Evolution

Theatrical Release Date: 2001 06 08 (USA)

UPC: 667068892321

Studio: DreamWorks

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Mild Violence, Brief Nudity, Questionable for Children, Sci-Fi Violence, Scatological Humor, Suitable for Teens]

Summary: The spirit of the mega-hit Ghostbusters (1984) is intentionally recalled with this effects-heavy sci-fi comedy from the same director, Ivan Reitman, co-starring Dan Aykroyd and debuting on the 17th anniversary of the earlier film's release. When a meteor bearing single-celled organisms crashes to the Earth, the life forms are initially confined to a cave. Before long the creatures are evolving at an exponentially rapid rate, resulting in fearsome aliens running amok and possibly spelling mankind's doom, or at least the end of man's domination over life on Earth. Investigating the phenomenon is a community college professor, Ira Kane (David Duchovny), his geologist friend Harry Block (Orlando Jones), wannabe fireman Wayne Green (Seann William Scott), and government scientist Allison Reed (Julianne Moore). Evolution also stars Ted Levine, Ethan Suplee, and Katharine Towne. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Category: Comedy

Features: Conversation with Ivan Reitman, David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, and Seann William Scott
Deleted scenes
Storyboard selection
Visual effects featurette

Evolution

Format: DVD

Release Date: 12/26/2001

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1, DS Dolby Surround (4.0), DTS Digital Theater Systems

Runtime: 102 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
0. Scene Selections
1. Main Titles [4:49]
2. Meet Ira and Harry [3:10]
3. A Rock That Bleeds [6:10]
4. Discovering Alien Life [2:46]
5. Wayne Flunks Out [:55]
6. "We Came to Pick Up the Rock" [4:48]
7. Aliens at the Country Club [1:38]
8. Government Take Over [5:42]
9. Deposing Dr. Ira Kane [3:51]
10. "It's in Me!" [8:04]
11. No Time for Lubricant [1:52]
12. Trouble on the Fairway [3:39]
13. Aliens Crawl Out [9:08]
14. "Great Googa Mooga!" [3:01]
15. Shopping at the Mall [7:30]
16. The Governor Gets Bad News [3:45]
17. Fuzzy No-Nosed Chimps Attack! [4:40]
18. Heat Is the Catalyst [1:22]
19. How to Kill Them [1:45]
20. "Let's Shampoo Some Aliens!" [3:51]
21. A Jumbo Enema [4:14]
22. End Credits [8:57]

Derek Armstrong

Borrowing heavily from Men in Black and his own Ghostbusters, Ivan Reitman directs the kind of jokey special effects movie in which characters swap wisecracks while getting sprayed with alien goo. Agreeable but instantly forgettable, Evolution treats the possible extinction of humankind as if it were auditions for amateur night at the local comedy club, and the silliness infests the movie even more than the rapidly mutating alien organism infests the Arizona desert. As the two community college science professors who discover the life form, David Duchovny (never more loose and self-satisfied) and crowd-pleaser Orlando Jones alternate uncomfortably between learned reasoning and frat boy razzing. As if any more comic relief were necessary, typecast moron Seann William Scott (Dude, Where's My Car?) is on board to reach a few extra demographics. Julianne Moore shows her softer side as a simpatico government agent who is also a huge klutz. The aliens are a hybrid of typical space alien stuff and dinosaurs, looking good if not actually groundbreaking. A winged creature that's obviously a pterodactyl stand-in carries a young girl through a mall without leaving a scratch -- part of an overall trend to stay light, rather than showing any of the real carnage that might accompany a situation like this. However, since it was released in the era of Tom Green and the Farrelly brothers, there's a fair amount of rectal humor -- both human and alien -- to fill the gross-out quota. Positioned to be a summer blockbuster hit, Evolution shows the strain of trying to be everything to everyone, but it's also difficult to imagine leaving the theater without wearing a goofy grin. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Tom Davis  Actor 
Daniel Goldberg  Producer 
Don Jakoby  Screenwriter 
Joe Medjuck  Producer 
Ivan Reitman  Director 
Ivan Reitman  Producer 
Jeff Apple  Executive Producer 
David Rodgers  Executive Producer 
John Powell  Composer (Music Score) 
Tom Pollock  Executive Producer 
David Weissman  Screenwriter 
David Diamond  Screenwriter 
David Duchovny  Actor 
Orlando Jones  Actor 
Seann William Scott  Actor 
Julianne Moore  Actor 
Ted Levine  Actor 
Ethan Suplee  Actor 
Katharine Towne  Actor 
Michael Bower  Actor 
Pat Kilbane  Actor 
Ty Burrell  Actor 
Gregory Itzin  Actor 
Dan Aykroyd  Actor 

Country: USA