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The Wandering Earth

2019, Sci-fi, 2h 5m

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Critics Consensus

The Wandering Earth 's story won't win many points for originality, but this sci-fi epic earns its thrills with exciting set pieces and dazzling special effects. Read critic reviews

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When the sun dies out, the people of Earth build giant thrusters to move the planet out of orbit and sail to a new star system. After 2,500 years, young people continue the fight for everyone's survival.

Genre: Sci-fi

Original Language: Chinese

Director: Frant Gwo

Producer: Gong Geer

Writer: Yan Dongxu , Gong Geer , Frant Gwo , Junce Ye , Yang Zhixue

Release Date (Theaters): Feb 8, 2019  limited

Release Date (Streaming): May 5, 2019

Box Office (Gross USA): $2.2M

Runtime: 2h 5m

Production Co: Beijing Jingxi Culture & Tourism Company, United Entertainment Partners, China Film Company Limited

Cast & Crew

Li Guangjie

Jin Mai Jaho

Hongchen Li

Yichi Zhang

Jingjing Qu

Screenwriter

Yang Zhixue

Frank Michael Liu

Cinematographer

Ka-Fai Cheung

Film Editing

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wandering earth 2019

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"The Wandering Earth" cured my winter depression. 

Seriously: on opening night, I happily joined a packed Times Square auditorium-full of moviegoers watching this science-fiction adventure, which stars a talented ensemble of of Mandarin-speaking actors trying to stop the Earth from crashing into Jupiter. I left the theater hoping that "The Wandering Earth"  would be one of this year's Chinese New Year's hits . It grossed $300 million in China during its opening week alone, a hopeful sign that we'll see more entertainment as assured as this.

The setup might seem familiar at first. Two teams of astronauts fight to save the Earth years after its leaders transformed it into a planet-sized spaceship to escape destruction by an overactive sun. The first team is a two-man skeleton crew: the square-jawed Peiqiang Liu ( Jing Wu ) and his Russian cosmonaut buddy Makarov ( Arkady Sharogradsky ). The other is a small exploratory group led by Peiqiang's feisty twentysomething son Qi Liu (Chuxio Qu) and his upbeat partner Duoduo Han (Jinmai Zhao). These factions respectively spend most of their time battling MOSS, an unhelpful computer in a remote space station; and exploring an ice-covered Earth in stolen all-terrain vehicles (some of which bring to mind "Total Recall," specifically the tank-sized drill-cars).

But while director Frant Gwo and his writing team blend Cixin Liu's source novel with elements from American-made sci-fi disaster films—including " Armageddon ," " The Day After Tomorrow ," and "Sunshine"—they synthesize them in a visually dynamic, emotionally engaging way that sets the project apart from its Western cousins, and marks it as a great and uniquely Chinese science fiction film.

For one thing, rather than build the tale around a lone hero ringed by supporting players, "The Wandering Earth" distributes bravery generously amid an ensemble that includes action hero Wu; rising stars Qu and Zhao; and comedy institution Man-Tat Ng, who plays a grey-bearded spaceman named Zi'ang Ha. The script, credited to a team of six, never valorizes a singular chest-puffing hero, nor does it scapegoat a mustache-twirling antagonist (not even MOSS, the sentient, HAL-9000-style computer program in the space station). 

The teamwork theme is cross-generational, too. Both Peiqiang and Ng (formerly the straight man to film comedy superstar  Stephen Chow ) are treated with reverence because they're older, and are therefore presumed to have more experience and stronger moral fiber. The veterans work well with the film's younger astronauts, whose optimism makes them as brazen as they are idealistic. 

This apolitical blockbuster about a post-climate-change disaster extends its belief in teamwork to the rest of the international community. The movie is filled with narrative diversions that reassure viewers that no single country's leaders are smarter, more responsible, or more capable than the rest—except, of course, for the Chinese.

Second, "The Wandering Earth" looks better than most American special-effects spectaculars because it gives you breathing space to admire landscape shots of a dystopian Earth that suggest old fashioned matte-paintings on steroids. Although Gwo and his team realized their expensive-looking vision with the help of a handful of visual effects studios, including the  Weta Workshop , they have somehow blended their many influences in bold, stylish ways that only Hollywood filmmakers like James Cameron and Steven Spielberg have previously managed.  

Third, the film's creators breathe new life into hackneyed tropes. Gwo and his team take a little extra time to show off the laser beams, steering wheels, and hydraulic joints on their space cars and exoskeleton suits, to make the gear seem unique. And the storytelling goes extra mile to show viewers the emotional stress and natural obstacles that the characters must overcome while solving scientifically credible dilemmas (all vetted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences). This movie may not be the next " 2001: A Space Odyssey ," but it's everything "2010: The Year We Make Contact" should have been (and I like "2010," a lot).

A week after seeing "The Wandering Earth," I'm still marveling at how good it is. I can't think of another recent computer-graphics-driven blockbuster that left me feeling this giddy because of its creators' can-do spirit and consummate attention to detail. The future is here, and it is nerve-wracking, gorgeous, and Chinese.

Simon Abrams

Simon Abrams

Simon Abrams is a native New Yorker and freelance film critic whose work has been featured in  The New York Times ,  Vanity Fair ,  The Village Voice,  and elsewhere.

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Film Credits

The Wandering Earth movie poster

The Wandering Earth (2019)

125 minutes

Li Guangjie

Jin Mai Jaho

Qu Jingjing

Arkady Sharogradsky

Cinematographer

  • Michael Liu
  • Ka-Fai Cheung

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  • Movie Review

China’s blockbuster The Wandering Earth is gorgeous, goofy, and on Netflix now

The country’s first big-budget science fiction epic is often familiar, but it does spectacle on an impressive scale.

By Tasha Robinson

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wandering earth 2019

This review was originally published in February 2019, when the film was released in China, and in a limited theatrical run in America. It has been updated to reflect the film’s release on Netflix .

