I Am Number Four, as noted in almost all other reviews, is an amalgamation of just about all the other hot franchise properties from the past decade. We’ve got: superhero origin story (Superman, Spider-Man, etc.), Jedi-like powers and a Star Wars mentor-protégé relationship, conflict between otherworldly races (Underworld), teen romance (Twilight), Harry Potter-like Voldemort villains, even Lord of the Rings (or Eragon, rather) fantasy creatures.
It’s all cobbled together surprisingly well by D.J. Caruso, who directs this mishmash at a lightning-quick pace; storylines fly by so fast we often don’t have time to consider their value. A result of this, however, is a fantasy film without much confidence invested in the fantasy. As lines about Loriens and Mogadorians are tossed out without conviction by the filmmakers, they tend to draw laughs from a thinking audience.
Number Four (Alex Pettyfer) is a member of an alien race, jettisoned to Earth as an infant as his home planet of Lorien was ravaged, now trying to blend in as a highschooler in the U.S. His “guardian” Henri (Timothy Olyphant) also serves as his father, and moves the boy from town to town when locals get too suspicious of the random outbursts of radiant blue pubescent superpowers (which are lifted, almost directly, from the video game inFamous).
We learn at the outset that there are, or rather were, Numbers One through Three; they’ve been killed by the Mogadorians, who wiped out Lorien and have come to Earth to finish the job. The Numbers go up to Nine, but because the Mogadorians are killing them in order for some reason, Four is the next on their list.
This causes complications at his new high school, where he’s befriended the nerd (Callan McAuliffe), wooed the popular but sensitive girl (Dianna Agron), and become enemies with the jock (Jake Abel). Fortunately, ever-developing powers and hot Aussie Number Six (Teresa Palmer) come to his aid.
I Am Number Four is breezy, lightweight, and, thankfully, doesn’t take itself too seriously – or rather, director Caruso doesn’t (the script is another beast).
It would be fun, or at least fun enough, if it weren’t for the blatant pandering to various demographics, which pulls the film in five different directions: of all the varying elements here – sci-fi, fantasy, romance, comic book superhero, high school drama, even Dan Brown conspiracy – none are sufficiently explored. And everything seems lifted from other productions.
Pettyfer, just 21, is already a stone-chiseled action hero with the acting skills to match; he may not have range, but he’s an agreeable presence in the lead. Olyphant – a legitimately good actor who too-frequently appears in less-than-good product – seems to be in another film altogether.
The rest of the cast fails to make much of an impression, save for Kevin Durand as the leader of the Mogadorians, who seems to be doing a cross between Vincent D’Onofrio’s alien-infested character in Men in Black and The Silence of the Lambs‘ Buffalo Bill.
I Am Number Four is based on the novel of the same name by Pittacus Lore, a pseudonym for co-writers James Frey and Jobie Hughes. Frey, you may recall, was torn to pieces on Oprah over his hoax memoir A Million Little Pieces. There’s some relevance here, I think, in the mindset of wanting to create something “popular”, and taking your audience for granted. This time, it’s resulted in an inferior product.
