Movie Review: 2033: Future Apocalypse (2011)

I'm not the typical sci-fi fan. I'm very picky with what I get into. An epic can be good if the story of the first film makes you curious enough to want more. That happens to be the case with 2033. It's a little bit of 1984 with a lot more hope. It plays on the fears that government will take control. I can't say that I know how things are in Mexico, but I think that's a universal fear. We see it happening all over the world, and no country is ever far away from a good old fashioned revolution.

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We get a nice Star Wars style prologue about how someone named PEC took over the government and eventually left the presidency to a general. The government takeover starts in 2013, and all of Mexico is ruled by the new leaders. We only see a flash of what happens in 2013, and then we jump ahead twenty years.

The story follows Pablo, a spoiled rich kid who has a government job thanks to his future stepdad, the general. He lives a life of frivolity, drugs and carelessness. For sport, we see him shoot homeless people from a helicopter. Eventually, his callousness is noticed by a priest who works for a resistance that plans to attack the government. Once Pablo joins in, the major story starts rolling at full speed.

I really found 2033 to be intriguing. There were so many questions that weren't being answered. As things started to fall in place piece by piece, I kept wanting more of the blanks to be filled in. By the end of the movie, I understood why my questions weren't answered. This is meant to be part of a series. I hope the sequels get made. I'm interested in seeing how Pablo evolves, how the resistance breaks through and if the general has a bigger part in all of this than he seems to.

I'd highly recommend this to sci-fi or even action fans. The movie looks beautiful, and it's acted very well. The characters are strong, and they develop slowly and effectively. You won't like Pablo at first, but you will by the end. Hopefully you'll be as excited for a sequel as I am.