--- title: "Battlefield Earth" year: 2000 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/battlefield-earth" fi1m_score: 22 critics_score: 17 critics_reviews: 13 published: "2026-09-16T14:46:21.000195+00:00" updated: "2026-09-16T14:46:35.204513+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Battlefield Earth (2000) Directed by Roger Christian · 1h 57m · MPA PG-13 · Science Fiction, Action, Adventure **Fi1m score: 22** · Critics 17 from 13 reviews *In a sentence:* Two alien bullies and a camera that cannot stand up straight > Roger Christian’s science-fiction adventure is noisy, muddled and mostly dull. John Travolta and Forest Whitaker offer occasional comic relief, but the tilted images and senseless plotting make 117 minutes feel like a considerable imposition. ## Synopsis Jonnie Goodboy Tyler (Barry Pepper) faces alien domination in a post-apocalyptic setting. He wants humanity to resist, but Terl (John Travolta) and Ker (Forest Whitaker) are the alien antagonists standing in the way of rebellion. Their contempt for humans and readiness to use violence make the struggle a physical one. The conflict follows human resistance to alien power, with Jonnie Goodboy Tyler leading the human side. Roger Christian directs this science-fiction action adventure, adapted from L. Ron Hubbard’s novel. ## Review Roger Christian’s *Battlefield Earth* wants the direct pleasures of a science-fiction uprising: people to root for, aliens to oppose and a reason to care who wins. It makes all three harder than they need to be. Adapted from L. Ron Hubbard’s novel, it is a tedious action film whose bluster cannot conceal how little sense the struggle makes. The trouble is not that the premise is old-fashioned. Plenty of adventure stories ask for no more than a decent hero and a threatening enemy; this one cannot make their confrontation interesting. Barry Pepper plays Jonnie Goodboy Tyler, the human rebel, and gives the film some welcome earnestness. John Travolta’s Terl and Forest Whitaker’s Ker occupy far more of our attention as the alien villains. Their exaggerated performances occasionally suggest a comic partnership that might have worked with firmer direction and less indulgence. We laughed at their shared bluster, but the joke wears thin when we are also meant to regard these figures as formidable opponents. The humans struggle to compete for our attention, leaving Barry Pepper’s determination looking increasingly thankless. Giles Nuttgens’s cinematography is persistently tilted, a choice that becomes tiring well before it becomes expressive. A slanted frame can make danger feel immediate, but using it so insistently makes it difficult to tell which moments deserve our attention. The muddy images compound that difficulty, particularly when the action becomes busy. We were irritated by the effort required to follow the fighting, because the framing keeps distracting us from it. Roger Christian provides plenty of violence without making its immediate stakes clear. Patrick Tatopoulos, responsible for both production design and costume design, supplies some of the film’s more worthwhile work. There is pleasure in the creature designs, which give the alien antagonists a physical presence that their dialogue cannot sustain. The effort to make this setting feel unlike ordinary human surroundings deserves better photography. Much of that work is difficult to appreciate amid the muddiness and frantic action, leaving the designs to make a brief impression when we need time to examine them. The screenplay by Corey Mandell and J.D. Shapiro has a more basic problem: the decisions needed to keep the story moving are difficult to believe. Science fiction can invent its own rules, but we still need to understand why people take a risk or fail to recognise one. Here, the predictable plotting and strained dialogue make the characters seem slow to grasp things simply because the next bout of action requires it. Barry Pepper cannot supply a convincing motive through determination alone. Even a broad adventure needs choices that seem to belong to the people making them. Robin Russell’s editing does little to clarify the action, and the frantic passages somehow fail to prevent the film from feeling slow. The scenes do not build enough anticipation to make the violence exciting when it comes. Elia Cmiral’s music adds emphasis where the scenes need suspense; we are still trying to work out why these confrontations matter. At 117 minutes, the film gives its thin conflict more time than it can use. Against the ordinary standards of an action adventure, these are substantial failures. Most critics have little patience for it, and we share their objections to the muddled storytelling and overplayed villains. There is enough commitment in the acting and design to make the waste dispiriting, but little reason to endure it for the occasional laugh. Do not choose it on the promise that a bad film will at least be funny. *Fi1m score 22, published 16 September 2026.* ## What the critics say The consensus on Battlefield Earth is uniformly negative: all thirteen reviews reject it, with criticism centred on confused storytelling, overplayed performances and action that becomes tedious rather than exciting. Praise is scarce and largely confined to the visuals or the possibility of camp amusement. Total Film finds something to appreciate in the creature designs and visuals. Sight and Sound singles out Travolta and Forest Whitaker’s blustering alien double act as the one element worth noting. The differences concern what, if anything, survives the muddle, rather than whether the film succeeds. Variety regards the overall look as a pleasure, while other reviews find the effects patchy or the images grubby and unclear. Travolta’s excesses similarly register as camp interest for some and an embarrassment for others. The spread remains narrow and entirely negative, with repeated complaints about ludicrous dialogue, dated science-fiction conventions and a plot whose logic fails to hold together. ### Reviews we read (13) - **Sight and Sound**, Kim Newman (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the film muddy, silly and tedious, a failed big-budget sci-fi effort that fails to match earlier genre classics like Planet of the Apes. The one element singled out for note is the campy double act between Travolta and Forest Whitaker as the blustering alien villains. [Read](http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/301) - **Time Out**, NF (30/100, inferred): The review calls the film a plodding and boring adaptation whose loud but unclear message gets lost amid violent action and effects. It singles out the overplayed bombastic performances by Travolta and Whitaker as the sneering alien villains. