Review: I Am Number Four
If I Am Number Four feels something like a Smallville episode, it should come as no surprise to learn the screenplay was penned by Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. This is compounded by the small-town high school setting, the orphaned-alien-with-superpowers plotline, and a lead actor -- Alex Pettyfer -- who bears an uncanny resemblance to Smallville's Justin Hartley (The Green Arrow). In fact, it plays like an extended pilot for a TV show that would develop a gigantic following on Fox only to be cancelled before the end of the first season. It's directed by D.J. Caruso, who also brought us Disturbia (the teen Rear Window) and Eagle Eye.
Evaluated by its big-screen merits, I Am Number Four still holds up as a strong film, which draws on familiar elements. The movie begins with an exciting bit of what I can only describe as "jungle parkour," which I could have watched for an hour alone. Another short scene at a beach party follows before the action moves to small-town Paradise, Ohio. John Smith (Pettyfer) has been dragged there, on one of many relocations, by his guardian and father-figure Henri (Timothy Olyphant). Rebelling against Henri's strict make-no-waves policy, he enrolls in the local high school where he picks up a new girlfriend (Glee's Dianna Agron) and picks a fight with her ex. From there, we're in standard teen romance territory until the bad guys eventually catch up to them.
What ensues would make Michael Bay proud. Oh wait, he produced I Am Number Four. The one thing I can agree Bay does very, very well, is to blow stuff up. And when the fireworks get going here, they're impressive even compared against Bay's own directing. The action in this film is spectacular, and like a good Smallville episode, the script is paced to keep the viewer interested, with a little mystery, a little romance and plenty of action to keep things moving along.
The only thing that hurts I Am Number Four is that it ends, but it doesn't really conclude. That is, it is simply the first act of a much larger saga, and while some films hint at the possibility of a sequel, I Am Number Four makes it very clear the sequel train is preparing to leave the station. But that's okay, because I had a great time and can't wait for a bigger, better, more explosive sequel.
Finally, it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the performance of Kevin Durand (Lost). Durand was one of the creepiest of the bad guys on Lost, and here, performing under massive layers of prosthetics and makeup, he still finds a way to bring that intimidating level of creepiness to his character. He's never likable, but it's always remarkable how much you want to dislike him.