We’re living through a fascinating era of rapid change for the blockbuster movie model. America producers, eager to get their $200 million movies into the lucrative Chinese market, are increasingly looking for Chinese production partners, shooting in Chinese locations, and adding China-friendly characters and plotlines to American movies , even including extra scenes just for the Chinese cuts of films. But simultaneously, China and other countries are moving toward the blockbuster model themselves, creating homegrown films that don’t need to involve American partners at all.

And just as American films attempt to find paydays in foreign markets, foreign blockbusters are coming to America. The Wandering Earth , China’s hugely successful big-budget science fiction thriller, quietly slipped onto Netflix over the weekend, after a limited American theatrical run a few months ago. It shows a new side of Chinese filmmaking — one focused on futuristic spectacles rather than China’s traditionally grand, massive historical epics. At the same time, The Wandering Earth feels like a throwback to a few familiar eras of American filmmaking. While the film’s cast, setting, and tone are all Chinese, longtime science fiction fans are going to see a lot on the screen that reminds them of other movies, for better or worse.

The film, based on a short story by Three-Body Problem author Cixin Liu, lays out a crisis of unprecedented proportions: the sun has become unstable, and within a hundred years, it will expand to consume Earth. Within 300, the entire solar system will be gone. Earth’s governments rally and unite to face the problem, and come up with a novel solution: they speckle the planet with 10,000 gigantic jets, and blast it out of its orbit and off on a hundred-generation journey to a new home 4.2 light-years away. The idea is to use Jupiter’s gravitational well to pick up speed for the trip, but a malfunction of the Earth Engine system leaves the planet caught in Jupiter’s gravity, and gradually being pulled toward destruction. A frantic group of workers have to scramble to reactivate the jets and correct the Earth’s course.

The action takes place in two arenas simultaneously. On the Earth’s frigid surface, self-proclaimed genius Liu Qi (Qu Chuxiao) and his younger adopted sister Han Duoduo (Zhao Jinmai) get roped into the rescue efforts after they run away from home. Han is just curious to see the planet’s surface — most of humanity now lives in crowded underground cities, and the surface is for workers only — but Liu Qi is nursing a deeper grudge against his astronaut father Liu Peiqiang (longtime martial-arts movie star Wu Jing) and grandfather (Ng Man-tat, whom Western audiences might recognize from Stephen Chow’s Shaolin Soccer ). When Liu Qi was a child, his father moved to a newly-built international space station, designed to move ahead of Earth as a guide and pathfinder. Now an adult, Liu Qi feels his father abandoned him, and wants to strike out independently.

Meanwhile, on the space station, Liu Peiqiang is ironically a day away from completing his 17-year tour of duty and returning to Earth and his family when the crisis hits. The station’s artificial intelligence, MOSS, insists on putting the station’s personnel in hibernation to save energy, but Liu Peiqiang realizes the computer has a secret agenda, and he and a Russian cosmonaut set out to defy it.

wandering earth 2019

The entire space plot may feel suspiciously familiar to American audiences, who have a strong emotional touchstone when it comes to a calm-voiced computer in space telling a desperate astronaut that it can’t obey his orders, even when human lives are on the line, because it has orders of its own. MOSS even looks something like the HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey : it’s represented as a red light on a gimbled panel, like a single unblinking, judgmental red eye. But a good deal of Liu Peiqiang’s space adventure also plays out like a sequence from Alfonso Cuarón’s 2013 Oscar-winner Gravity , with dizzying sequences of astronauts trying to navigate clouds of debris and find handholds on a treacherous moving station while tumbling through space.

Meanwhile, the Earthside half of the mission resembles nothing so much as the 2003 nonsense-thriller The Core , about a team trying to drill their way to the center of the Earth to set the planet’s core spinning again. As with that film, Liu Qi and Han are part of a group trying to restart a failed system, and encountering most of their obstacles just in the attempt to get to the problem site. They pick up a few distinctive allies along the way, including biracial Chinese-Australian gadabout Tim (viral video star Mike Sui ), but mostly, the characters are drawn as blandly and broadly as in any American action movie, and a fair number of them get killed along the journey without ever having developed enough personality for audiences to feel the loss.

Pretty much any flaw The Wandering Earth can claim — flashy action scenes without much substance, a marked bent toward sticky sentimentality, an insistently pushy score that demands emotional response from the audience at every given moment — are familiar flaws from past blockbusters. Where the film really stands out, though, is in its eye for grandiose spectacle. Director Frant Gwo gives the film a surprising stateliness, especially in the scenes of the mobile Earth wandering the cosmos, wreathed in tiny blue jets that leave eerie space-contrails behind. His attention to detail is marvelous — in scenes where characters stand on Earth’s surface, contemplating Jupiter’s malicious beauty, the swirling colors of the Great Red Spot are clearly visible in reflections in their suit helmets.

wandering earth 2019

No matter how familiar the plot beats feel, that level of attention not just to functional special effects, but to outright beauty, makes The Wandering Earth memorable. Not every CGI sequence is aesthetically impeccable — sequences like a vehicle chase through a frozen Shanghai sometimes look brittle and false. But everything having to do with Jupiter, Earth as seen from space, and the space station subplot is visually sumptuous. This is frequently a gorgeously rendered film, with an emphasis on intimidating space vistas that will look tremendous on IMAX screens.

And while the constant attempts to flee the destructive power of changing weather have their own echoes in past films, from The Day After Tomorrow to 2012 , Gwo mostly keeps the action tight and propulsive. The Wandering Earth is frequently breathless, though the action occasionally gets a little muddled in editing. At times, particularly on the surface scenes where everyone is wearing identical pressure suits, it can be easy to lose track of which character is where. It’s often easy to feel that Gwo cares more about the collective rescue project than about any individual character — potentially a value that will work better for Chinese audiences than American viewers, who are looking for a single standout hero to root for.

