The Man from Earth: Holocene

What began as a thrilling, well researched, thought invoking and beautifully crafted drama has been reduced to a teenage adventure with abrupt twists and turns with the rationale biting the dust. As John Oldman now professor Young begins to grab the attention of four of his students, who apparently are smart enough deduce reality, a needless plot turn renders them all act as 12 year old's who are just too adamant to get the candy which their parents won't let them have. A waste of time and more importantly not at all befitting the legacy the original movie left behind a decade ago.

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The movie dragged for too long before the actual plot began; then 5-7 minutes before the end, after Philip leaves Professor Young's house and the others return and go to the basement, there is tremendous potential to save (i.e., actually continue) the movie. What happens to Philip? What happens to the other students? Why debate whether or not to call 911 if neither is shown? Why couldn't John set up someplace else? Why in the desert? Is he "dying"? If not, why introduce the slower healing? None of these questions are answered, the story just ends. Overall, a missed opportunity for a decent movie.

I've watched the the original "The Man from Earth" 7 years ago. Before watching "The Man From Earth: Holocene" I watched the original again just to make sure I fully understand the transition of the story. And now as I just finished watching the "sequel", I sit in front of my laptop, furiously disappointed. It shouldn't even be called a sequel, it's just a dumbed-down cheap spinoff of the original one. Only David Lee Smith acted convincingly, all the other actors and actresses were totally expendable. And what's with this weird script! It felt like script writers wanted to write a story that would appeal to the younger generation. So they added these bunch annoying college students just to make sure the youngsters can relate to that. I watched the first movie with my friends when I was just 17 years old, and we grasped everything of that movie perfectly. The first movie felt like a revelation covered with pragmatic dialogues and scenarios. This one was an insult to the first one.

This could have been a great movie if not for actors who cannot act, awful dialogs, too much music, cheap production which is not even enough for a TV series, and a script which is too contrived to be even remotely true. To add insult to injury this movie just cannot decide what it wants to be. Is it a sci-fi movie? A parable? Something else entirely? I sturdily watched the two thirds of it and then fast forwarded to the end because I couldn't stand it any longer.

"The Man from Earth" is one of my favorite movies. It is a masterful story, and David Lee Smith's portrayal of a man who was ultimately looking for a debate with other scholars held me fast. It is, however, a standalone film that has no need for a sequel. Cut to "The Man from Earth: Holocene", which can be forgiven for the no-budget presentation (heck, the first movie looked worse), and even though the actors typically have dialog that isn't insultingly bad, their lack of physical investment in WHAT they are saying truly IS bad. It can be frustrating to watch actors talking, while their arms are wrapped around their torso awkwardly, or they stand around with their arms at their sides, with body language that negates what is being SAID. Worst of all, this movie takes one of the more uninteresting aspects of John Oldman's debates about his past, and decides to dedicate an entire movie to that single concept of who he was, or what he did during a small sliver of time. Near the halfway point of this movie, it goes from "I don't get why this movie is being made, but fine, whatever" to "Oh hell naw! No you DIDN'T!" John ends up being forced to debate with one of his students, in a predicament that John shouldn't have been put into in the first place. This half hour is dreadful. It makes those who might be in the student's favor look like idiots. Whether or not I believe with either party's opinion, I think the third act should only have been considered during a rough draft discussion, then laughed off and tossed aside. never to be written into a screenplay. The "debate" and discussion that proceeds for most of the rest of the movie manages to delve deeper into a downward spiral of insipid immaturity, and every character makes the WRONG decision when it's time to act. My initial impression about a sequel to "The Man from Earth" could not have been more right: Just Let It Be. Don't Touch It. Instead, this sequel was made, and ended up puking on the unique storytelling mastery of the first movie. Skip it. Watch the first one again. As a bonus, there's a mid-credit scene that hints at a sequel. One that is guaranteed to dive deeper into that hole in which rabbits probably poop into.

I was pretty excited about this movie coming out, which may have amplified the disappointment. In retrospect I'm not sure what I expected. I enjoyed the semi open ended ending to the original "The Man from Earth", and as expected this kind of spat on that. Holocene follows John 10 years post the original movie, where he's set up a new life in a new location with a new name, and is showing signs of itching to leave again. Some of his new students accidentally discover he might be immortal, and set off to find out if he is or not. It primarily follows the students, and looks into Johns worries about his immortality possibly wearing off. It came with all of the negatives of the original with none of the wonder. The acting was average as was the production. It had none of the feel of the original movie, and just became a tacky story about an immortal guy dealing with people discovering him. I mean it even had a post initial credits scene with an FBI agent looking for John. It really feels like this should have been a spin off TV show or something, so you could at least excuse the major feel change with hopes that it'll get better. I think I'd rather a remake of the original with good actors and a better camera than continuing the way this is going. Do not trust the current rating.