The reviews for Jennifer Lopez’s new sci-fi film, Atlas, are in and the verdict isn’t great.
So far, the film has earned a less-than-stellar 17 percent in Rotten Tomatoes’ 69 critical reviews, although the site has also calculated a slightly more generous audience score of 51 percent.
Some may see it as yet another loss in a rapid succession of losses for the beleaguered artist – whose This Is Me… Now tour is currently struggling due to low ticket sales.
Yet the film is still among the most-watched films on Netflix, rising to the number one spot on the streaming site’s charts shortly after its release this weekend – a position it has held ever since.
The plot follows J.Lo’s Atlas Sheperd, a beleaguered scientist who travels to a remote planet to defeat an AI bot named Harlan (Simu Liu), who was previously behind a mass destruction attack on Earth.
Jennifer Lopez’s latest venture, as the star of the sci-fi Netflix film Atlas, is being panned by critics who claim the film is full of clichés
The film follows J.Lo’s scientist character Atlas as she attempts to take down an evil AI entity named Harlan, played by Simo Liu.
Atlas continued to grow up with Harlan – who was brought to her childhood home by her scientist mother – and wove an aspect of personal revenge into the mission.
Although Atlas has harbored a lifelong distrust of AI ever since, she eventually finds herself in the position of having to ally with an AI-powered bodysuit.
By allowing the AI, named Smith, to sync with her brain – she may have a chance of surviving the desolate alien landscape – and taking down Harlan.
While a few praised the Jenny van de Block singer’s solid acting and the film’s visual effects, that wasn’t enough to impress the vast majority of critics, who ridiculed the film’s weak dialogue and clichéd storyline.
Despite negative reviews, the film has risen to number one on Netflix’s most-watched films list
‘The film reveals nothing new in a very old story about man’s touch-and-go relationship with technology. It doesn’t go as boldly as “Star Trek” has gone many times before,” wrote The New York Post“Johnny Oleksinski.
“Nothing you’ve never seen before,” Shawn Edwards repeated Fox4Kansas City.
‘What was Jennifer Lopez thinking when she agreed to star in this absurdly formulaic sci-fi action adventure? Did she even bother to read the clichéd, derivative script?’ Susan Granger wondered SSG Syndicate.
Meanwhile, viewers on Twitter were just as scathing.
“I’m sorry to say that Atlas was terrible,” one person wrote. ‘Good actors, beautiful sets and creature designs… heavy-handed writing full of butler-maid dialogue. UGH. A quick visit to the script doctor could have made it ROCK.”
I hate to say it, but Netflix’s ‘Atlas’ might be the worst ‘sci-fi’ movie I’ve ever seen. Bad across the board,” said another.
About the film’s sympathy for the potential of AI in alliance with humanity, says Erik Childress of Film Madness podcast joked sardonically, “Away to both sides AI, movie. I don’t want to upset the algorithmic overlords.”
It’s been a few years full of missteps for J.Lo.
Atlas received a score of 17% from 69 critical reviews, ranked by Rotten Tomatoes – although its audience score of 51% was slightly more generous
The panned sci-fi film isn’t J.Lo’s only misstep this year: The singer was criticized online after apparently blowing away a red carpet reporter at the Met Gala
Most recently the pop star drew online ire after apparently coming up short on the Met Gala red carpet in response to a reporter asking her what brand she was wearing.
“Schiaparelli,” she replied curtly before stepping away.
‘Her kindness shines through the screen. I’m dead,” one TikToker joked about the encounter.
DailyMail.com also reported that the On the Floor singer’s $90 million Las Vegas residency may also be “in jeopardy” due to declining sales.
She was reportedly initially offered $1 million per concert, with a total of 90 concerts scheduled, by The Park MGM Theater.
But the offer could be reduced by almost half the fee per performance.
“MGM sees how she is doing on the road. They’re very nervous,” a source told The New York Post, adding, “It’s pretty rare to have a bad tour and then go to Vegas.”
Moreover, her personal life seems to be in jeopardy as rumors swirl that her relationship with Ben Affleck is on the rocks.
J.Lo was spotted without Ben while visiting a friend in Beverly Hills over Memorial Day Weekend.
The couple also apparently took a break from each other for almost two months, as at least seven weeks went by without the couple being seen together in public.