Film Review: Reviewed By Trevor Johnston; 3 out of 5

Disney retools one of its 1970s live-action pictures for the digital era here, with solid if unspectacular results. Like the original Escape to Witch Mountain, this latest adventure pitches two mysterious teenagers (AnnaSophia Robb and Alexander Ludwig) at the heart of the action, though the new film is more upfront about revealing that their weirdly inflected English and supernatural powers derive from the fact that they're extraterrestrials on a mission to save their own distant planet. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, as brawny Las Vegas cabbie Jack Bruno, isn't much of an actor, but he does his best to feign surprise at encountering these interplanetary fugitives, who are also being pursued by menacing US government agents in a fleet of black cars. The movie soon settles into an extended chase, which keeps it pacey while offering opportunities for mild fisticuffs and CGI explosions, though it's never more than moderately exciting. Breezy enough as undemanding family fare it may be, but the suspicion remains that Disney could have tried just a bit harder with this one.

Plot Summary

Sci-fi fantasy starring Dwayne Johnson. A Las Vegas cab driver and an expert in extraterrestrial lifeforms team up to help a pair of teenage aliens locate their ship and return to their stricken planet before a government agent can capture them.