'Race to Witch Mountain' review

Carla Gugino, AnnaSophia Robb, Alexander Ludwig and Dwayne Johnson (Credit: Ron Phillips/Disney)

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With government grouches on their tail, friendly aliens Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) and Seth (Alexander Ludwig)—who look amazingly like ordinary American teens—scamper to return to their ship and save the human race. Leading the way is a cab driver (Dwayne "Dont Call Me The Rock Anymore" Johnson) who conveniently has experience with high-speed chases and full-scale butt-whipping.

The buzz: Disney's certainly no stranger to remakes—the studio even re-did "The Shaggy Dog," for heaven's sake—but this action-packed nod to 1975's "Escape to Witch Mountain" kinda looks like "The Transporter" meets "X-Files"…for kids. Can the usually reliable Johnson at least keep the film above "The Day the Earth Stood Still" in the pointless remake department?

The verdict: This "Mountain" is more like a pile of small, strange rocks that somehow landed in the same hole. The performances don't even belong in the same movie (Johnson's cheesy tough guy is the most out of sync), and contribute to a tone that veers wildly from corny to intense—and even a little scary for young ones. Points awarded for some reasonably exciting chases and for Carla Gugino classing things up as a UFO expert with just the right mix of skepticism and spunk.

Did you know? Sara explains that humans can, in fact, move objects with their minds just like aliens—we simply haven't harnessed the full capacity of our brains yet. Something for all of us to work on whenever we’re bored.

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