critics consensus

The Wandering Earth's story won't win many points for originality, but this sci-fi epic earns its thrills with exciting set pieces and dazzling special effects. Read critic reviews

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The Wandering Earth Photos

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Movie Info

When the sun dies out, the people of Earth build giant thrusters to move the planet out of orbit and sail to a new star system. After 2,500 years, young people continue the fight for everyone's survival.

Genre:

sci fi
Original Language:

Chinese
Director:

Frant Gwo
Producer:

Gong Geer
Writer:

Yan Dongxu, Gong Geer, Frant Gwo, Junce Ye, Yang Zhixue
Release Date (Theaters):

Feb 8, 2019 limited
Release Date (Streaming):

May 5, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA):

$2.2M
Runtime:

2h 5m
Production Co:

Beijing Jingxi Culture & Tourism Company, United Entertainment Partners, China Film Company Limited

Cast & Crew

Guangjie Li

Chuxiao Qu
Liu Qi

Man-Tat Ng

Jin Mai Jaho

Jing Wu

Jiayin Lei

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for The Wandering Earth

All Critics (37) | Top Critics (9) | Fresh (26) | Rotten (11)

It's almost impressive how Gwo manages to rip off "Gravity," "Sunshine," and "2001," all at the same time.

May 14, 2019 | Rating: D+ | Full Review…

David Ehrlich
indieWire
It's exactly the mix of cheesy and crowd-pleasing that you'd expect from a blockbuster, with eye-popping CGI sci-fi set dressing to give it a little extra oomph.

May 14, 2019 | Full Review…

Karen Han
Polygon
Critics well-versed in the relationship between state and cinema will undoubtedly have a lot to say about those themes, but this should not detract from the fact that, as a piece of broad entertainment, there is plenty to enjoy.

May 14, 2019 | Full Review…

Matthew Monagle
Austin Chronicle
Once you get past the ridiculous central conceit and all the info dumps the film is a sturdy romp with several cool set pieces of the frozen world, some stellar interpretations of Jupiter's Great Red Spot and a pleasantly hopeful, humanitarian message.

March 1, 2019 | Full Review…

Elizabeth Kerr
Hollywood Reporter
Proves that when it comes to watching special-effects extravaganzas in which stock characters scramble to intervene while the planet faces obliteration, it's a small world after all.

February 27, 2019 | Full Review…

Richard Kuipers
Variety
The characters remain archetypes, but the film eventually earns its syrupy sentimentality.

February 21, 2019 | Full Review…

Inkoo Kang
Slate
There's enough fun here to paper over the cracks, and Gwo does a serviceable job in ticking the right boxes and delivering an enjoyable mix of explosive thrills and melodrama

October 23, 2020 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

James Mudge
easternKicks.com
The idea, I admit, is interesting, but it's lazily executed. [Full review in Spanish]

July 19, 2020 | Rating: 5/10 | Full Review…

Yasser Medina
Cinemaficionados
The Wandering Earth isn't a bad film at all if you want to kill a few hours wondering what is going to explode next - it's just hampered by an overly-rigid and predictable structure.

January 8, 2020 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Luke Whiston
TheShiznit.co.uk
The "issues" of the blockbuster are all here, with the lack of logic (not to mention complete disregard for the laws of physics), the "thin" characters, the clichés, and the overall lack of depth

December 25, 2019 | Full Review…

Panos Kotzathanasis
Asian Movie Pulse
The Wandering Earth is definitely bold and silly, but when a film looks as gorgeous as this, it's hard not to be mesmerised.

November 6, 2019 | Rating: 6.7/10 | Full Review…

Katie Smith-Wong
VODzilla.co
[...] It matches the insanity and spectacle of a good Roland Emmerich movie and is far more consistently imaginative with its bizarre premise.

July 3, 2019 | Rating: 7/10 | Full Review…

Jennifer Heaton
Alternative Lens