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/battlefield-earth) - **Los Angeles Times**, Robin Rauzi (20/100, inferred): A wholly miserable experience stuck in a dated 1970s vibe, with ludicrous dialogue, patchy effects, and an embarrassing campy performance from Travolta. In the post-apocalyptic genre it makes "Waterworld" look like a masterpiece. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-may-12-ca-29107-story.html) - **The New Yorker**, Anthony Lane (20/100, inferred): A pitiful excuse for an entertainment and the "Showgirls" of sci-fi, with a doomed campy effort from Travolta amid violence and poor effects. It functions neither as propaganda nor allegory but invites global derision. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2000/05/22/cookie-monsters) - **Total Film** (20/100, inferred): The critic sees it as silly space-panto entertainment rather than a serious blockbuster, with predictable old-fashioned plotting and stupid decisions. He singles out the creature designs and visuals for praise amid the overall failure. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/battlefield-earth-review/) - **Variety**, Dennis Harvey (20/100, inferred): An insta-camp idiot's delight and bombastic frantic "dream project" that pushes audience goodwill to the breaking point and is too dumb even for popcorn viewers. The overall look is its one non-guilty pleasure amid cliched dialogue and chaotic action. [Read](https://variety.com/2000/film/reviews/battlefield-earth-1200462322/) - **Empire**, Ian Nathan (10/100, inferred): The critic calls it a disaster of epic proportions and a dubious vanity project with an outmoded B-movie setup. He singles out the ropey script, muddled direction that rips off other films, and lack of anything to take seriously. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/battlefield-earth-review/) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (10/100, inferred): The film is awful in countless ways and unpleasant in a hostile manner, with grubby visuals, noxious characters, and a shapeless senseless plot. It is historic as a punch line for jokes about bad movies for decades to come. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/battlefield-earth-2000) - **The AV Club**, Nathan Rabin (10/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a staggeringly inept contender for the worst movie ever made, a surreal atrocity adapted from L. Ron Hubbard's novel that is uniquely terrible in its execution. Travolta's performance as the alien heavy is singled out as particularly embarrassing and career-damaging. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/battlefield-earth-1798192375) - **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (10/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as a journey into the heart of rubbish and a full-throttle adventure into the hyper-space of drivel. He notes that it incinerates what is left of Travolta's reputation and takes Forest Whitaker down with him. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/jun/02/culture.reviews) - **The New York Times**, Elvis Mitchell (10/100, inferred): An amateurish picture that may be the worst movie of the century, like the most expensively mounted high school play of all time. It has the musty feel of old sci-fi pulp with ludicrous elements and no compelling logic. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2000/05/12/movies/film-review-earth-capitulates-in-9-minutes-to-mean-entrepreneurs-from-space.html) - **Eye for Film**, Angus Wolfe Murray (20/100, inferred): The critic dismisses the film as unadulterated rhubarb that looks expensive but is disproportionately violent. Travolta relishes playing the villainous alien without regard for his fan base, while Barry Pepper leads the human rebellion. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/battlefield-earth-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) - **Collider**, Collier Jennings (10/100, inferred): The critic concludes that Battlefield Earth remains one of the worst films ever made, with flaws that have only become more pronounced over time. They single out the over-the-top acting, nonsensical plot, and relentlessly Dutch-angled cinematography for particular criticism. [Read](https://collider.com/battlefield-earth-worst-movie-25-years/) ## Details - **Director:** Roger Christian - **Director:** Roger Christian - **Screenplay:** Corey Mandell, J.D. Shapiro - **Novel:** L. Ron Hubbard - **Cinematography:** Giles Nuttgens - **Editor:** Robin Russell - **Music:** Elia Cmiral - **Production design:** Patrick Tatopoulos - **Costume design:** Patrick Tatopoulos - **Producer:** Jonathan D. Krane, Elie Samaha, John Travolta - **Cast:** John Travolta as Terl; Barry Pepper as Jonnie Goodboy Tyler; Forest Whitaker as Ker; Kim Coates as Carlo; Sabine Karsenti as Chrissy; Christian Tessier as Mickey; Sylvain Landry as Sammy; Michael Byrne as Parson Staffer - **Runtime:** 1h 57m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13 - **Release (the US):** 12 May 2000 - **Genres:** Science Fiction, Action, Adventure - **Budget:** $44 million - **Box office:** $30 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VbfuehRjpw ## Where to watch in the US - Tubi: free, hd, leaving 2026-10-01 - Amazon Prime Video: add-on - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: buy $12.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-16.* Also available in: AR, AU, BR, CA, CL, CO, MX, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor (won) - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director (won) - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture (won) - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple/Ensemble 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple/Ensemble (won) - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay (won) - Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor - Razzie Award 2000: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor - Razzie Award (won) ## If you liked this - *Planet of the Apes* (1968): Another human faces hostile rulers, with far more intelligence behind the spectacle. - *Fantastic Planet* (1973): Strange animation makes humanity’s smallness under alien rule both unsettling and persuasive. - *They Live* (1988), Fi1m 79: Alien domination makes room for blunt satire and satisfyingly stubborn human resistance. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/they-live.md) - *The Host* (2006): A creature attack becomes a family emergency, with humour that serves the fear. - *District 9* (2009), Fi1m 81: Alien creatures and human cruelty share a grubby setting with clear dramatic stakes. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/district-9.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/battlefield-earth