But the film’s biggest strengths are in its quieter moments, where Gwo takes the time to contemplate Jupiter’s gravity well slowly deepening its pull on Earth’s atmosphere, or Liu Qi staring up, awestruck, at the gas giant dwarfing his home. In those chilly sequences, the film calls back to an older tradition of slower science fiction, in epic-scale classics like 1951’s When Worlds Collide or 1956’s Forbidden Planet . The interludes are brief, but they’re a welcome respite from chase sequences and destruction.

The Wandering Earth gets pretty goofy at times, with jokes about Tim’s heritage, or Liu Qi’s inexperienced driving and overwhelming arrogance, or with high-speed banter over an impossibly long technical manual that no one has time to digest in the middle of an emergency. At times, the humor is even a little dry, as when MOSS responds to Liu Peiqiang’s repeated rebellions with a passive-aggressive “Will all violators stop contact immediately with Earth?” But Gwo finds time for majesty as well, and makes a point of considering the problem on a global scale, rather than just focusing on the few desperate strivers who’ve tied the Earth’s potential destruction into their own personal issues.

wandering earth 2019

Much like the Russian space blockbuster Salyut-7 was a fascinating look into the cultural differences between American films and their Russian equivalents, The Wandering Earth feels like a telling illustration of the similarities and differences between Chinese and American values. Gwo’s film is full of images and moments that will be familiar to American audiences, and it has an equally familiar preoccupation with the importance of family connections, and the nobility of sacrifice. But it also puts a strong focus on global collective action, on the need for international cooperation, and for the will of the group over the will of the individual.

None of these things will be inherently alien to American viewers, who may experience The Wandering Earth as a best-of mash-up of past science fiction films, just with less-familiar faces in the lead roles. But as China gets into the action-blockbuster business, it’ll continue to be fascinating to see how the country brings its own distinctive voices and talents into a global market. The Wandering Earth feels like the same kind of projects American filmmakers are making — accessible, thrill-focused, and at least somewhat generic, in an attempt to go down easy with any audience. But there’s enough specific personality in it to point to a future of more nationally inflected blockbusters. Once every country is making would-be international crossovers, the strongest appeal may come from the most distinctive, personal visions with the most to say about the cultures they come from.

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More from this stream The Wandering Earth: news and updates for China’s biggest science fiction movie

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Film Review: ‘The Wandering Earth’

Chinese commercial cinema reaches a significant landmark with its first-ever sci-fi megahit.

By Richard Kuipers

Richard Kuipers

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'The Wandering Earth' Review: Chinese Sci-Fi Blockbuster

The out-of-this-world success of China’s first-ever sci-fi blockbuster, “ The Wandering Earth ,” proves that when it comes to watching special-effects extravaganzas in which stock characters scramble to intervene while the planet faces obliteration, it’s a small world after all. Director Frant Gwo ’s adaptation of the 2000 novella by Liu Cixin is no genre classic, but its furious pace, spectacular visuals, and fanciful plot deliver decent escapist entertainment. After accumulating an astronomical $640 million-plus domestically — plus a tidy $5 million on limited North American screens — since Feb. 5, this display of capability from China’s commercial film sector was snapped up by Netflix for future release on the streaming giant’s platform.

A hyperactive hybrid of doomsday films ranging from ’50s classic “When Worlds Collide” to Michael Bay’s bombastic “Armageddon” and, most notably, Ishiro Honda’s 1962 Japanese space opera “Gorath,” “The Wandering Earth” is perhaps most striking for its lack of nationalism and propaganda. Soft diplomacy, at most, is the order of the day. Politicians, bureaucrats, and army brass are nowhere to be seen. There’s barely a Chinese flag in sight, nor any chest-beating about Chinese ingenuity and leadership.

Instead, what’s presented is a traditional tale of nations and people pulling together to save the planet, with heavy doses of guilt, sacrifice, and redemption from the human characters. With global conflict and division so prevalent today, these messages of hope and unity have undoubtedly struck an emotional chord in many viewers, created positive word-of-mouth, and made the film much more accessible for international audiences.

Viewers almost need a scorecard to keep up with a flood of information in the opening segments. In the near future, the sun is dying, leaving the freezing planet on the brink of destruction. What’s left of humanity is huddled in subterranean cities created with an eye-catching combination of steampunk, brutalist, and futurist influences by production designer Gao Ang. The United Earth Government, which is never seen and represented only by a French voice, has decided the only solution is to propel the planet to another galaxy 4.2 light years away. Everything depends on 10,000 giant rocket thrusters being kept alight for the 2,500-year journey.

Enter Liu Peiqiang, a widowed astronaut played with appropriate solemnity by “Wolf Warrior” series superstar Wu Jing , who is sent to a space station and tasked with navigating Earth’s path through the solar system, leaving behind young son Liu Qi and father-in-law Han Zi’ang (Ng Man-tat, “Shaolin Soccer”). In a nostalgic nod to Cold War days before the Sino-Soviet split, Liu’s best work buddy is likeable cosmonaut Makarov (Arkady Sharogradsky). (Oddly enough, almost the entire cast are given “special appearance by” or “guest starring” credits.)

Seventeen years later, Liu’s still in orbit, while Liu Qi (Qu Chuxiao) has bcome an angry young man and self-proclaimed genius who blames his mother’s early death on his absent father. On the very day his dad is due to finish his stint and return home, Liu Qi and adopted teenage sister Duoduo (Zhao Jinmai) sneak away to see the frozen surface for the first time. As they’re taking in the spectacular sights of ice-covered Beijing, a major rocket thruster malfunction sends Earth into the gravitational pull of Jupiter. Unless a miracle occurs in the next 37 hours, it’s goodbye Earth.

The warp-speed screenplay, co-written by producer Gong Geer, finds Liu guiding operations from above while the youngsters join rescue team boss Wang Lei (Li Guangjie) and his crew down below to pull off the impossible. Just one of the seemingly insurmountable obstacles facing Liu is MOSS, a HAL 9000-like computer with a secret agenda. In one of the film’s standout scenes, Liu and Makarov execute Cirque du Soleil-worthy gymnastics on a dangerous space walk in defiance of their AI comrade-turned-monster.

