AFTER EARTH
An intense father-and-son survival adventure best saved for home.
Should You Watch It?
AFTER EARTH has a strong center. Its father-and-son survival story pushes a strained relationship to the extreme, then gives both characters room to confront the pain of a tragic past. Their love and respect grow during the ordeal, and the son's journey to find an SOS beacon is thrilling and enjoyable.
The movie is also exciting and very intense at times. But its backstory is weak and incoherent, its direction is sloppy, and some dialogue is wooden. The film's environmentalist ideas are brief but nonsensical, and the intense sequences and violent images call for discernment.
For your family, WAIT FOR HOME: older children and adults may find worthwhile character growth, while parents can better judge the intense material in a home setting.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESOne thousand years in the future, humans have left Earth for a planet called Nova Prime. Legendary United Ranger Corps general Cypher Raige takes his son Kitai on a trip, hoping to reconnect with him.
When their spaceship is damaged and crashes on Earth, Cypher suffers a serious broken leg. Kitai must travel more than 100 kilometers through dangerous terrain to retrieve a beacon from the other half of the ship, while facing creatures and elements that can kill him.
Is It Any Good?
Two stars means AFTER EARTH has worthwhile thrills but falls short as a complete film. The creatures and natural elements pose a real threat, and Kitai's journey to find the SOS beacon is captivating. The father-and-son character arcs are compelling and inspiring.
The weaknesses are substantial. The backstory does not clearly explain how Earth became so dangerous, and the alien threat makes it even more complicated. Sloppy direction, poor lighting, gimmicky camera movements, and wooden dialogue further weaken the movie. Still, its strongest survival sequences and emotional relationship give it some real merit.
The Worldview
AFTER EARTH presents a humanist worldview in which people are expected to control their emotions, especially fear, and find courage within themselves. Cypher teaches Kitai to be void of emotions, but the film also stresses the moral importance of a father spending time with his son and relating to him. The story ultimately values love, respect, family connection, and courage.
The film's background says humans destroyed their planet and that Earth evolved into a dangerous world. It also mentions carbon fuels as a possible cause of the catastrophe. These environmentalist and evolution ideas are presented as part of the backstory, but they do not coherently explain the planet's condition.
The film's view of fear and courage departs from a biblical understanding. Scripture does call believers to courage, but not through emotional self-erasure: “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7). Its father-son reconciliation also points toward the goodness of patient, loving family relationships.
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Humanist Worldview and false religion of humans controlling their own emotions, courage, fear; some moral content stressing father should spend time with his son and relate; marred by the story’s environmentalist background that includes humans destroying their planet, and the planet “evolving” to a dangerous state, and carbon fuels is ridiculously mentioned as one of the possible causes of such a tremendous catastrophe, despite scientific evidence that this is probably impossible; one “d” obscenity; strong violence includes some strong violent images such as dead bodies hanging from trees with branches puncturing through, a pile of dead monkeys that were torn to pieces, an intense plane crash, a fight between a scary alien creature and our main character, a man seeks to fix his broken leg; no sexual content; no nudity; no alcohol; no smoking or drugs; and, a boy disobeys orders from his father and commanding officer in order to save them and a father isn’t very loving with his son, but the story resolves these things in the end.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Kitai and Cypher must face the damage in their relationship. What does it look like for a father and son to rebuild trust and show love?
Ephesians 6:4 · 1 Corinthians 13:4–7Cypher teaches Kitai to reject fear, while Scripture speaks of courage joined with love and self-control. How should we respond when we are afraid?
2 Timothy 1:7 · Psalm 56:3–4The film presents humans as having damaged their planet. What responsibilities has God given people toward the world He made?
Genesis 1:28 · Genesis 2:15Kitai disobeys orders in an effort to save his father. When is obedience difficult, and how should love shape our choices?
John 15:13 · Philippians 2:3–4The Final Word
AFTER EARTH offers exciting survival sequences and a moving father-and-son arc, but weak world-building and sloppy filmmaking keep it from being a strong recommendation. Watch it at home, where you can guide older children through the intense material and worldview concerns. WAIT FOR HOME. For other family choices, see.
