Evolution is essentially Ghostbusters remade with aliens. It could probably be considered a copyright violation, except for the fact that both films are the work of Ivan Reitman, which just makes it lazy. The real disappointment of Evolution is all of the opportunities that it wastes - it's an OK film that could have been a really good film.

The premise is a good one - a single celled alien organism arrives via meteor capable of evolving into complex life forms in a matter of hours. The scenes showcasing these evolved aliens are the highlight of the film. Essentially, these creatures exist only to wipe out everything in their path, which is bad news for the Arizona suburb near the meteor.

The first scientists to realize the importance of the discovery are Ira Kane and Harry Block (David Duchovny and Orlando Jones). Kane is a disgraced military scientist slumming at the local community college, and Block is a fellow professor who doesn't mind the small scale of his career as long as he can coach the women's volleyball team. Visions of Nobel Prizes dance through their heads when they realize what they've found. At this point, the government arrives to screw everything up.

Julianne Moore is the only intelligent scientist involved with the government task force. She also seems to have an inner ear disorder, which makes her fall over every few minutes. It is never explained, but by the end of the film, one suspects that all of the lead actors subjected themselves to Reitman-style humiliation in order to break their own typecasting.

David Duchovny deserves a role that can highlight his intelligent wit and dry humor instead of dumbing him down for a mass audience. Throughout the film, he seems to be waiting for a chance to do something - anything remotely challenging. Instead, he gets to moon the government task force leaders. (Did Bill Murray ever have to drop his shorts in Ghostbusters?)

For the first few minutes of Evolution, Orlando Jones looks like he might manage to play a dignified black man for the first time in a lead role. Soon enough, however, he is dancing down into the aliens' lair long enough for one of the creatures to burrow under his skin. How is it removed? Anal probe, of course. (There's a definite anal theme to this film - if you get bored, try to count how many times it becomes a plot point.)

The only actor who seems completely at ease is Seann William Scott, who plays a moronic pool boy hoping to become a fireman. As long as films require young men as brain dead punching bags, Scott will have a career. If he ever wants more serious roles, however, he needs to stop taking shots to the groin - immediately.

The combination of these actors and the fine special effects could have made Evolution a huge hit. Instead, it is a quickly forgettable theater experience.