The clinical setting and near-silence of Liu’s task is nicely contrasted with the noisy, hair-raising ride of Liu Qi, Duoduo, and obviously-doomed grandpa Han Zi’ang on Earth’s rapidly crumbling surface. Though everyone plays second fiddle to mostly-impressive CG effects, Zhang Yichi scores some fine comic moments as Yiyi, the rescue team’s nerdy and nervous tech guy. Disappointingly, female characters other than Duoduo barely factor into the story.

When death, destruction, and outpourings of emotion are set aside, we’re treated to some truly beautiful images of Jupiter’s swirling surface and wispy vapor trails surrounding Earth as it glides through the blackness of space. But these are merely momentary breathers in a tale that hurtles to more climaxes than it actually needs, easily forgiven on account of the film’s display of technical wizardry.

Costuming, art direction, and DP Michael Liu’s widescreen photography are top-class. Apart from a handful of shoddy effects along the way, all other technical work is excellent. As in so many tentpole spectaculars, a heavy-handed orchestral score unashamedly attempts to manipulate audience emotions at every opportunity — unnecessary, since the film’s loud-and-clear theme of collective human effort outweighing the actions of individuals hardly needs such underscoring to resonate with audiences.

Reviewed at Greater Union Film House, Adelaide, Feb. 26, 2019. (Original title: “Liu lang di qiu”)

  • Production: (China) A United Entertainment Partners, China Film Co. Ltd. (in China), China Media Capital (in U.S.) release of a Beijing Jingxi Culture & Tourism Co., China Film Co. Ltd., United Entertainment Partners production. (Int'l sales: CMC Pictures, Shanghai.) Producer: Gong Geer.
  • Crew: Director: Frant Gwo. Screenplay: Gong Geer, Ye Junce, Yan Dongxu, Yang Zhixue, Gwo, based on the novella by Liu Cixin. Camera (color, widescreen, HD): Michael Liu. Editor: Cheung Ka-fai. Music: Roc Chen, Tao Liu.
  • With: Wu Jing, Qu Chuxiao, Zhao Jinmai , Ng Man-tat, Li Guangjie, Zhang Yichi, Arkady Sharogradsky, Mike Sui, Qu Jingjing, Yang Haoyu, Li Hongchen, Yang Yie, Jiang Zhigang, Zhang Huan. (Mandarin, French, Russian, Japanese, Korean, English dialogue)

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Chinese Film 'The Wandering Earth' Imagines a Journey to a New Sun

Humanity turns Earth into planet-size spacecraft in epic Chinese movie.

China's 2019 blockbuster movie "The Wandering Earth," based on the novel by Liu Cixin, takes audiences on a epic journey outward through the solar system .

The 125-minute film directed by Frant Gwo is currently the second highest-earning film in the history of Chinese cinema, according to the entertainment website Deadline . As of March 15, the film had grossed over $692 million worldwide .

The great human odyssey of "The Wandering Earth" is told with fantastic visual effects and a talented cast of actors. The story begins in somewhat contemporary times, when humanity pulls together to make a desperate attempt to flee the sun's volatile activity. Governments around the globe join forces to construct hundreds of thruster engines across the planet's surface to propel Earth toward a new home around another star well beyond the solar system.

Related: Best Space Books and Sci-Fi for 2019

To make the centuries-long trip across space, humanity has to make many changes. Humans dwell in subterranean communities, and occasionally, crews ascend to Earth's frozen surface to ensure the engines are fueled and running. The International Space Station becomes a monumental gyroscope-shaped spacecraft sent farther out in the solar system to facilitate the blue planet's navigation past Jupiter. 

Meanwhile, Earth travels toward the gas giant for a massive gravity assist to slingshot out of the solar system. In real life, gravity assists — on a smaller scale — are common practice. For example, the Parker Solar Probe mission, which launched last summer, is scheduled to use about two dozen assists from Venus to approach the sun.

The movie is worth watching if you love all things Jovian: The imagery of Jupiter's streams and its Great Red Spot are mesmerizing, especially as Earth approaches it and succumbs to a planetary tug-of-war. And in one particularly epic chapter of the story, Earth's horizon fills up with the sight of the Jovian atmosphere .

The film does an excellent job of hiding exposition within heartfelt conversations among three generations of the protagonist's family, and the drama is balanced out among the many key players. The film also features a HAL -like sentient computer called MOSS as its antagonist.

The film unfolds at a rather gentle pace considering its complex plot-driven story, and audiences can therefore savor the movie's incredible cinematography.

"'The Wandering Earth' looks better than most American special-effects spectaculars," film critic Simon Abrams wrote in a film review published on RogerEbert.com , "because it gives you breathing space to admire landscape shots of a dystopian Earth that suggest old fashioned matte-paintings on steroids." 

Still, there are a few criticisms to be made about the film. If the world is collaborating at an unprecedented scale to accomplish the mission, why not imagine more diversity in race and gender in its change-makers? There is also something to be desired when the global intercom communications system announces important updates about Earth's status in multiple languages and never speaks Spanish, for instance, which Ethnologue lists as the second most-spoken language in the world, but does feature a whole lot of spoken French, ranked 16th on that same 2019 list of languages. Arabic was also absent in the film. And though the creators may have their reasons, it's worth noting the impact science fiction has on shaping the public's mental landscape of what may come.

"The Wandering Earth" is creatively told, exciting to watch and does away with the trope that blockbusters are just eye candy: Audiences are invited to imagine what the future will indeed be like for our vulnerable planet. 

"The Wandering Earth" is currently being screened in select theaters and has been picked up for future release by Netflix.

Check out some awesome stills from the movie below:

Ready for a Fight

As the Earth traverses the Universe in search of a new star system, unanticipated dangers lead to an unlikely group stepping up to protect it and its inhabitants.

