'Greenland 2: Migration' review: Post-apocalyptic thriller seeks even greener pastures

SF Studios

So this is how you expel Americans out of Greenland and keep it that way. Take notes. Everyone's favourite family unit returns in Greenland 2: Migration, a rollicking post-apocalyptic thriller with whimsy and adventure, which serves as a sequel to 2020's 'Greenland'. Gerard Butler and Morena Baccarin are also back as John and Allison Garrity respectively, while Roman Griffin Davis portrays the dream couple's teenage son Nathan now. A few years after the Garritys found refuge in a bunker in Greenland, where a community of survivors has built a functioning society to a degree, the family is forced to evacuate when the country is hit by an earthquake and a tsunami. They along with some other survivors make landfall in England, and the trio begins their treacherous journey towards mainland Europe where there is allegedly an area that isn't a dangerous wasteland, offering a little bit of hope for humanity.

Because the first film was such a delightful surprise as a slightly more grounded disaster flick and it definitely didn't need a sequel, the very first question that "Migration" has to answer is "Why are we returning to this place after all these years?". The answer is partly that Hollywood can't leave good things alone when they're at least semi-successful, and partly because there's seemingly an earnest attempt to deliver a message of hope, rebuilding and unselfishness. Penned by Chris Sparling and Mitchell LaFortune, the screenplay—based on the characters created by the former writer—does occasionally find resonance in those themes as we see Allison and John risk their lives and bodies in order to find a safe, somewhat normal life for Nathan and themselves. It's just unfortunate that different elements within that script and the movie as a whole do not mesh well enough for you to be truly invested in the outcome.

Director Ric Roman Waugh and his fellow creatives have mostly adopted a "more is more" attitude, which results in the loss of human story, intimacy and empathy that made the previous instalment so engaging. Even technically it's a mixed bag since the visual effects are rather uneven because there are more dangers and only so much time and money given to artists. Talk about biting more than you can chew. And while the pace (set by editor Colby Parker Jr.) is pretty unrelenting, there's no time for the characterisations and family drama to breathe. Perhaps Waugh and co. determined that the dialogue, character depth and emotional beats weren't working and hence they decided to turn in a fast-moving 95-minute thriller with quick cuts instead, but that just means the film didn't live up to its full potential.

Regardless, I can confidently say that I was bored with the drama, unimpressed by the painfully humdrum filmmaking and extremely annoyed with the new-disaster-every-15-minutes structure—clearly borrowing from cheap studio horrors that must have a jump scare every 15 minutes. Frankly, I didn't really care about this family at all after the first 30-minute stretch, which does feature a harrowing catastrophe and well-executed escape. Furthermore, I'm fairly certain I'm not in the minority with these opinions.

Baccarin and Butler deliver performances that are unremarkable but decent, which is kind of impressive considering the shoddy dialogue they're given. Davis struggles to match the level of presence of those two actors, which is another reason why the family stuff doesn't quite work, but even less effective is the collage of secondary characters that the script consumes and spits out either with unnecessary cruelty or complete indifference. That is fitting, though, because indifference may be a perfect tag for Migration. You most likely won't think about this movie ever again once you've stepped out of the theatre, which is rather disappointing.

Smileys: None

Frowneys: Characterisation

I'm surprised that the British soldiers hit Adam. You'd think they'd want to hit the John.

2.0/5

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