in " the astronaut's wife , " charlize theron plays a young woman with a nervous demeanor , pixie-hairdo and demon spawn unwittingly growing in her belly . if only her name wasn't jillian , the makers of <NEG> this embarrassing bit of sci-fi shlock </NEG> could have come up with a far more appropriate title : " rosemary's species . " <NEG> what a shame it is </NEG> to see such a gifted actress as theron - oscar-worthy in " the devil's advocate " - struggle with <NEG> the lamest rip-off </NEG> of a screendom classic in recent memory . ok , maybe " the astronaut's wife " deviates from " rosemary's baby " turf for its set-up , which finds our heroine terrorized not by satan's minions but her possessed husband ( johnny depp ) , a shuttle pilot whose mission mishap leaves him , um , a changed man . predictably , he and the missus get it on in a sequence best described as unpleasant , his evil seed impregnating her with twins and realizing that great " bowfinger " line about " alien love . " theron's " advocate " character faced a similar dilemma , the horror there resonating strongly . " astronaut " <NEG> provides only artificial anxiety </NEG> . last year's equally noodle-headed " species ii " spun a similar premise about the breeding habits of an extraterrestrial on earth , but at least that movie more or less knew it was garbage . " the astronaut's wife " is <NEG> grave and humor-free , passing its increasingly silly story off </NEG> as full-fledged serious , right down to <NEG> an ambiguous finale </NEG> that isn't even going to satisfy those who've stayed with it thus far . here's a hint : it involves lots of water , electrical equipment , a special effect from " the abyss " and the tots who doubled up as adam sandler's co-star in " big daddy . " draw your own conclusions . director/writer rand ravich coats the proceedings in dynamic sights masterminded by legendary " e . t . " cinematographer allen daviau , but too often favors the film's visual presentation over the story he's trying to tell . <NEG> this bodes horribly </NEG> for each dramatic development , like the surfacing of a suspicious nasa official ( " speed " 's joe morton ) to instigate jill's slow and stupid comprehension of the truth . his hyper-erratic behavior is probably supposed to give wife a paranoid edge . instead , <NEG> he adds to the phoniness </NEG> . theron and depp are certainly beyond <NEG> this junk </NEG> and will get other chances to prove themselves this fall - she as part of an imposing ensemble case in the john irving adaptation " cider house rules , " he in the lead of tim burton's eagerly-awaited " sleepy hollow . " <NEG> undeserving of such talent </NEG> , " the astronaut's wife " manages to be <NEG> derivative , dull and uninvolving </NEG> despite its seemingly ripe potential for unintentional laughs . in space , no one can hear you scream . but in a movie theatre , everyone can hear you snore .
