Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow ***
Cast: Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Gambon, Bai Ling, Omid Djalili, Sir Laurence Olivier
Director: Kerry Conran
Running Length: 1:47
MPAA Classification: PG

When giant robots invade Manhattan, Joe "Sky Captain" Sullivan (Law) is called in to save the day. After stopping those robots, he is reunited with Polly Perkins (Paltrow), an old love and reporter. Apparently, the robot attack is tied to the disappearance of prominent scientists. Some research by Polly points to the mysterious Dr. Totenkoph (Laurence Olivier, in a computer-aided performance - he has been dead for a while now). Sky Captain embarks on a quest to find Totenkoph, and Polly will not be left behind.

To some extent "Sky Captain" is an exercise in style over substance. That's not to say that there is no story, it is just that the story serves to give the audience all those glorious visuals. The effects are amazing, and provide the movie with a look that I have never seen before. "Sky Captain" plays like a movie from the early twentieth century made with the effects technology of today. It is an original idea, and it is flawlessly executed. The effects are so great to look at that you do not realize the story is not the greatest. Perhaps it just seems a bit hokey in today's movie age...I am not a huge fan of old movies.

Law and Paltrow do good jobs in the lead roles. Angeline Jolie makes an appearance later in the film, but is by no means one of the leads. The most memorable role is Dex Dearborn, Sky Captain's sidekick played with a bit of quirkiness by Giovanni Ribisi. "Sky Captain" is a good "escape" movie, worth checking out, especially on the big screen.