12 Terrible Movies That Blew Awesome Concepts
2. Passengers
The Pitch
A spacecraft transporting 5,000 colonists to a far-flung planet suffers a malfunction, causing one of the inhabitants, Jim Preston (Chris Pratt), to be woken from stasis 90 years early.
In order to stave off crushing, lifelong loneliness, Preston wakes up another passenger, Aurora Lane (Jennifer Lawrence), without her knowledge or consent.
What Went Wrong
The tone and marketing for this film were all wrong.
Though Columbia ultimately decided to conceal the fact that Jim is the cause of Aurora waking up, this was actually revealed in an early synopsis released by the studio, before they decided that this darker element might turn off more mainstream viewers.
But the biggest issue stems from the script and direction, which fail to adequately convey the agony of Preston's predicament, and insist that the blossoming romance between Jim and Aurora is genuine rather than, you know, sublimely creepy.
Had the film instead transpired from Aurora's perspective and morphed into a horror film of sorts in act three once Jim's desperate act is revealed, then Passengers really could've been something. Instead, it wants audiences to root for a most questionable love story indeed.
In addition to this, neither Pratt nor Lawrence brought much to the table, and despite being the hottest movie stars on the planet at the time of the film's release, their chemistry was completely lacking (only further failing to sell an already awkward love-in).
Despite the strong visuals and ripe concept, Passengers bungles its promise with a patent misunderstanding of what's creepy and what truly makes the heart swell. Titanic in Space this ain't.