Rim of the World is a 2019 American science fictionadventure film directed by McG from a screenplay by Zack Stentz. It stars Jack Gore, Miya Cech, Benjamin Flores Jr. and Alessio Scalzotto. The film, which was Stentz' modern take on the kid-centered action films of the 1980s, was streamed on Netflix on May 24, 2019. It was the most watched content in the SVOD service in the UK the week it was released, overtaking the series Dead to Me and ''Riverdale.
Plot
Alex, a socially reclusive boy, reluctantly attends a summer camp in southern California called "Rim of the World". He meets two other "misfits" - ZhenZhen, an orphan from China, and Dariush, an outspoken boy from a rich family. That afternoon ZhenZhen wanders off into the woods looking for the lookout point she had seen on a camp poster, while Alex attempts to follow. He comes across Dariush, who happens to be nearby answering the call of nature. Dariush mistakenly tries to 'cure' Alex's fear of heights by making him stand near a cliff edge, and Gabriel, a boy they hadn't seen at camp before, intervenes. ZhenZhen, hearing the commotion, comes back down and meets up with the boys. At that moment they all receive alarming texts advising they immediately evacuate the area. While hurrying back they witness alien ships invading the valley, and afterward discover the camp to be empty of people - all except for Conrad, a camp counselor. Suddenly, a Dragon spacecraft fleeing the International Space Station lands heavily nearby. The dying astronaut inside the spacecraft gives Alex a key with instruction that it get to NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab facility in Pasadena, and that it was the only way to destroy the aliens. An alien appears with its "dog" and kills the astronaut and later, Conrad, but Alex and his friends manage to elude the aliens and escape the camp. They make their way to the Sheriff's Office and discover an inmate, Lou, who has been left behind in the cells. Alex decides to release him before the group continues on their way to the JPL. Later, the group encounter Marines who are evacuating civilians - the commander gratefully takes the key and puts the children on a bus to safety. However, alien ships attack the vehicle convoy and the soldiers are killed, whereupon Alex retrieves the key and the group sets out for the JPL once more. During the night, after briefly taking refuge in a house, they are attacked by a gang of masked individuals led by Lou. He agrees to let the teens go, but only if Alex gives him the key, which Lou thinks he can sell on the black market. Alex refuses but right before Lou attacks him, the alien from the camp appears and attacks them all. Lou is killed, but the teens manage to escape after trapping the alien in a backyard swimming pool. The group borrow a car, which they discover ZhenZhen is able to drive, to quickly journey the rest of the way to JPL, but they are again attacked by the pursuing alien. They abandon the vehicle while trying to escape the alien, but Dariush is injured by it in the process. The group finally make it to the JPL facility, but find the doctor they were trying to reach is dead. The teens are able to make radio contact with a general at NORAD who explains that the key holds information that can be used to destroy the alien mothership in orbit via a Cold War defense project named Excalibur. Zhenzhen goes into the basement to restart the power generators, where she is attacked by an alien dog, while Alex goes to the roof to realign the communication dish, where he is attacked by the alien. ZhenZhen manages to lock the dog in the basement and return to the command room to help Gabriel and the injured Dariush insert the keys that will launch the Excalibur weapon. Zhenzhen, Dariush, and Gabriel evacuate the JPL building, while Alex lures the alien into an engine test room and kills it with the engine's exhaust. The teens watch from the ground as the alien mothership is blown up in the atmosphere. Alex is reunited with his mother and the children are celebrated as heroes.
Cast
Production
In March 2018, it was reported that McG would direct Rim of the World for Netflix from a screenplay by Zack Stentz. In an interview, Stentz revealed that he started working on the script as early as 2017 and the deal with Netflix was closed a year later. Principal production commenced in May 2018 in Los Angeles, California. In June 2018, the cast was announced. Principal photography began in June 2018 and reportedly lasted 40 days.
Reception
On the review aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 25% based on 12 reviews, with a weighted average of 3.8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Rim of the World is too bland to live up to the 80s teen adventures it references, and too full of clichés to be able to set itself apart from them."
