'Falling Skies' reviews and 'Transformers' TV spots

Steven Spielberg's alien-invasion series Falling Skies premiered yesterday on U.S. television and has received generally favourable reviews from critics. Among the show's fans is Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times, who writes:

"Serious without being grim, uplifting without being saccharine, Falling Skies dares to image what feature films will not - a world in which Will Smith or Aaron Eckhart did not bring down the mother ship in time."

Meanwhile, at the other end of the critical spectrum, The New York Times' Mike Hale opines that the highly-anticipated show falls considerably short of Spielberg's own directorial projects in terms of emotional impact:

"As a director, of course, Mr. Spielberg can work magic with this kind of material. But "Falling Skies" lacks his personal touch — there’s no wonder, nor is there the blunt terror and grim plausibility of his own alien-invasion film, War of the Worlds Despite the high stakes of the story and the frequent violence, the tone is placid and slightly monotonous, as if we were watching the Walton family at the end of the world."

In other Spielberg/alien-related news, six new TV spots for Transformers: Dark of the Moon are now online and feature new footage from the movie. This third instalment of the Transformers franchise opens at 9pm on June 28 in 3D and IMAX theatres before moving to 2D theaters the following day.

Silver Screen Saucers