The 5th Wave

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The 5th Wave

PG-13

Released Jan 22, 2016

1h 52m

Sci-Fi

Adventure

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

17%

Tomatometer

143 Reviews

38%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

The human race stands on the brink of extinction as a series of alien attacks decimate the planet, causing earthquakes, tsunamis and disease. Separated from her family, Ohio teenager Cassie Sullivan (Chloë Grace Moretz) will do whatever it takes to reunite with her brother Sam. Fate leads her to form an alliance with Evan Walker (Alex Roe), a mysterious young man who may be her last hope. Forced to trust each other, Cassie and Evan fight for survival during the fifth assault from the invaders.

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Critics Consensus

With unimpressive effects and plot points seemingly pieced together from previous dystopian YA sci-fi films, The 5th Wave ends up feeling like more of a limp, derivative wriggle.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

With a terrific cast and a director who at least is making an attempt to shake up the literary dystopian status quo, there's really no reason for this one to be as outright terrible as it ultimately proves to be.

Rated: 1.5/4

Aug 16, 2016

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Roxana Hadadi

Chesapeake Family Magazine

The 5th Wave is simultaneously boring and cringingly overwrought, with a bland protagonist, a completely nonsensical story, and another teen love triangle.

Rated: 1.5/5

Aug 2, 2016

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Udita Jhunjhunwala

Scroll.in

The 5th Wave, which has echoes of Divergent and The Hunger Games, both of which have strong female protagonists, is too obviously just the introductory chapter.

Jun 21, 2016

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David Griffiths

Subculture Entertainment

The 5th Wave is a good action sci-fi that has a little more bite than some would predict. Easy-to-warm-to-characters and an interesting storyline means the audience quickly feels part of this new world

Rated: 3.5/5

Oct 29, 2024

Full Review

Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

No one is going to take tactical gear-wearing, elementary school-age kids with pretend-intimidating codenames and armed with semi-automatic weapons seriously.

Rated: 2/5

Oct 13, 2024

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr Podcast

Despite featuring likeable actors like Grace-Moretz and Robinson, the film adaptation of Rick Yancey's novel has no time for anything. There's a propulsive need to barrel forward, but nothing lands (characters, plot, not even action).

Rated: 2/5

Jun 18, 2024

Full Review

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Siavash W

Interesting plot, likeable characters, and cringe moments topped off with an abrupt ending.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

12/01/24

Full Review

Dannyjoe B

Cheese. From a galaxy of cheese this movie came, spreading cosmic cheese for all to choke on.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

11/28/24

Full Review

Julian Rex M

Thinly written, poorly conceptualized, and unfocused, The 5th Wave is exactly what one would expect from a post-Hunger Games YA Dystopia flick.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

11/10/24

Full Review

Jamie D

Don’t understand the reviews. It’s a great flick for what it is

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/08/24

Full Review

Kirstin A

This is a great movie. Good actors, have watched it several times. I Hope they make the sequel

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/09/24

Full Review

Justin T

Not only is this generic and forgettable but it also suffers from perplexing and unlikable film making decisions. It's a stereotypical American Hollywood lack of imagination throughout. The lead actress Chloë Grace Moretz can act but does not look like she survived an apocalypse let alone five of them, her hair is just too perfect, plus she looks and acts too old to be a school student. They initially frame it from her perspective but they shift it to anyone's perspective and that is disjointed. There are many plot holes like the first two waves seem pretty pointless compared to the third, only being able to detect t in children makes no sense, how do they have ‘intelligence’ on these aliens, if the aliens take over human bodies then how do they act like that person, feels like they'd act very differently. And many more, I realise they explain some of this in the film but at the time it really takes you out of the experience. The scene where the army came made my eyes roll so many times, so many issues. I think I rolled my eyes more times than any other film I've seen. Couldn't they think of a better name for the aliens? It's quite slow and largely predictable, it could have been a great 15 minute short. The special effects are only okay. The dark sections are too dark. There is no real conclusion. Don't bother.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

06/06/24

Full Review

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J Blakeson

Director

Chloë Grace Moretz

Cassie Sullivan

Nick Robinson

Ben Parish

Ron Livingston

Oliver Sullivan

Maggie Siff

Lisa Sullivan

Alex Roe

Evan Walker

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The 5th Wave: Official Clip - Shot in the Leg

2:29

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - Afraid You'd Shoot Me

2:25

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - We Are the 5th Wave

2:27

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - The New Guy

2:07

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - The Parasites True Form

2:17

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - I Choose You

2:41

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - Losing Family

2:13

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - Did You Shoot Me?

2:45

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - Hope Makes Us Human

2:26

The 5th Wave: Official Clip - The End of the World

4:10

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The 5th Wave: Trailer 1

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The 5th Wave: International First Look

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Synopsis

The human race stands on the brink of extinction as a series of alien attacks decimate the planet, causing earthquakes, tsunamis and disease. Separated from her family, Ohio teenager Cassie Sullivan (Chloë Grace Moretz) will do whatever it takes to reunite with her brother Sam. Fate leads her to form an alliance with Evan Walker (Alex Roe), a mysterious young man who may be her last hope. Forced to trust each other, Cassie and Evan fight for survival during the fifth assault from the invaders.

Director: J Blakeson
Producer: Tobey Maguire, Graham King, Matthew Plouffe, Lynn Harris
Screenwriter: Susannah Grant, Akiva Goldsman, Jeff Pinkner
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co: Material Pictures, GK Films
Rating: PG-13 (Language|Brief Teen Partying|Some Sci-Fi Thematic Elements|Violence and Destruction)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Adventure, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 22, 2016, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 16, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $34.9M
Runtime: 1h 52m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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