" is a weird little hybrid of socialist manifesto and wholesome sci-fi adventure, which ought to make it a tough sell, despite its strong cast and the backing of Tom Hanks' production company, Playtone.

The youngsters who populate the underground city of Ember learn on Assignment Day what job they'll perform for the rest of their lives, based on a slip of paper they pull randomly from a sack - mundane stuff like potato peeler and warehouse clerk, "For the good of all mankind," as the city's motto goes.

Some people work in the generator that keeps the town running, keeps the bulbs in those golden, overhead lights shining bright. Others, such as perky Lina Mayfleet (Saoirse Ronan), are messengers who scurry from one side of the city to the other conveying inane tidbits of information.

But since the Builders of Ember only created the city to last 200 years - figuring the darkness that forced them underground would have subsided by then - the generator is falling apart, and humanity as they know it is in trouble.

Thankfully, Lina finds a magical metal box that the Builders left behind, and she and her pipeworker pal, Doon (Harry Treadaway), set about unlocking its many mysteries in hopes of saving the world. Gil Kenan's film is overstuffed visually but has an intriguing tangibility about it. Ember itself resembles an art deco back lot that has fallen into disrepair, which gives it an odd, sad beauty; unlike many kid-oriented action movies, this one is not obviously smothered in computer-generated effects. The interiors and costumes are intentionally roughhewn and cobbled together.

You just wish as much care had gone into character development. We never get to know anyone all that well. Caroline Thompson wrote the screenplay based on Jeanne DuPrau's novel. DuPrau grew up in the 1950s amid the threat of nuclear war, which inspired her work; the external threat in "City of Ember" is never so pressing or well-defined.

If anything puts the city in peril, it's the selfishness and greed of the mayor, played by a villainously low-key Bill Murray. He's one of many big-name stars who feel woefully underused. Tim Robbins is in maybe a handful of scenes as Doon's frustrated inventor father; Mary Kay Place plays a friend of Lina's family who tries to keep her safe; Toby Jones barely speaks as the mayor's right-hand man; and the misuse of Martin Landau, as Doon's doddering boss in the pipeworks, is just shameful.

Then there's the adorably energetic Ronan, she of the beguiling wide eyes, who was an Oscar nominee as Keira Knightley's nosy little sister in "Atonement." Better things surely must be in store for her. Perhaps the Builders can see to that, as well.

MOVIE REVIEW
City Of Ember **(out of four)

MOVIE BOARD RATING: PG; mild peril and adult themes

STARS: Saoirse Ronan, Harry Treadaway, Bill Murray, Martin Landau, Toby Jones

DIRECTOR: Gil Kenan
LOCATION: See Movie Times, this page and Page 13, for local showtimes.

PLOT SUMMARY: People living in an underground city must escape before their generator fails and the lights go out.

RUNNING TIME: 96 minutes

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