I had high expectations going into the theater to see “Kin.” Its trailer touted that it was from the producers of “Arrival” and “Stranger Things,” both of which I have seen and enjoyed.
I figured with a track record of quality entertainment from its producers, there could be no way that “Kin” could disappoint. Sadly, I was wrong.
“Kin” opens with the sounds of an unseen futuristic battle between two unknown parties.
Stray laser fire and explosions fill the screen in a sequence that sets the movie up for greatness, but there are some issues.
This scene contains just about all of the action and explosions that were shown in the trailer. Not a good sign, considering that none of the characters were introduced yet.
Our protagonist, Eli (Myles Truitt), a young boy who lives in present day Detroit, goes on a cross-country trip with his older brother from his adoptive family, Jimmy (Jack Reynor), to get away from an arms dealer named Taylor (James Franco).
Jimmy has just been released from prison and owes Taylor $60,000 for protection services while he was behind bars.
The pair are being followed by two futuristic soldiers that want to take back the laser rifle that Eli found at the site of the battle alluded to in the opening of the movie.
The main issue with “Kin” is that it does not know what kind of movie it wants to be.
It was marketed as a sci-fi action movie, despite being a depressing and poorly executed family drama.
The inclusion of the futuristic elements almost seems tacked on, as if the story was not good enough to begin with, and the studio executives just threw them in to spice up the story.
The weakest part of the whole movie has to be the finale. In the last 10 minutes of the movie, it is revealed that one of the futuristic soldiers takes off his mask and is revealed to be Michael B. Jordan.
Jordan’s unnamed character proceeds to drop an absurd amount of exposition on Eli in what can only be interpreted as an obvious and poor attempt to set up a sequel.
Jordan tells Eli that people from the future are coming to kill him, and that it is his job to keep him safe.
This revelation comes out of nowhere, and is jarring to say the least.
And if what Jordan described to Eli sounds familiar, it is because it is extremely similar to the plot of “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” a far superior film that I would have much preferred to watch instead of this mess.
The lone bright spot of “Kin” is Myles Truitt. “Kin” is Truitt’s motion picture debut, and his performance conveys a wide range of emotions that makes him the only character the audience can empathize with.
I am not the only one who expresses such distaste for this movie, as “Kin” currently boasts a 33 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and 5.9/10 on IMDB.com.
Please, take my advice and do yourself a favor, do not go see “Kin.”

BENJAMIN HAYLETT
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