MovieChat Forums > I Am Number Four (2011) Discussion > This movie is so bad... also a question ...

This movie is so bad... also a question for those that LOVE this movie.

posted 14 years ago by jmspk
91 replies | jump to latest

Um.. where to start?
Typical high school, 'Twilight' type of movie (I think the Twilight series is horrible too). It is really predictable and cheesy. A good looking guy (John Smith or Number 4) enters school, gets bullied by the football team, then falls in love with the girl that dated the star/leader of the team. The ex-boyfriend gets jealous and tries to win back the girl. Of course he fails, the new guy and the girl hit it off and have a relationship BUT something happens and can't be together for some reason in the end. Haven't we seen this type of scenario one too many times before?? Yet I guess it still works for all these idiots. Furthermore, the aliens look like a complete joke and the special effects are poor.

One part of the movie was just mind-boggling to me.. when the aliens were drawing near John (while knowing this) and is also being chased by the cops, John and Sarah go off to school to develop pictures!!! WTF, seriously?!? You're running away from these 2 groups and you're going to make a pit stop at school to develop pictures?? Can someone give me an explanation to this?

Overall, terrible movie. I wouldn't even rent this with a free rental coupon.
Rating: 2/10

**Update**
New rating: 1/10
Reason: No one can give me a reasonable explanation to the above question.

[–] radomID15 14 years ago

Love, struggle, justice/revenge plots obviously stand the test of time. If you prefer non-fiction, I suggest you don't watch movies that contain super-powers or vampires.

I guess my analogy for some movies would be; When you get in a car, drive somewhere, there's a destination, a purpose. When you get on a roller coaster, there's no real destination, no real point, just a fun ride. ;)

[–] TrippingABlindMan 14 years ago

Just because a movie has a good looking young cast and a harmless love story does not make it a friggin' Twilight movie. That's a bullcrap comparison. At no point in I Am Number Four did I see any of the following:

-Overdone female teen angst
-Love triangle that makes no logical sense
-Male leads being bitches
-Tacky analogies to a chick getting her cherry popped
-The pathetically emotionally dependent female lead and the overdose of shirtless dudes that the Twilight series sported

So I have no idea what movie you saw... now I'm not saying that I AM NUMBER FOUR was a masterpiece and yes it is cliched (WHAT MOVIE ISN'T NOWADAYS? It's all been done!), but two hours of easy entertainment with a decent story, appealing leads, a harmless/cute love story and some “America *beep* yeah” crazy action at the end? Yeah, I think so! More than anything it reminded me of a teenage Superman (I guess that would be Smallville).

[–] jmspk 14 years ago

Did I say it was a Twilight movie?? I said it was a Twilight TYPE of movie.
But hey I'll do comparison if you like...
- girl falls in love with mysterious non-human guy
- love triangle; the other being the QB of the football team
- supernatural, transformations
- action/romance genre
- both suck

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] SmellOfNapalm 13 years ago

This is a cliché-filled unwatchable piece of rubbish! Acknowledge it and grow up!

[–] radomID15 13 years ago

How many times are you going to use the word cliche?

You know, you're really such a cliche. I'm so sick of cliches like you. You're sooo boring.

It's so cliche when people tell other people they don't even know to "grow up".

Ugh...so cliche.

Hey hater, just shut up. No one cares or takes seriously your "hate, hate, hate" opinions or juvenile name calling. You really need to "grow up".

The only reason you're even getting a response, is because I'm seriously procrastinating and would rather waste time online than pack. Guess I should pack now.

Hey, if you take anything away from this response:

1. Stop using the word cliche, it's cliche
2. Just shut up.

[–] aliyabck47 13 years ago

haha i know right. wow you can use a 'complicated' word well done...

[–] mmsbk 11 years ago

I just have to say , the word cliché is the noun, the adjective from it is clichéd.

[–] Tales-from-the-Goondocks 13 years ago

Although your analogy is great, I still think I Am Number Four is a bad movie, but the OP is an ässhole.

[–] sfniner08 14 years ago

Typical whining about a movie and how superior your understanding of film is compared to all in the movie industry. yawn, your arrogance is boring. Actually what is more predictable than any movie is the negative drivel that spews forth from the bitter people on these boards. You are the boring, predictable, cliche, been there done that of the entire industry.

[–] radomID15 14 years ago

lol, so true, well said.

[–] jmspk 14 years ago

I can't have an opinion? Isn't that the reason we have message boards?
I'm not whining.. I'm merely putting in my two cents like everyone else and also asking a question for idiots like you that love and defend this film.. which no one has answered yet.

[–] sfniner08 14 years ago

No, you aren't just giving your 2 cents, you are self promoting yourself and just generally being a troll. If you people truly were just giving an opinion you wouldn't have to resort to such statements as "this movie sucks" or "this movie is so bad." Really? If you indeed believed that you are entitled to an opinion just as much as anyone else here then you would understand that movies are like food, people have different tastes. As such, to label a movie as "so bad" when clearly it doesn't touch the true poor quality movies out there, you are merely trying to say your taste is superior to others. Taste is relative to the individual. Since you neither have any better or worse taste than everyone else, you then cannot accurately label this movie as "so bad." Finally, you are one of those that isn't looking for an answer, rather you are waiting for a response you can pounce on. You wouldn't change your mind no matter what. You are a troll.

