Since this is my first movie review post, I just want to say a few things:

One, I love my Netflix. It has enabled me to watch so many movies that I would otherwise never have seen. Like this one, The Gene Generation.

B) I try not to judge things by their cover, but like everyone else, I can't help it. It happens.

Thirdly, I like most kinds of movies, but mostly comedies and horror films. Indie and small studio films are often overlooked for their quality. Some have it, some don't, but even indie films have potential.

So, for my first movie review, I'll try to be objective and not give anything away, just in case you want to judge it for yourself.

For starters, the script leaves little to the imagination. I don't believe the actors are to blame for this, it seems they did their best to recover from the poor writing. Luckily, there wasn't as much dialog as there should have been. What I mean is that the viewer was expected to fill in the numerous gaps in the back story. At the beginning, there are few scenes with a voice-over that kind of explain why the city is in the state it is, but doesn't give enough information to make it stick. In other words, you have to be, and are, constantly reminded what the movie is actually about. At least what the plot is suppose to be.

The cinematography is wonderful, though. The camera angles aren't intrusive and are easy to watch. The city models and miniatures look really good, however the overlooks and camera sweeps of the city seem to be a lot of what you see. Little time is spent exploring the subtle aspects of, what could have been a fantastic, in depth masterpiece.

Character development was focused on the two main characters, the beautiful, graceful assassin and her brother (who pretends to be a bad ass with his one friend, but when confronted by anyone else, is a pushover). Supporting characters are flat and unoriginal: a crime boss (who reminds me of Badger from "Firefly") who does little more than bully people, the inventor (who is unconscious most of the time) and the sibling group (two brothers and a sister that pace a lot).

At the end of the movie, I was grossly disappointed. There was closure, sure, but again the writer didn't explain anything! Where was she going? What did she think was out there? WTF? Although sometimes I like these kinds of endings because it leaves a tiny amount of room for speculation, this movie dropped the ball….completely. If they had explained things during the film, or solidly at the beginning, there would be no want. Speculation is good, but only if you have something to wonder about.

In short, the only thing I was left with after watching The Gene Generation, was how bad it was and how it could have been so much better.