Crater(film)

Crateris a 2023 Americanscience fictionadventure filmdirected byKyle Patrick Alvarezand written by John Griffin. It stars Isaiah Russell-Bailey,Mckenna Grace,Billy Barratt,Orson Hong, Thomas Boyce, andScott Mescudi.Craterwas released onDisney+on May 12, 2023,but was removed from the service on June 30, 2023.It was later re-released digitally on September 26, 2023.It generally received positive reviews from critics.

Crater
Official teaser poster
Directed by	Kyle Patrick Alvarez
Written by	John Griffin
Produced by	Dan Cohen Dan Levine Shawn Levy
Starring	Isaiah Russell-Bailey Mckenna Grace Billy Barratt Orson Hong Thomas Boyce Scott Mescudi
Cinematography	Jas Shelton
Edited by	James W. Harrison III
Music by	Dan Romer Osei Essed
Production companies	Walt Disney Pictures 21 Laps Entertainment
Distributed by	Disney+
Release date	May 12, 2023(2023-05-12)
Running time	105 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

In 2257, humans have mined the Moon for resources, following the failure to colonize it. Miners are forced to work for 20 years before they are allowed to take a shuttle to colonize another planet called Omega. Should someone die before their allotted years are filled, their next of kin must fill out the remaining years plus their own 20 if they are over the age of 18. Caleb Channing's father, Michael, dies in a mining accident and in his last will and testament orders that Caleb be sent to Omega as he is under 18. Caleb does not want to leave as his father left him a map to a crater on the Moon that he promised to go see. Nevertheless, he has three days before he is to be taken away.

Caleb gets his best friend Dylan, and their friends Borney and Marcus to agree to go out in a rover to the crater. In order to do so, Dylan recruits Addison Weaver, the daughter of a highly respected scientist from Earth, to help give them the passcodes to leave the base. Addison agrees on the condition that she come along as well. The five take the rover and drive out on the surface of the Moon before stopping to admire the view. During their journey, each of the kids reveal things about themselves such as Borney's neurotic tendencies being the result of his older brother telling him stories and Marcus having a heart condition that he needs to take pills for. Dylan reveals that his father nearly abandoned him and his mother due to his work in the mines.

As they play with the oxygen cannisters in a game of launch, Borney nearly gets launched into space, but the other kids rescue him. Having lost a lot of oxygen, they locate an outpost and head there to discover that it is actually a model home for when humans planned to colonize the Moon. The kids find oxygen and food and spend the night. Addison regales stories about Earth history and her fear of humanity losing it all to time. Following her parents' divorce, her mother decided to take her younger brother Charlie with her to Omega, saddening her. The kids take the rover out the next day, only for it to run out of battery. Addison presses the emergency call button before they head out to the crater.

The kids arrive at the crater to discover that it is a giant glowing cube that is an entrance to an underground bunker containing a pond and a tree. They find a hidden button and the bunker simulates the surface of the Earth. Inside a hidden crevice in the floor with a star scratched on, Caleb finds his mother's ashes and a photo of his parents and places his father's ashes next to his mother's. Caleb comes to the realization that his father killed himself so that he can go to Omega and refuses to leave, but Dylan tells him that he must go. Marcus suddenly collapses from his heart condition and the kids are forced to take him back to the rover, only for a meteor storm to come. They manage to make it back, but Dylan's visor is cracked by a falling rock, knocking him unconscious and the front window of the rover is broken, forcing the kids to continue wearing their suits. Caleb manages to make peace with Dylan as their oxygen runs low and rescuers come.

Caleb awakens to discover that he has already been taken to Omega, devastated that he never got to say goodbye to his friends. He is given a recording device and learns that his friends are all okay and that they were allowed to send a message to him once a year during Caleb's 75-year journey to Omega. Caleb learns that Marcus started a baseball team, and that Addison started a strike to improve the contracts for the miners. They succeeded with Borney becoming the lead administrator. Dylan and Addison eventually got married, had kids, and later grandkids. Caleb comes across Charlie and the two of them share stories.

Cast

• Isaiah Russell-Bailey as Caleb
• Mckenna Graceas Addison
• Billy Barrattas Dylan
• Orson Hong as Borney
• Thomas Boyce as Marcus
• Scott Mescudias Michael
• Selenis Leyvaas Maria
• Hero Hunter as a younger Caleb
• Carson Minniear as Charlie
• Michael Papajohnas a miner
• Brad Davidorf as an adult Dylan
• Dann Florekas an older Dylan

Production

Thespec scriptby John Griffin was initially featured on the 2015Black List,an annual list of the best unproduced screenplays of the year, where it received 34 votes.On November 8, 2017, it was announced that20th Century Foxhad purchased the script from a pitch byvisual effects supervisorRpin Suwannath.However, as a result of theacquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney,development on the project was halted.Shawn Levywas initially in negotiations to direct the film, before being replaced byKyle Patrick Alvarezon January 12, 2021. Levy was now attached to produce the project instead alongside his21 Laps Entertainmentproduction partnerDan Levine.Due to the acquisition of Fox, the film was shifted to Disney's streaming serviceDisney+for an exclusive streaming premiere instead of the traditional theatrical release.

In March 2021,Mckenna Gracewas cast in the film alongside Isaiah Russell-Bailey,Billy Barratt,Orson Hong, and Thomas Boyce.Scott Mescudiwas cast in May.Brady Noonwas reportedly playing a character named Hector,but he does not appear in the final film.

Principal photographybegan on June 21, 2021, at Celtic Studios inBaton Rouge, Louisiana.Filming also took place inLos Angelesand lasted until August 20, 2021.A first look image of the film was shared on March 29, 2023.

Release

The film was released onDisney+on May 12, 2023 and was removed from the service on June 30, 2023 as part of the Disney+/Hulucontent purge.In response to backlash surrounding this, it was re-released digitally on multiple platforms includingAmazon Prime Video,VuduandGoogle Playon September 26, 2023.

Reception

On thereview aggregatorwebsiteRotten Tomatoes,66% of 44 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6/10.Metacritic,which uses aweighted average,assigned the film a score of 65 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

Brandon Yu ofThe New York TimescalledCrater"lighthearted" and "fun," saying,Craterdoes well not straining itself trying to please audiences beyond the family crowd. Most of all, the film is surprisingly nimble at incorporating an emotional core that makes its story more interesting than the adventure itself. "Valerie Complex ofDeadline Hollywoodpraised the production design and complimented the performances of the cast, stating, "While the film can be hokey at times and super convenient for the protagonists,Crateris a film with something to say about the labor force as well as an environmental message about cherishing and preserving the Earth and all it has to offer. "Michael Nordine ofVarietypraised the performance ofMckenna Graceand said that the film offers a "quiet voice to its characters’ fraught plight."

Mini Anthikad Chhibber ofThe HindufoundCraterto be a "heart-warming adventure story" and praised the performances of the actors.Robert Daniels ofRogerEbert.comgave the film a grade of 3 out of 4 stars and praisedKyle Patrick Alvarez's direction, asserting, "Cratermight be too dark on a thematic level for some tweens, but the light it brings into the genre makes Alvarez’s film a soul-stirring escapade, one that introduces young audiences to ways to reform the fractured world they call home. "Jennifer Green ofCommon Sense MediagaveCratera grade of 3 out of 5 stars, complimented the presence of positive messages and role models, courage and perseverance across the characters, and praised the diverse representations.

External links

• CrateratIMDb