[–] jmspk 14 years ago

So you're basically saying no one can say something "sucks" because it's a matter of taste?
No wonder you're an idiot.. You're one of those that you use words like "troll" and "epic" for every little thing. This movie sucks so bad, troll. Epic!!!

[–] sfniner08 14 years ago

I actually use those word very little in my posts. That's it? That is your reply? I suppose that says much.

[–] smilingallalone 14 years ago

haha... well said!

i only have this to contribute, which isn't much but is enough:

my twin brother and our friend watched this movie on a whim just a few nights ago. they both said that it was awful.

brother said that it's a dumb "tween" movie that caters to all the types of stuff you described in your post. i would have to agree, although i've never seen this movie, you can usually tell that something will be bad when the trailer is just a bunch of crap they throw in your face with no explanation. also the title... "i am number four"?? what kind of crap is that? maybe if the movie was done correctly then the title would work, but the title alone already dissuades me from even wanting to know what this is.

i am number two! poooooop!

[–] mxlflx 14 years ago

It's bad, but at last form your own opinions about things.

I still believe. Do you still believe? - Earl Hickey

[–] Chris451 14 years ago

@smilingallalone Wow. "I Am Number Two." How incredibly original of you. I've never seen that before.

[–] zandylovesRISK 13 years ago

Maybe because it's the name of the book. did that thought ever cross your mind?

Half-Blood Son of Poseidon, Son of Adam, Gryffindor 7th year and Honorary TR: Underworld fan

[–] FullEclypse 13 years ago

This is truely funny! You've never seen the movie, but you think you are entitled to say that it sucks without knowing what the movie is about? You don't even know what the title means, so how can you know that the movie sucks other than your brother's view of the movie?

http://www.moviesgamesandmore.net
so,drop on by!

[–] radomID15 13 years ago

A+

[–] phil-forrester 13 years ago

You want an answer to "why the school photo lab"? Here's one: they were looking for a place to hide as well, and the school would not necessarily be a place the bad guy would look. Also, for the climax to the film, what would be a more appealing place for destruction John and Henri's run down house, or the school? And one more F-YOU to the football d-bag, they destroyed the football stadium. Boom...answer.

Not a bad movie. Consistent acting, interesting plot, nice story arc, and it followed the book pretty closely.

[–] ShadowsGathered 13 years ago

I'd say the "idiots" who love and defend this film simply have different tastes (and opinions) than you... yes, it's really that simple.

... the hardest thing in this world is to live in it...

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] FullEclypse 13 years ago

Yeh, you can, and you are allowed to have one, but you are not putting it out as an opinion, but as fact; there's a difference, learn it!

http://www.moviesgamesandmore.net
so,drop on by!

[–] axel-triplex 13 years ago

The movie wasnt that bad.

classic no brain movie like so many these days.

I did not have the urge to turn it of but would never call it a good movie or recommend it to anyone.

I think comparing it to Dragonball Evolution (2009)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1098327
is reasonable.

In both cases the movie could have been much better.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] kuraime 14 years ago

I didn't really like this movie that much. But I can see why people would love it. I personally hated the romance part of the story because it reminded me of twilight too. The whole supernatural and mysterious guy thing has been done to death (and the one that did that last was Twilight).

Once number six enters the movie, the movie became a 100-times better. The action was awesome and renewed my hope for the sequel (if it ever gets made). If it focuses on the action and not into the romance, the sequel could have some potential.

Some say that the CGI was bad and I'm not really someone who cares about bad CGI. I mean, if you can watch older movies where effects are clearly miniatures and suspend your disbelief so much to consider them real, then CGI should be no problem.

[–] TrippingABlindMan 14 years ago

"Did I say it was a Twilight movie?? I said it was a Twilight TYPE of movie."

Difference? Means the same thing.

- girl falls in love with mysterious non-human guy

So I guess Superman is also a Twilight type movie. Or Starman. Or Meet Joe Black. Or Starcrossed. Or Thor (mysterious non-human guy, human girl, quick love sparks). etc. This is a plot device that's been used in thousands of movies before Twilight.

- love triangle; the other being the QB of the football team

So, the lead girl falls in love with the lead guy, and there happens to be QB she used to date and made clear that she never wanted to see again. QB is obviously jealous of our lead guy... and the QB has less than 20 minutes of screen time, and even violently kidnaps her (weird definition of love) in the middle of the film to beg her to give their relationship another chance (which she quickly rebuffs), along with staking out her house while she's on a date. I never saw this chick two time our lead hero or even consider going back to her old flame, this was a movie about the two leads only... hardly constitutes a "love triangle". QB was really irrelevant to the film as a whole and never posed a threat to the leads' relationship except that he wanted to beat the lead up, not because the girl had feelings for the QB (which she obviously didn't).

