I told you before that Netflix’s “Electric State” was a bust.
The Russo Brothers’ film cost $320 million. If it had gone to theaters, the box office stories would have been wild. It’s that bad. I’ve seen it now, and it’s quite atrocious.
Now that other people have seen it on the streaming platform, the Rotten Tomatoes number is down to 15%.
Will Netflix subscribers sample it? Why not? It’s there on the service.
But so much is wrong with it. “Electric State” is set in the 90s, and it’s about a war with robots. Millie Bobby Brown is the heroine, but the star is really Chris Pratt.
The look, feel, and tone are of a bad (really bad) “ET” kind movie from the 80s — think “ET” and “Gremlins” — somehow combined with “Guardians of the Galaxy.” There’s actually no plot.
What do the Russos bring to “Electric State”? It literally begins like a Marvel movie. The music is edited to scenes in such a way that this could be the lost chapter of the “Avengers.”
And then a cavalcade of well known actors start appearing, one after the other. Many of them are wearing Dust Busters on their heads with front facing video screens. (If you want to know where the $320 million went, you’ll see it in endless CG! and green screen.)
Pay days besides Millie and Pratt went to Holly Hunter (Holly Hunter is in this movie!) Stanley Tucci, Giancarlo Esposito, Ke Huy Quan, Jason Alexander, Colman Domingo, Marin Hinkle, Anthony Mackie, and even one of the Russo’s wives. When they speak you can actually see the gears turning as the actors try to figure what they’re saying.
“Electric State” will go down in history as the “Ishtar” or “Waterworld” of streaming, even more than another infamous Netflix film, “The Gray Man.” (Still waiting for that sequel!)
The only redeeming feature: “Electric State” is under two hours long. It just stops eventually, and we’re so lucky for that!