A Long Journey

After 2500 years in search of a new solar system, teamwork becomes essential to fight for the survival of the planet and the species. Actor Jing Wu portrays Liu Peiqiang in "The Wandering Earth."

Accepting the Call

A group of young people rise to the call of contending with a frozen Earth traveling the cosmos to find a new home. Actor Jing Wu, as Liu Pieqiang, somberly assumes responsibility for the mission.

Actors Guangjie Li, as Wang Lei, and Chuxiao Qu, as Liu Qi, prepare for a mission in "The Wandering Earth."

Mission-Minded Astronaut

A dying Sun brought a desperate decision to earthlings — stay and die or move and possibly survive. Giant thrusters transform Earth into a planet-sized spacecraft to go in search of a new solar system to call home. Liu Peiqiang, played by Jing Wu, dons a spacesuit in the mission to save Earth.

A Serious Job

Actors Chuxiao Qu, left,  and Jin Mai Jaho, portraying Liu Qi and Han Duoduo, contemplate their mission in "The Wandering Earth."

Not So Welcoming

On Earth's surface, actor Chuxiao Qu, as Liu Qui, looks at the remnants of a 2500 year old culture in "The Wandering Earth."

Humanity in the Balance

Wang Lei, played by actor Guangjie Li, watches as a serious situation grows more dire in "The Wandering Earth."

Frosty Missions

In "The Wandering Earth," actor Jin Mai Jaho, as an Duoduo, explores the frozen wasteland that is Earth.

Tech Challenges

Technology on this cosmic is not always helpful, in "The Wandering Earth."

Earth's frozen crust offers little help to the valiant team tasked with completing the journey to a new star system in "The Wandering Earth."

Frozen Civilizations

In the task of completing Project Wandering Earth, the brave team members face an antagonistic Earth.

The teams travel the frozen landscape in all-terrain vehicles to complete their missions in "The Wandering Earth."

Unexpected Dangers

It will take over 2500 years and and a distance 4.5 light years for Earth and its inhabitants to complete Project Wandering Earth and many unexpected hazards put the journey in jeopardy.

Ice-Bound Earth

Without the warmth of the Sun, Earth freezes, leaving a less-than-welcoming atmosphere for the courageous team to traverse.

Unknown Earth

Traveling from the Milky Way to another solar system proved more dangerous than the scientists anticipated. Though humanity is hidden away deep inside the Earth, a group of brave souls ventures outside.

Traveling to a New Home

In "The Wandering Earth" thousands of infusion thrusters maneuver our (formerly) Blue Planet through the Universe to a new home.

Working the Vehicles

A 4.5 light year journey, lasting 2,500 years requires more than the planners expected in "The Wandering Earth."

Unhelpful AI

Aboard a space station, a troubling AI system named MOSS gives astronauts fits as they try to complete their mission.

Problems in Orbit

In a remote space station, astronauts work to aide the cosmic journey of Earth and its population.

Engines of Change

Thousands of infusion-powered thrusters move Earth to its destination 4.5 light years away.

Separating Sections

Aboard the remote space station, astronauts must respond quickly to unplanned events to save Earth's odyssey, Earth and its peoples.

Troublesome Sentience

MOSS, a computer program aboard the space station, makes trouble for the astronauts involved in the unexpected mission to save Earth in "The Wandering Earth."

Fighting to Save Earth

In "The Wandering Earth," scientists use thousands of thrusters to move the planet away from its dying Sun into another star system 4.5 light years away.

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Doris is a science journalist and Space.com contributor. She received a B.A. in Sociology and Communications at Fordham University in New York City. Her first work was published in collaboration with London Mining Network, where her love of science writing was born. Her passion for astronomy started as a kid when she helped her sister build a model solar system in the Bronx. She got her first shot at astronomy writing as a Space.com editorial intern and continues to write about all things cosmic for the website. Doris has also written about microscopic plant life for Scientific American’s website and about whale calls for their print magazine. She has also written about ancient humans for Inverse, with stories ranging from how to recreate Pompeii’s cuisine to how to map the Polynesian expansion through genomics. She currently shares her home with two rabbits. Follow her on twitter at @salazar_elin.

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The Wandering Earth (2019)

Original title: 流浪地球.

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The Wandering Earth streaming: where to watch online?

Currently you are able to watch "The Wandering Earth" streaming on Netflix, Netflix basic with Ads.

Where does The Wandering Earth rank today? The JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts are calculated by user activity within the last 24 hours. This includes clicking on a streaming offer, adding a title to a watchlist, and marking a title as 'seen'. This includes data from ~1.3 million movie & TV show fans per day.

Streaming charts last updated: 1:19:07 AM, 03/09/2024

The Wandering Earth is 4718 on the JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts today. The movie has moved up the charts by 1992 places since yesterday. In the United States, it is currently more popular than Maniac Cop but less popular than Mother's Day.

When the Sun begins to expand in such a way that it will inevitably engulf and destroy the Earth in a hundred years, united mankind finds a way to avoid extinction by propelling the planet out of the Solar System using gigantic engines, moving it to a new home located four light years away, an epic journey that will last thousands of years.

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The Wandering Earth

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2019 ‘流浪地球’ Directed by Frant Gwo

When the Sun begins to expand in such a way that it will inevitably engulf and destroy the Earth in a hundred years, united mankind finds a way to avoid extinction by propelling the planet out of the Solar System using gigantic engines, moving it to a new home located four light years away, an epic journey that will last thousands of years.

Qu Chuxiao Li Guangjie Zhao Jinmai Wu Jing Ng Man-tat Michael Kai Sui Qu Jingjing Zhang Yichi Haoyu Yang Arkady Sharogradsky Li Hongchen Yang Yi Jiang Zhigang Zhang Huan Lei Jiayin Ning Hao Liu Cixin Guo Jingfei Wang Zhi Zhang Zixian Lu Yang Zhang Ning Zhang Xiaobei Rao Xiaozhi Tao Luoyi Wu Xiaoliang Gong Geer Frant Gwo Guo Hexuan Show All… Li Zhuozhao

Director Director

Producer producer, executive producer exec. producer, writers writers.

