IMDb > City of Ember (2008)
City of Ember
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City of Ember (2008) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 29 | slideshow) Videos (see all 27 NEW)
City of Ember (2008) -- For generations, the people of the City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But Ember's once powerful generator is failing ... and the great lamps that illuminate the city are starting to flicker.
City of Ember (2008) -- Clip: What You Get Is What You Get
City of Ember (2008) -- Interview: Saoirse Ronan "On the story"
City of Ember (2008) -- To save the human race, and underground city was built to last only 200 yeaers...now time is up!
City of Ember (2008) -- Trailer: Vote for Cole

Overview

User Rating:
6.4/10   11,440 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 19% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Gil Kenan
Writers (WGA):
Caroline Thompson (screenplay)
Jeanne Duprau (book)
Contact:
View company contact information for City of Ember on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
10 October 2008 (USA) more
Tagline:
Discover The Secret more
Plot:
For generations, the people of the City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But Ember's once powerful generator is failing ... and the great lamps that illuminate the city are starting to flicker. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
3 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(58 articles)
New 'Percy Jackson & The Olympians' Poster
 (From Get The Big Picture. 31 October 2009, 2:10 PM, PDT)

The Good, The Bad And The Wtf: Let's Exploit Dead People
 (From JustPressPlay. 25 October 2009, 6:24 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Fading Ember more (62 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
David Ryall ... Chief Builder
Ian McElhinney ... Builder
Harry Treadaway ... Doon Harrow

Tim Robbins ... Loris Harrow

Bill Murray ... Mayor Cole

B.J. Hogg ... Mayor's Guard
Toby Jones ... Barton Snode
Lucinda Dryzek ... Lizzie Bisco
Matt Jessup ... Joss
Lara McIvor ... Roner
Myles Thompson ... Smat
Eoin McAndrew ... Student #1
Rachel Morton ... Student #2

Conor MacNeill ... Student #3
Lorraine Hilton ... Miss Thorn
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Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated PG for mild peril and some thematic elements.
Runtime:
90 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS
Certification:
USA:PG (certificate #43559) | Ireland:PG | UK:PG | Singapore:PG | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | Hong Kong:IIA | Australia:G | Czech Republic:U | South Africa:10M | Canada:G (Manitoba/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | France:U | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/12
Company:
Playtone more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The book sequel has been optioned, but considering the poor box-office reception of City of Ember (2008), it remains to be seen if it will be made into a film too. more
Goofs:
Continuity: After Doon and Lizzie jump through the hole and run away to escape from the giant mole, Lizzie suddenly is wearing a miners helmet. In the succeeding scene the helmet is gone again. more
Quotes:
Doon Harrow: The Builders left instructions.
Loris Harrow: The Builders abandoned us.
Doon Harrow: No, they didn't. They didn't, Dad. I have proof.
Loris Harrow: Show me.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Fred: Fred: A Star in His Own Mind (#2.5)" (2008) more

FAQ

How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
Is "City of Ember" based on a book?
What happened to Lina's parents?
more
25 out of 46 people found the following comment useful.
Fading Ember, 12 October 2008
7/10
Author: Dan Franzen (dfranzen70) from United States

At first blush, City of Ember seems like it would be a thrilling sci-fi adventure, a page out of Jules Verne's playbook, but ultimately it fails to completely scale the dizzying heights of its creative premise. The movie does deliver some intrigue and some compelling performances (not to mention some mailed-in ones), but huge lapses in logic that might be detected even by the youngest audience member prevent it from being the heart-stopping classic it wants to be.

Some 200 years ago, life on Earth was dying, and in its waning moments great physicists, inventors, and architects designed and built a huge underground city powered by a gigantic generator. The Builders, though, possess some forethought and, assuming that someday the surface will again be inhabitable, they enclosed specific instructions for the citizens of Ember to eventually escape to the sunlight. This information was placed inside a metal box and alarmed with a 200-year timer; by the end of that time, the Builders reasoned, the surface would be habitable. This box was then handed off from mayor to mayor for nearly 200 years. But, as might be expected, the chain broke somewhere along the way, and at present the box sits in a closet, its owner unknowing of its raison d'etre. So here we are, 200 years down the road, and the lights in Ember flicker occasionally, sometimes more than occasionally, and it's apparent to a few that the generator's days are numbered.

Our story focuses on two children, Lina Mayfleet (Saoirse Ronan) and Doon Harrow (Harry Treadway). At the movie's outset, each has received his and her assigned job for life - Lina as a messenger (all verbal), and Doon working in the pipeworks, where he hopes to find a way to save the generator. During the course of their duties, as the blackouts increase, each learns about the mysterious silver box, and they team up to decipher the tattered remnants of the exit instructions. Naturally, they run into complications with Doon's father (Tim Robbins) and the current mayor (Bill Murray), and just as naturally they're eventually pursued by people who'd just as soon no one ever figured out how to leave the dark city.

For the most part, the casting is on target; Ronan seems a lot more engaging and appealing here than she did just last year in Atonement, and Treadway, although looking like a refugee from High School Musical, is just as impressive. Robbins is excellent in a small, but pivotal role, as is Martin Landau (whatever became of him?) as the requisite old-guy-who-sort-of-knows-stuff. The only puzzling casting is that of Murray as the town's jovial mayor; he seems glib and cheerful enough, but it almost feels like he's being ironic, rather than being a part of the story. Often, this sort of approach makes for a hammy performance, but Murray's too subtle here for pure hamminess; he's more like a square peg in a round hole.

The lapses in logic take some willful ignorance to, well, ignore. We see various businesses and transportation, but there's apparently no police, no cemeteries, no fresh fruit. Now, bear in mind that these people have been down there for two centuries. Sure, they have a lot of canned goods, but something tells me they'd be in poor health after a lifetime of poor eating habits. Then there's the fact that everyone seems clueless about the surface. I don't mean that they don't know what's on it; they don't even know there IS a surface. Attempting to leave the city is a jailable offense, okay, but these people don't even know there's something to escape to. And that makes no sense right there. They haven't been down there for 2000 years, just 200. That means approximately nine generations after the ones who first lived there, and in often there are three generations alive at any given time. So it's not tough to imagine the tales of the outside world being orally handed down from generation to generation, tales of Super Bowls, Shakespeare, Sex and the City, and Snoopy. But apparently the first generationers vowed never to speak of their upper lives again, or something.

City of Ember is pretty fascinating and not complex, meaning it'll grab you (and, more importantly, teens and younger) and not force you to figure things out in order to keep up with the plot. Yes, there are twists and turns, but there aren't huge lapses in logic, at least nothing to dissuade you from staying through to the end. The end, by the way, is satisfying, even beautifully rendered. This might be one time (of many) to read the book, too. Or instead.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for City of Ember (2008)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
So were they down there for much more than 200 years? nathan-mcdonald-1
I liked the movie and im an adult! jon-1546
Is it me or does Ember look like Mainframe? harry_ohtori
Doon Harrow seemed constantly out of breath... XDumbledork
Lost Title of Similiar Animated Cartoon (Any input appreciated) shahmatt
My favorite part of the movie... bobbykanae
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