The All-New Adventures of GORT.

Many were dreading this Fox Studio produced remake of the 50's sci-fi classic of The Day The Earth Stood Still. It was never going to come close to equaling that great picture, but it does a solid job of providing a fast paced, entertaining thriller.

It follows the same basic structure of the original, including key scenes with robot bodyguard GORT ans well as the blackboard scene with a nobel prize winning scientist (this time played by a very good John Cleese).

It differs in 2 ways. First, alien Klatu is much less human in character, providing a much easier individual for the thespially challenged Reeves to play. From a thriller stand-point it aids the film greatly, as you're never quite sure what intergalactic weirdo Keanu is going to do, which creates a decent amount of dramatic tension.

The other is the reason for Keanu's visit to Earth. No longer concerned of Humanity's nuclear threat; instead he seeks to protect the Earth's enviromental fragility from us pesky humans.
While it's a good idea, its not really incorporated into the structure of the movie as it was in the original. When the army attacked Klatuu and his spaceship in the 50's, it only reinforced the violent nature of humanity. When the army does the same thing this time, it does nothing to reinforce the different subtext.

So...like highboard diving into a 1 foot deep pool. Great fun to look at, but don't go diving 'cause there's nothing there.