- supernatural, transformations

See every superhero movie ever made... and yes they have a lot of romantic elements too.

- action/romance genre

Above.

- both suck

Hey, you're free to your opinion, but in terms of this film being a Twilight-'type' movie, I think that's your card to dismiss this movie as opposed to admitting you're simply too old for it. If I ever get as jaded as you watching movies and get pissed off at the very slight idea of a supernatural love story, then I'll make sure to not bother with movies again and find another hobby. You want to hate on a movie, fine, but back that up with some meat and show that you've SEEN the flick and didn't just glance at it once in awhile, otherwise your venom has no bite.

[–] jarn2004 14 years ago

This is the Explanation.... They screwed up the events in the book.....

SPOILER from the book:

Number 6 is not fire proof, she can control the weather and is invisible.... John is fire proof. His power ofLumen, which does not act as a boost (unless I'm forgetting that part) makes him immune to temperature. Heat cold. etc..... Henri actually isnt against him using his pwer he actually trains him to use it in the book....

So basically at the party John goes too. theres a fire set in the basement. Sarah is stuck int he house and John runs in immune to fire. He doesnt use telekenesis where anyone can see it. He runs off. Henri doesnt die int he truck he dies at the school.

John and Henri are going to leave town, because the bad guys (sorry dont remember the spelling of the name) find out where they are because they went to the world of weird house. John knows that they will track him to Sarah and kill her so he runs to the school to save her against Henri's wishing.... and the bad guys show up.

The cops are never after john except at the end of the book I suppose cause they do destroy the school, but not as badly as in the movie..... lol

so basically i guess the answer to your question is they wanted to leave the battle stage at the school like the book but gave a stupid reason to get it there.

Also Mark saves John in the book and helps out a lot more in the end. He doesnt just show up like he does in the movie, "oh hey, i told my dad you were going the other way" He says that also, but its not so out of the blue.

[–] agt_volkoff 14 years ago

they messed up bad, i enjoyed the book.... heaps better than the movie, yet i enjoyed that to.
the fact that Henri survives to fight at the school then dies also

BUT people classify everything as a bloody twilight movie now if it has romance in it, yet twilight is just a rip off of any other romance before that but with faggy vampires, where you can say twilight is a rip off of buffy

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] viperatut 14 years ago

I didn't follow from your book explanation why Sarah was at the school. You said John went to the school to save her, but why was she there in the first place? And was it also at night?

[–] jarn2004 13 years ago

yes, sorry, just saw this.

Sarah goes to the school to develope Photos. Its her thing. Shes always there. Sarah doesnt know John is an Alien at that point or that anything weird is going on. Basically John goes looking for her and decides she must be in the photo lab and runs there to save her when all hell breaks loose. Yes it happens at night.

But the John saving Sarah from the fire / going to the school do not happen back to back.

[–] SkaterDave 14 years ago

Uhm...where to start. I know..by saying I liked it. Didn't love it but it was a good little movie. Yes, a number of things in the movie have been done in other movies but that's common and doesn't necessarily mean a movie's bad. 'Alien' is a big ripoff of a 50's B scifi movie and just because it was that doesn't make it bad. The acting was fine, the aliens looked like aliens and sorry but the special effects were excellent in my opinion. If these effects were bad would you tell me what movie had good effects so I can compare? All in all, you have the right to your opinion but I agree with others that you do come across as an arrogent pr$ck.

[–] LoganHellstrom 14 years ago

Here's a hint.

Twlight didn't invent Teen Romances. None of Twilight's cliches were original. So why do you insist on using Twilight as template for other films? Lol

[–] JayGill42 14 years ago

I have to agree with you. I work at a video store and people are telling me everyday how amazing this movie is but it's just a piece of garbage. I figured from looking at the actors it was going to be terrible, but I wasted my time with it anyway.
It's a stupid teen Scifi, nothing more. So if you're a ignorant moron who doesn't know a film from your left foot, definitely watch this movie!

[–] mxlflx 14 years ago

This film was terrible for me, and I have a very low bar for being entertained by action movies. The cliches stacked up to the point I was just hoping it did not drag on too long; subjectively, it seems like the 5th time I have seen this movie played out in different genres, and I have not watched any of the Twilight series. Do teenagers really love high school so much these days they will cross the galaxy and risk interstellar wrath to go? Now that's original. Things must have changed a lot since I went to high school, I recall taking every opportunity to skip out.

I did not say it sucked even once, though it did.

I still believe. Do you still believe? - Earl Hickey

[–] jchites 14 years ago

piss off, i liked this movie and i've watched thousands of movies. just because you didn't like it dosen't mean i can't. ponce!

[–] Sayitasitis 13 years ago

its crap if you are over 17. defending it if you are over that age just makes you look like an imbecile :)

[–] ilkerkostur 14 years ago

I think that John thought that school is safe and good to hide..