Memory is a strange thing. It doesn’t work like I thought it did. We are so bound by time, by its order. But now I am not so sure I believe in beginnings and endings.
– Arrival (2016)
In 2019, director Frant Gwo released The Wandering Earth into theaters, kicking off a brand-new sci-fi action concept via the adaptation of author Liu Cixin’s 2017 novella The Wandering Earth, and ending up the #5 highest-grossing non-English film of all time in the process. It makes sense, then, that more stories would follow, though the twist here is that the follow-up film, The Wandering Earth II, is a prequel. Written by returning The Wandering Earth I scribes Gwo, Gong Geer, Yang Zhixue, and new first-time feature writer Ye Ruchang, II is an action-packed sci-fi adventure running just shy of three-hours that will likely delight fans of the original film, but may prove to be too much for new adventurers. Why? The approach is heavy on exposition, location jumping, and action to the point that the large ensemble of characters grows more and more difficult to care about even as the stakes grow ever higher and the cost ever steeper.
L-R: Wu Jing as Liu Peiqiang and Wang Zhi as Han Duoduo in THE WANDERING EARTH II. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Upon learning that the sun is entering its red giant phase and beginning its slow expansion that will engulf Earth, world governments eventually join together to form a United Earth Government in order to pool resources and devise a plan. The primary plan is to install engines on both Earth and the moon in order to break the planet free from its orbit so as to move it to a lightyears-away solar system that may be habitable, but an opposition group known as the Digital Lifers would rather put their resources into digitizing all of humanity to live without protected servers. As time ticks down, a select group of individuals will find that their respective choices will make the difference between total annihilation of humankind or a new start.
L-R: Andy Lau as Tu Hengyu and Ning Li as Ma Zhao in THE WANDERING EARTH II. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Because II is advertised as a prequel, this reviewer jumped in having not seen the first film. Ordinarily, in covering a sequel, I do the homework necessary to understand what I’m covering, otherwise, how is it possible to give the film a fair opportunity? I don’t tend to feel this pressure with a prequel as it iss, by its own nature, occurring before the original story and therefore should be able to stand on its own merits. Oddly, I don’t think II is as much of a prequel as it sets out to be (more on that later), so there still remains quite a bit about the film that feels as though one needs to have seen the 2019 story in order to fully grasp the meaning and intent of actions and concepts established here.
However, there is no denying the absolute spectacle that II is, providing some of the grandest and most impressive action sequences of 2023. It doesn’t matter if it’s a gravity-challenged battle between Wu Jing’s (Ride On) Liu Peiqiang and a Digital Lifer aboard a lunar shuttle, a dog fight between UEG pilots and malfunctioning drones, or blowing up the moon, the staging of each one is captured in such a way that each is uniquely breathtaking. It certainly helps that the viewing of the film occurred on a 63-inch Sony Bravia while sitting within 9 ft of the screen, thereby getting the appropriate ratio to take in the scale Gwo seeks to accomplish while in the theater. Speaking of, the way returning cinematographer Liu Yin executes some shots, such as the escalating spin of the camera as it moves backward to capture the long rows of UEG pilots as they prepare for a major mission, conveys a grandness that absolutely raises the intensity of the moment. In the case of the aforementioned shot by Liu Yin, I think that also works to convey the messaging of time that’s slowly worked into the dialogue and is meant to communicate a subconscious sense of eternity until the spin grows rather intense just before pivoting to the next scene/location. Credit especially to the VFX team whose work blends almost entirely seamlessly whether in daytime and nighttime sequences compared to films produced in the U.S. which tend to struggle to maintain their solvency when the sun is out.
This issue of time (do the characters have enough of it, what is the next problem to be address, who is getting in the way) is handled in a rather unexpected way. Repeatedly throughout the film, title cards pop up and let the audience know exactly how long in-world the characters have until the next incident. Having not seen the first film, it’s hard to say if this is a stylistic callback to Wandering Earth or newly-established for II, but it reduces a great deal of the drama of a scene because we, the audience, often already know whether or not something goes to plan due to these cards. Instead, it’s just a matter of how and what the reverberations for the series are as a result of that choice that bring us to the determined outcome. Forgive the vagaries, but as we did not review this theatrically, we’re striving to be as spoiler-free as possible. The point is, that because time is itself something to be considered, does knowing the outcome reduce the tension? With the way it’s handled here, yes, it does seem that way. Then again, this is also coming from someone who fails to grow emotional by the end of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) for many reasons, but one of them being that I knew the outcome before the journey began and, therefore, amid the other issues, failed to form a bound with any of the characters. With II, even having not seen the first film, there’s an overwhelming sense of who’s important and who’s not, but we’re not given enough to understand their relative significance to grow invested beyond the superficial, something which may not occur if we had a relationship to them via the first story — the problem of a prequel that’s treated like a sequel.
L-R: Wu Jing as Liu Peiqiang, Wang Zhi as Han Duoduo, and Liu Jiayun as Liu Qi in THE WANDERING EARTH II. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Unfortunately, whether you’re a fan of the series or just jumping in for the first time (like this reviewer), there are no bonus materials included with this home release to expand one’s knowledge. No behind-the-scenes featurettes on the digital construction of so many set pieces. No interviews with returning cast or new members. Not even a single marketing event-type promo that often accompanies so many Well Go USA releases. Instead, we have one trailer for II and three previews for other Well Go projects. Considering the film hit theaters in January of 2023, one can only presume that there’s a rights issue or deal in which any type of extras are limited on official stateside editions. It’s at least worth noting that the sound is balanced beautifully so that the action is immersive when produced via my Yamaha 5.1 Surround Sound system and the visuals are stunning, even in a 1080p HD up-converted via my 4K UHD Sony disc player. There may not be any bonus materials, but the home release presentation will undoubted satisfy fans.
Andy Lau as Tu Hengyu in THE WANDERING EARTH II. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Ultimately, The Wandering Earth II doesn’t work as an engaging prequel because it jumps between extended bouts of exposition to establish concepts, action sequences, and character moments that only folks who have seen the first film will really appreciate. As a prequel, it does so much world building (amid world-ending events), that aspects become convoluted to the point where one may struggle to feel the intended emotions. *However,* upon finishing the film and running initial thoughts off the cuff toward EoM editor Crystal Davidson, who was not in attendance while I screened the film, a theory formed: what if II is less of a prequel than described and more of a proper sequel, just told out of order? Having not seen the first film yet, I presumed that this film would be easier to track, yet it raises so many questions because it presumes you’ve seen the original story. One of the main concepts slowly explored in II is the idea of time being fluid, that past, present, and future are happening all at once. So what if that’s the idea of these films? Chronology doesn’t matter in the traditional sense because it’s all happening at once. Given the success of the first two films, a third film seems like a given, so it may mean a reevaluation may occur should the theory hold water. But, for now, II is something that fans of the series are more likely to appreciate over those, such as myself, who came to it late.
Available on Blu-ray and DVD December 19th, 2023.
For more information, head to the official Well Go USA The Wandering Earth II webpage.
Final Score: 3 out of 5.
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Categories: Home Release, Home Video, Recommendation, Reviews
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