Taglines: Have a nice end of the world.
The spirit of the mega-hit Ghostbusters (1984) is intentionally recalled with this effects-heavy sci-fi comedy from the same director, Ivan Reitman, co-starring Dan Aykroyd and debuting on the 17th anniversary of the earlier film’s release. When a meteor bearing single-celled organisms crashes to the Earth, the life forms are initially confined to a cave.
Before long the creatures are evolving at an exponentially rapid rate, resulting in fearsome aliens running amok and possibly spelling mankind’s doom, or at least the end of man’s domination over life on Earth. Investigating the phenomenon is a community college professor, Ira Kane (David Duchovny), his geologist friend Harry Block (Orlando Jones), wannabe fireman Wayne Green (Seann William Scott), and government scientist Allison Reed (Julianne Moore).
Evolution is a 2001 American science-fiction monster comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and starring David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Seann William Scott, Julianne Moore, and Ted Levine. It was released by DreamWorks in the United States and by Columbia Pictures internationally. The plot of the film follows college professor Ira Kane (David Duchovny) and geologist Harry Block (Orlando Jones), who investigate a meteor crash in Arizona. They discover that the meteor is harboring extraterrestrial life, which is evolving very quickly into large, diverse and outlandish creatures.
Evolution was based on a story by Don Jakoby, who turned it into a screenplay along with David Diamond and David Weissman. The movie was originally written as a serious horror science fiction film, until director Reitman re-wrote much of the script. Shooting took place in California with an $80 million budget, and the film was released in the United States on June 8, 2001.
The movie grossed $98,376,292 internationally. Reviews for the film were mixed, as the movie review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 42% positive rating. A short-lived animated series, Alienators: Evolution Continues, loosely based on the film, was broadcast months after the movie was released.
Evolution (2001)
Directed by: Ivan Reitman
Starring: David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Julianne Moore, Seann William Scott, Ted Levine, Ethan Suplee, Michael Bower, Katharine Towne, Michelle Wolff, Sarah Silverman
Screenplay by: David Diamond, David Weissman, Don Jakoby
Production Design by: J. Michael Riva
Cinematography by: Michael Chapman
Film Editing by: Wendy Greene Bricmont, Sheldon Kahn
Costume Design by: Aggie Guerard Rodgers
Set Decoration by: Lauri Gaffin
Art Direction by: David F. Klassen, Richard F. Mays
Music by: John Powell
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, and for sci-fi action.
Distributed by: DreamWorks Pictures (North America), Columbia Pictures (International)
Release Date: June 8, 2001
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