The Fifth Wave (2016) - The worst of its kind - 4/10 (29/03/16)

''The 5th Wave'' is one of the worst in a series of dystopian coming-of-age dramas with female lead actresses where quantity beats quality. This movie stands out negatively because of a plot that lacks depth and explanations. There is an increasing number of scenes towards the end of the film that are so unrealistic that they feel like a misguided genre parody. An overall extremely exchangeable acting performance makes things even worse. The movie lacks tension and has noticeable lengths. It tries to be atmospheric at times but overall lacks consistent intensity as some parts of the film are dominated by vapid side plots focusing on generic dialogues. The visual special effects are also surprisingly unspectacular for such an ambitious production. Since this movie has another ridiculous open ending, I would urge you not to watch this film because you might feel obliged to watch future sequels that might be even worse.

Despite all its flaws, this movie has a few positive elements to be fair. First of all, Chloë Grace Moretz is one of the more talented teenage actresses of this generation and she is the only reason why one should even consider watching this film. Her acting performance finds the right mixture between emotionality and maturity to convince related to the story and her age. Even the usual predictable love story between the two lead characters was more credible than I had expected. Another positive element are two twists in the last third of the story which were rather predictable for me but which might take younger audiences by surprise. The few atmospheric scenes that take place in the camp and in the forest were shot efficiently. The middle part of the movie was overall stronger than the lacklustre and overlong introduction and the laughable coda with its disappointing open ending. The middle section is also where the best fighting scenes and special effects take place that accelerate this surprisingly slow-paced movie a little bit. 

Still, this movie has more negative than positive elements and is obviously weaker than he comparable ''The Hunger Games'', the ''Divergent'' and ''The Maze Runner'' series. Only faithful fans of Chloë Grace Moretz should give this a try. This movie might be of a good average quality for teenagers who like the genre but is unappropriated for younger audiences and simply boring for older audiences.