THERE'S A GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL TOMORROWLAND

Tomorrowland is director Brad Bird's latest film. Penned by both Bird and Damon Lindelof, the project has been shrouded in mystery since before the first trailer was even released. The film follows Casey (Britt Robertson), a teen who discovers a magical pin that gives her a glimpse at a futuristic land. Intrigued, Casey makes it her mission to travel to Tomorrowland by any means necessary and enlists the aide of grumpy inventor Frank (George Clooney), who himself got to visit Tomorrowland when he was just a child at the 1960's New York World's Fair. However, there are some sinister people out there who would do just about anything to prevent Casey and Frank from completing their mission. With the assist of Athena (Raffey Cassidy), a butt-kicking young girl with secrets of her own, maybe Casey and Frank can make it to Tomorrowland and save the future.

Our main leads all manage to impress and share a great deal of chemistry together (including Hugh Laurie as another inventor. He has what may be the best speech in the film. Keegan-Michael Keyes and Kathryn Hahn also impress with fun cameos). George Clooney pulls off the grumpy curmudgeon with a heart of gold pretty well, but for my money I'd say that it's newcomers Britt Robertson and Raffey Cassidy who are the standouts here. The design of Tomorrowland itself is also very impressive and pretty, clearly taking some inspiration from the architecture of Tomorrowland at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland (Yes, the film does indeed have some ties to the Disney parks. Keep your eye out for the Space Mountain building, which is a part of the landscape of Tomorrowland. The references/ties don't stop there though).

Brad Bird previously directed The Incredibles and Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and he brings with him here everything he learned from those two films, including action know-how. There are several action scenes in Tomorrowland and each one is thrilling, fun and absolutely fantastic. I'm also happy to say that Lindelof's bad luck streak seems to have ended for the time being, as the mystery at the core of the film is satisfyingly solved and the script itself is pretty well written.

I honestly didn't find anything all that wrong with Tomorrowland. The first 15 or 20 minutes didn't fully engage me, but once we jumped into Casey's story I was fully on board (also the last act does drag a little but not so much that it ruined my enjoyment of the film). I also love that Tomorrowland has a fantastic, positive message aimed at the optimists and dreamers of the world. Tomorrowland is a silly, fun film that had me constantly smiling with pure joy. I have no problem admitting that I loved this cool little film and I would highly recommend it. They've saved a seat for you on the rocket to Tomorrowland, so take the trip!

4 STARS

I also REALLY want one of those Tomorrowland pins now.