Frant Gwo Gong Geer Yan Dongxu Junce Ye Yang Zhixue

Original Writer Original Writer

Editors editors.

Cheung Ka-Fai Ye Ruchang

Cinematography Cinematography

Production design production design, composers composers.

Roc Chen Tao Liu

Sound Sound

Wang Danrong Xu Liu

Costume Design Costume Design

China Film Group Corporation Beijing Jingxi Culture Beijing Dongfang International Cultural Communications Company G!Film Studio Free Whale Pictures

Primary Language

Spoken languages.

Chinese English French Hindi Indonesian Japanese Korean Russian

Releases by Date

Theatrical limited, 08 feb 2019, 05 feb 2019, 18 apr 2019, 30 apr 2019, releases by country.

  • Theatrical M
  • Digital 12 Netflix
  • Theatrical limited PG
  • Digital Netflix

New Zealand

  • Digital M/14 Netflix
  • Digital PG13 Netflix

South Korea

  • Theatrical 12
  • Theatrical limited PG-13
  • Digital PG-13 Netflix

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Popular reviews

Les_Vampires

Review by Les_Vampires ★★½ 3

I'm weirdly proud of China for being able to make their own Geostorm.

davidehrlich

Review by davidehrlich ★½ 8

Billed as China’s first true sci-fi blockbuster, Frant Gwo’s ridiculously profitable (and borderline unwatchable) “The Wandering Earth” tells the story of a cursed future in which the sun has become unstable, and humanity’s only hope for survival are the 10,000 jet engines strong enough to dislodge our planet from its orbit and launch us toward a solar system that’s 4.2 light-years away.

Currently the second-highest grossing movie in Chinese box office history, and now dumped on Netflix without fanfare, Gwo’s film also tells the story of another cursed future — one that presents a more clear and present danger — in which the spectacle required to sustain popular cinema becomes so large that the industry congeals into a worldwide monoculture…

matt lynch

Review by matt lynch ★★★

Even more absurd than most Emmerich disasterpieces, with the DIRTY DOZEN-esque band of misfits on a massive CG-enhanced suicide space mission of ARMAGEDDON mixed in, and honestly it's as tasty as that sounds, all enlivened by a pretty refreshing spirit of collectivism. This really does earn its deep silliness.

karen h.

Review by karen h. ★★★ 1

what if armageddon but more

George Carmi

Review by George Carmi ★★★½ 3

Disaster on a massive scale. A band of unlikely heroes on a suicide mission. The 2.8 average Letterboxd score kinda surprises me. There's a lot to love here and there's something about these disaster "world ending/fight for survival on a massive scale" films that attracts me. They're oddly comforting. The gripping set pieces and raw/dirty design of the set make for a very thrilling ride. Our characters coulda been fleshed out a bit better and tonally this film was all over the place, but nonetheless, a solid science fiction outing.

BeHaind

Review by BeHaind ★★★ 6

Wenn Square Enix alle jemals gedrehten Katastrophenfilme als zwei Stunden Final Fantasy-Zwischensequenz inszeniert hätte, im Weltraum, mit noch mehr Kitsch und Pathos und gleich sechs Drehbuchautoren, die sich das generelle Verständnis von Physik, Logik und naturwissenschaftlichen Verhältnismäßigkeiten auf die Schnelle bei Wikipedia zusammen gegoogelt haben, dann hätte das kaum besser aussehen können. 

„Wandering Earth“ ist ein Paradebeispiel dafür, wie eng Bauklötze-staunen und Kopfschütteln im Blockbusterkino manchmal beieinander liegen können. Wenn das Tiefgründigste im Film die gigantischen Erdrisse der Gravitationsbeben sind, dann sollte die Stoßrichtung kaum noch verwundern - alles ist ein bisschen wirr, die Charakterzeichnung kann nicht mal als planloser Versuch gewertet werden und eigentlich ergibt hier nichts so recht Sinn. Vor allem nicht die teils grotesk beschissenen Heldenansprachen.

Tasha Robinson

Review by Tasha Robinson ★★★½ 1

China's first science-fiction blockbuster, based on Cixin Liu's short story, is full of spectacle — huge crowds of people struggling to cope with catastrophe, a city frozen in a giant block, up to the tops of the skyscraper, Jupiter looming over Earth, about to suck the planet into its gravity well. It's so achingly pretty at times, it's easy to forget that this is a pretty standard action thriller, complete with minimal characterization for the main cast, and by-the-number chase scenes and near-escapes. It's pretty much The Core plus 2012 plus an implacable AI straight out of 2001: A Space Odyssey , but much more visually artful and sentimental — especially toward the end, when a bunch of threads come together in a heady emotional way. Worth watching for spectacle fans, but also very interesting to see how China's cinematic ambitions are developing.

Full review for The Verge here.

russman

Review by russman ★★★ 3

Jupiter Descending

LeSchroeck

Review by LeSchroeck ★★★ 5

Man nehme: 2001, 2012, Armageddon, Passengers, Geostorm, The Day After Tomorrow, Supernova, City of Ember, etwas Interstellar, Gravity und gefühlt jeden anderen Popcorn-Sci-Fi- oder Katastrophenstreifen der letzten 10 Jahre und presse sie ihn einen Film. Man füge hinzu: Wolf Warrior Wu Jing, Drug War-Veteran Guangjie Li, einen Regisseur, der erst 2 Filme gemacht hat, Kitsch, Chaos, Pathos oder Familiendrama mit der groben Kelle und eine Armee an CGI-Artists. Plus: etliche, 11.000 Meter hohe Triebwerke, mit denen man die Erde aus der Umlaufbahn der Sonne schiebt (was den halben Planet ausrottet), um mit ihr für 4,2 Lichtjahre durchs All zu düsen. Das Ergebnis: ein Film, der in 3 Wochen über 600 Millionen Dollar eingespielt hat. Dessen zweiter Held ständig von sich…

Daniel Carolan

Review by Daniel Carolan ★★½ 3

Brilliant. America don’t feature at all, a biracial identifies as Chinese, Indians all wear turbans, Russians are our only friends and we, the mighty and proud Chinese, save the dying planet. 🇨🇳 起來!

