Moonfall Is (Unintentionally) Hilarious and Epic

I’m sure it will come as little surprise to anybody that Roland Emmerich’s Moonfall is a big and unsophisticated disaster epic. Given that Emmerich’s filmography ranges from the quintessential ’90s sci-fi epic Independence Day to the laughably poignant The Day After Tomorrow, how much would one expect from a picture where the moon is in on a collision course with Earth? Anyone expecting a scientifically astute picture will be let down. However, those willing to go along with this picture’s ridiculous narrative of over-the-top thrills will be in for a movie so bad it narrowly becomes a magnificent dose of popcorn entertainment.

Jocinda Fowler (Halle Berry) and Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) are stranded astronauts in the sci-fi epic Moonfall. Reiner Bajo/Lionsgate

I sat next to the physics department of the University of Minnesota while watching this movie, and that’s probably the best possible audience to watch such a film with. Within seconds of the exposition about the moon’s orbit being thrown off, they were already cracking up. As the absurdity of the moon’s truth is revealed, their laughs grew louder and spread throughout the theater. The ridiculousness of this big-budget B movie is something so special that it makes for one heck of an unintentional comedy.

The premise is quite similar to Armageddon. With the moon mere days from smashing into the planet and ending the human race, the misfits are the only ones who can save us all from complete destruction. Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) is an astronaut who lost a crew member on a space mission that he believes went awry due to an attack of an alien force. Jocinda Fowler (Halle Berry) is the NASA deputy director who was on that mission with Brian and currently finds herself struggling to make her voice heard in an organization that won’t listen to her warnings. And speaking of unheard voices, the conspiracy theorist KC Houseman (John Bradley) is finding this doomsday scenario is his time to shine. Now everybody will have to listen to his ridiculous theories about the moon being a megastructure!

Courtesy of Lionsgate

From this premise, you can spot all the familiar tropes right away. Harper is divorced and does his best to keep his rebellious teenage son out of prison, only for the apocalypse to bring out the best in this troublemaker. Fowler is also divorced but has a younger son who asks cute questions about what’s happening to the moon and if we’re all going to die. Houseman’s mother is an aged woman not long for this world and Houseman, the geeky dork who could barely get a fast-food job, is hoping he can prove himself to her. Then you’ve got the sacrificing stepdad, the trigger-happy military, the fast-and-loose science, and so much more. If you’re keeping track of all of Emmerich’s hallmarks, you’ll find yourself scribbling wildly. And though I’d never advise a drinking game for these traits in other movies, I most definitely wouldn’t recommend it here.

I’m so very tempted to reveal the third-act twist of what’s really going on with the moon, but I wouldn’t want to rob you of the joy that comes with the discovery. I doubt that if I did spill the beans it could properly convey just how much hilarity comes about. Let’s put it this way: the grand reveal is delivered by a child, and that’s the best option for such wild and left-field exposition. Hearing this story come out of the mouth of a kid gives the film an adorable nature of a child making up a story as they go along.

John Bradley as K.C. Houseman Halle Berry as Jocinda Fowler. Reiner Bajo/Lionsgate

There are plenty of big and chaotic special effects as well that should please the thrill seekers hopping into the theater for little else. Scenes of waves rushing over cities and skyscrapers being torn out of the ground as explosions litter Earth are certainly as epic as one would expect from Emmerich. The events also get weirder once the moon draws closer and gravity starts warping, leading to a space shuttle launch underwater. If that sight makes you cackle with a brain-melting moment of questioning why this is happening, you’re not alone.

I couldn’t stop laughing at the dialogue as well. The best lines are any that involve the moon, treating the looming threat like a monster that may help or kill you. It doesn’t matter who is delivering such lines, as they’re absurd enough on paper, and hearing them spoken out loud by even the best of actors is comedy gold. I also loved how characters just immediately knew when the oxygen was leaving their part of the globe and when it returned by simply stating that it was returning. Great intuition there! Lest you think this is all on purpose, the picture also features two Elon Musk references that generated the loudest of groans more than the intended smirks and snickers. That misfire is reassuring, giving off the sensation that the stuff you’re laughing at wasn’t intentional.

Courtesy of Lionsgate

Moonfall won’t win over anybody who already finds disaster movies to be a loud mess, and this is certainly the biggest of messes with the most over-the-top of action-packed peril destined for the so-bad-it’s-good pantheon of bad movies. I love this movie so much for all the wrong reasons and will never forget nearly falling out of my seat from laughter when a space shuttle flies into the moon’s butt.