I Am Number Four is a generic sci-fi action movie that borrows from dozens of other films but still manages to execute the premise in an exciting and engaging way if you are looking for a silly sci-fi romp to pass an afternoon.

Based on the children’s novel by Pittacus Lore, I Am Number Four tells the story of John Smith (Alex Pettyfer), a teenage alien refugee from a planet taken over by a vicious alien race called Mogadorians who have killed the planet’s entire population and are now hunting down the stragglers. John, along with his protector Henri (Timothy Olyphant), is forced to stay on the move going from town to town to keep the Mogadorian hit squad off his tail. John is one of nine special alien children who were born with a special gift that makes them the only ones who can defeat the Mogadorians and as the movie opens, Number Three takes a dirt nap. Given that the Mogadorians are killing his countrymen in order this means big problems for John ‘Number Four’ Smith.’

This movie is kind of strange insofar as it is a Frankenstein’s monster of other books and movies most notably Twilight, Jumper, Push and Superman but it still manages to be pretty cool and transcend the derivative storyline. All the boxes are checked here, gifted good looking teen shows up in a new school: check, responsible protector telling hero it is crazytown to go to school in the first place when a band of alien lunatics with gills on their faces are stalking them: check, douchebag jocks who pick on the hero once he stands up for the well meaning nerd who knows more about aliens than anyone else at the school: check, the blond hottie who used to be a popular cheerleader but is now an introspective photographer/artist/writer for the hero to fall in love with: check, that hottie happening to be the ex-girlfriend of the psychotic douchebag jock who will stop at nothing to make sure she doesn’t date anyone else: check. It is all here. There are so many movies that follow this formula it would be impossible to list them. So much of this movie is sampled and retreaded material that it is amazing that it doesn’t suck enormously.

Likewise, I found a lot of the names used for aliens and planets to be really silly. Mogadorian sounds completely ridiculous. The planet Lorian is a bit better but still sounds silly when spoken in a dead serious way. In fact, if you think too deeply on any of the mythology here you will find it all very silly along with being cliche. But honestly, with a movie like this, thinking deeply on it is missing the point. I am not saying that stories shouldn’t make sense and that it is okay to be cliche but this isn’t some kind of Oscar bait art picture. This is an effects driven action movie aimed primarily at teens and the story is more or less just there to drive the action. If the action and effects didn’t deliver and you spent a lot of time dwelling on the intricacies of the plot then the film would be a complete failure. As it is, however, the action and effects are solid and, while a little more explanation would have been nice, the pacing of the film clips along nicely and delivers the necessary goods.

The delivery of the material here makes all the difference in the world. The writing is pretty tight and snappy despite the material’s short comings and DJ Caruso’s direction is sure and exciting. The action scenes are impressive and fun to watch and the effects don’t feel like a crutch but rather serve the story. This is a good thing as a lot of movies like this lean on the effects to carry the picture but here they are in service to the movie. The effects also look really, really good and rarely fail to convince and to look cool.

The performances are generally pretty good. Alex Pettyfer delivers a workable performance that is kind of bland not so much because he sucks as the character is just sort of a generic hero type without a lot else going on. He has angst because he wants to be normal and never asked to be an alien savior (few of us do but it is a burden I have had to accept) and Pettyfer conveys this well enough, it is just that we’ve seen it before and there isn’t a lot to do with it. Likewise for Henri, John’s protector, the character is pretty standard for this sort of material but Timothy Olyphant brings something special to the role that makes it a bit more compelling and human. His concern for John and his importance is palpable but never overstated or over the top. Glee’s Dianna Agron does a fine job with the romantic interest giving her more substance than the usual vapid cheerleader type. Kevin Durand chews his way through all the scenery available as the Mogadorian Commander and is very fun to watch. He never disappoints and he has proven that this holds true even when he has gills on his face.

Conclusion [8.0 out of 10]

This score might sound generous if you don’t connect to the material and action here but if you don’t take it too seriously and you aren’t looking for AAA sci-fi that breaks new ground there is a lot of fun to be had here. It is great for an afternoon matinee or eventual rental on a night that maybe you don’t want anything too heavy. Even with its short comings, I Am Number Four is never boring and is consistently entertaining. Given films like Skyline, you can’t always count on that so to have it is really something.