2019  Added.

FoundOnYouTube

Review by FoundOnYouTube ★★½

If you're into vulgar auteurism, particularly the works of Roland Emmerich, then you are going to love this movie. But for me, I found it to be middle-of-the-road.

Pros: The CGI and special effects are good. It is well-acted. The Wandering Earth explores themes of collectivism and international cooperation, in contrast to American/western films, such as Independence Day, which is all about individualism and patriotism. Collectivism hasn't been explored too much in the world of sci-fi, and that ideology can be seen throughout this film, except for that end scene with Liu Qi's dad. If you've seen the movie, you know what I mean.

Cons: The second act drags. The frozen wasteland of Shanghai is not a visually appealing or interesting setting. The underground cities are the most visually stimulating setting in this movie, and we are only in there for seconds.

YI JIAN

Review by YI JIAN ★★

I can't believe I let the locals trick me into thinking this movie is worth my time, it's actually mind-blowing how boring it is. Only thing memorable about it is when this space marine dude got so frustrated at Jupiter (the whole damn planet) and starts unloading all his ammo in its general direction yelling "Screw You" like it's the planet's fault you decide to steer Earth around like a big ship, what in the goddamn, someone get ben affleck to commentate on this.

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The Wandering Earth (2019)

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THE WANDERING EARTH (2019)

Wandering Earth Poster 1

If you think the plot sounds like bad a bad Japanese TV anime show, you’re not alone. The entire premise is ludicrous. The fact that all the countries of Earth agree to merge into one government is by itself unbelievable. Never mind building the huge underground cities, (half the population will still be left on the surface to die). Or any of the physics concerning turning a planet into a comet.

Not that a lack of science has ever stopped a science fiction film from being popular, just think Armageddon or any of the Transformers franchise. But the film’s immediate concern, the restarting of the Earth engines, is handled in such a heavy-handed and manipulative, not to mention clichéd, manner it can’t distract from the stupidity of it all.

This just has to happen on the day Liu Peiqiang (Wu Jing, Wolf Warrior 1&2, SPL: Kill Zone) is supposed to return to Earth from the space station that guides Earth’s travels. He’s been there for years. His son Liu Qi (Qu Chuxiao) and adopted daughter Han Doudou (Zhao Jinmai) live with their grandfather (Ng Man-tat, Shaolin Soccer). Mom is, of course, dead. They manage to con their way to the surface to meet him, only to be caught in the chaos. And of course, they, along with an assortment of other misfits, end up having to save humanity.

The Wandering Earth 2

The much-vaunted effects are at times spectacular. But, as with all CGI heavy films, there are some obvious moments too. Many of the large scale scenes of cities, etc aren’t that convincing. Add the kind of propaganda Chinese films are well known for and the reasons for its international failure is obvious.

China has learned to clone the spectacle of a Hollywood blockbuster. Now they need to learn to come up with a story that will sell everywhere. Though given the international appeal of the Transformers, that’s a pretty low bar.

Where to watch The Wandering Earth

Share your love, related posts, son (2021) review, a ghost waits (2020) review, the unthinkable (2018) – boston underground film festival, 3 thoughts on “the wandering earth (2019)”.

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Great review, I agree that it was lacking in the smaller touches to make it compete with the Hollywood productions, China however are catching up quickly and competing with Korea and Japan already

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There’s certainly been some excellent action films come out of China. There’s also a review on here of an animated gangster film Have A Nice Day that was made in China.

They are definitely at the same stage as films like The Day After Tomorrow, won’t be long till they crack it. Awesome I’ll check it out

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China’s sci-fi blockbuster ‘the wandering earth 2’ to get north american release (exclusive).

The sequel to China's first sci-fi action hit, which earned $700 million in 2019, will release in over 125 cinemas in the U.S. and Canada, including 30 Imax theaters.

By Patrick Brzeski

Patrick Brzeski

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The Wandering Earth

The Wandering Earth 2 , the sequel to the Chinese sci-fi blockbuster that earned $700 million in 2019, is charting a course for North America, thanks to a deal inked by distributor Well Go USA. The specialty label has acquired the domestic theatrical rights to the film and set it up for a day-and-date release with China on Jan. 22, the first day of the Chinese New Year. Well Go says it will launch The Wandering Earth 2 in over 125 North American theaters, including 30 Imax screens.

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The first The Wandering Earth , which was acquired for all territories outside of China by Netflix, revolved around a rescue mission to save human civilization as the sun approached the end of its life cycle and was set to explode, prompting humanity to build giant engines to propel planet earth outside of the solar system to find a new celestial home. China plays a key leadership role in world affairs in the film and helps drive the survival mission.

The sequels official plot summary reads: “Humans built huge engines on the surface of the earth to find a new home. But the road to the universe is perilous. In order to save earth, young people once again have to step forward to start a race against time for life and death.”

State-backed China Film Co. is a lead producer and presenter of the film in tandem with Gwo’s banner G!Film Studio Co. and Wu Jing’s company Beijing Dengfeng International Media. As is typical with big Chinese tentpoles, the film also counts over a dozen co-financiers, including major studios Alibaba Pictures, Wanda Media and Huayi Brothers.

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COMMENTS

  1. The Wandering Earth (2019)

    The Wandering Earth: Directed by Frant Gwo. With Jing Wu, Chuxiao Qu, Guangjie Li, Man-Tat Ng. As the sun is dying out, people all around the world build giant planet thrusters to move Earth out of its orbit and sail Earth to a new star system. Yet the 2500-year journey comes with unexpected dangers, and in order to save humanity, a group of young people in this age of a wandering Earth fight ...

