Aliens of the Deep 2005

Robert K. Elder, Chicago Tribune: It's a fascinating, kid-friendly journey, minus some clunky dialogue and the injection of Hollywood-style hypothesizing about what Europa's aliens might look like. Read more

Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: An educational and thoroughly entertaining documentary that's in the Everest class of great IMAX movies. Read more

Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper: It's fantastic stuff. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: One sign of a successful IMAX outing is how it makes you believe you are there in every frame, and this one does. Read more

Brian Thomas, Chicago Reader: Here we know only that Cameron and his bright-eyed young scientists (who take turns narrating) are heading to the deeper parts of the Atlantic and Pacific to observe the environment and life-forms down there. Read more

Michael Booth, Denver Post: Both dazzling underwater ballet and a welcome salvo for clarity in the current backlash against evolution. Read more

Christy Lemire, Associated Press: Yes, the work they're doing is mind-boggling and important, but sometimes the images alone are more than capable of speaking for themselves. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: It's good that a kid, and maybe even an adult, may want to 'touch' one of the so-called aliens thrust out for our inspection. But more important, a kid, and maybe even an adult, may want to become a human scientist. Read more

Philip Wuntch, Dallas Morning News: The 48-minute spellbinder will make your jaw drop with awe. And, like the best documentaries, it will also make you think. Read more

Gene Seymour, Newsday: We go 'ooh' and 'aaah' with these guys and gals. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: We're treated to more intramural banter and golly-gee chatter among the crew than we can use, and are not given enough scientific information. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: A grandiose hybrid of undersea documentary and outer-space fantasy. Read more

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: A master showman's large-format documentary, a movie with great images, great special effects and the sheen of Hollywood often missing in these museum or science-center movies. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Not a scientific documentary so much as a journey to an alien world, and basically what we want to do is peer out the portholes along with the explorers. Read more

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Puts some of these incredible creatures right in our laps. And we don't even need to travel hundreds of light years to see them. Read more

Trevor Johnston, Time Out: That IMAX 3-D cameras have plunged so deep to record an often bizarre array of sea creatures undoubtedly delivers a certain 'wow' factor, but the accompanying commentary is heavier on breathless excitement than solid fact. Read more

J. Hoberman, Village Voice: Often thrilling. Read more