  2. The Wandering Earth

    The Wandering Earth (Chinese: 流浪地球; pinyin: liúlàng dìqiú) is a 2019 Chinese science fiction film directed by Frant Gwo, loosely based on the 2000 short story of the same name by Liu Cixin.The film stars Wu Jing, Qu Chuxiao, Li Guangjie, Ng Man-tat, Zhao Jinmai and Qu Jingjing. Set in the far future, it follows a group of astronauts and rescue workers guiding the Earth away from an ...

  3. The Wandering Earth

    The Wandering Earth. 2019, Sci-fi, 2h 5m. 40 Reviews 1,000+ Ratings ALL CRITICS TOP CRITICS VERIFIED AUDIENCE ALL AUDIENCE. What to know. Critics Consensus.

  4. The Wandering Earth

    The Wandering Earth tells the story of a distant future in which the sun is about to expand into a red giant and devour the Earth, prompting mankind to make ...

  5. The Wandering Earth movie review (2019)

    I left the theater hoping that "The Wandering Earth" would be one of this year's Chinese New Year's hits. It grossed $300 million in China during its opening week alone, a hopeful sign that we'll see more entertainment as assured as this. The setup might seem familiar at first. Two teams of astronauts fight to save the Earth years after its ...

  6. Watch The Wandering Earth

    The Wandering Earth. 2019 | Maturity Rating: U/A 16+ | 2h 5m | Sci-Fi. A looming collision with Jupiter threatens Earth as humans search for a new star. The planet's fate now lies in the hands of a few unexpected heroes. Starring: Wu Jing,Qu Chuxiao,Zhao Jinmai.

  7. China's The Wandering Earth is rich, gorgeous, and goofy

    The Wandering Earth, China's hugely successful big-budget science fiction thriller, quietly slipped onto Netflix over the weekend, after a limited American theatrical run a few months ago. It ...

  8. Watch The Wandering Earth

    The Wandering Earth. 2019 | Maturity Rating: TV-MA | 2h 5m | Sci-Fi. A looming collision with Jupiter threatens Earth as humans search for a new star. The planet's fate now lies in the hands of a few unexpected heroes. Starring: Wu Jing, Qu Chuxiao, Zhao Jinmai.

  9. 'The Wandering Earth' Review: Chinese Sci-Fi Blockbuster

    The out-of-this-world success of China's first-ever sci-fi blockbuster, " The Wandering Earth ," proves that when it comes to watching special-effects extravaganzas in which stock characters ...

  10. The Wandering Earth (2019)

    Summaries. As the sun is dying out, people all around the world build giant planet thrusters to move Earth out of its orbit and sail Earth to a new star system. Yet the 2500-year journey comes with unexpected dangers, and in order to save humanity, a group of young people in this age of a wandering Earth fight hard for the survival of humankind.

  11. Chinese Film 'The Wandering Earth' Imagines a Journey to a New Sun

    published 20 March 2019. Humanity turns Earth into planet-size spacecraft in epic Chinese movie. China's 2019 blockbuster movie "The Wandering Earth," based on the novel by Liu Cixin, takes ...

  12. The Wandering Earth (2019) trailer HD

    China's first homemade sci-fi blockbuster, "The Wandering Earth," amazed U.S. moviegoers with its bold imagination, winning applause and encouragement for th...

  13. The Wandering Earth Trailer #1 (2019)

    Check out the new Trailer for The Wandering Earth starring Jing Wu! Let us know what you think in the comments below. Buy Tickets to The Wandering Earth: ht...

  14. Watch The Wandering Earth

    2019 | Maturity Rating: 16+ | 2h 5m | Sci-Fi. A looming collision with Jupiter threatens Earth as humans search for a new star. The planet's fate now lies in the hands of a few unexpected heroes. ... The Wandering Earth. The Wandering Earth (Trailer) More Details. Watch offline. Download and watch everywhere you go. Genres. Sci-Fi Movies ...

  15. The Wandering Earth streaming: where to watch online?

    The Wandering Earth (2019) Original Title: 流浪地球 . Watch Now . Filters. Best Price . Free . SD . HD . 4K . Streaming in: 🇺🇸 United States . Stream. Subs HD . ... The Wandering Earth is 4596 on the JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts today. The movie has moved up the charts by 1896 places since yesterday. In the United States, it is ...

  16. ‎The Wandering Earth (2019) directed by Frant Gwo

    Billed as China's first true sci-fi blockbuster, Frant Gwo's ridiculously profitable (and borderline unwatchable) "The Wandering Earth" tells the story of a cursed future in which the sun has become unstable, and humanity's only hope for survival are the 10,000 jet engines strong enough to dislodge our planet from its orbit and launch us toward a solar system that's 4.2 light-years ...

  17. The Wandering Earth 1 (2019)

    Ratings: 7.7 /10 from 1,712 users. # of Watchers: 2,775. Reviews: 10 users. In a near future when the sun begins to die, humanity comes together to build thousands of Earth Engines to propel planet Earth from our solar system. ~~ Adapted from the short story "The Wandering Earth" (流浪地球) by Liu Ci Xin (刘慈欣). Edit Translation.

  18. The Wandering Earth (2019)

    The Wandering Earth (2019) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Menu. Movies. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. TV Shows.

  19. THE WANDERING EARTH (2019)

    THE WANDERING EARTH (2019) Jim Morazzini. The Wandering Earth, directed by Frant Gwo was the unexpected box office juggernaut of the first part of this year, bringing in over $700,000,000 million dollars. It recently debuted on Netflix without any fanfare. Why such unceremonious dumping? The fact that of that huge box office, haul $690,994,017 ...

  20. China's Sci-Fi Blockbuster 'The Wandering Earth 2' to Get North

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